To create a simple modern home design, you need to get the window details right. Choosing your interior window trim details is a tough decision and one that speaks volumes to the overall interior design aesthetic of your home.

When thinking about the window design of a project, consider how windows integrate into the larger structure of the walls. There are a lot of variables at play that can dictate this relationship: the thickness of the walls or window frames, the type of window frame, and the interior design style you’re trying to achieve.

This relationship is important for any home design, but it’s even more important for simple modern homes where developing a clear logic for the interior window trim is crucial in unifying the modern space.

What follows are 5 simple modern interior window trim details for your home design.

1. Flat Stock Trim
2. Drywall Returns
3. Jamb Extensions & Thin Trim
4. Reveal
5. No Trim

1. Flat Stock Trim

2. Drywall Returns

Drywall returns are also another simple, affordable option for interior window detailing. This no-hassle way of trimming your window involves returning a piece of drywall back into the window opening – eliminating the need for trim or complicated reveals and saving on finish carpentry costs.

What’s nice about this detail is that it still creates a nice clean window opening when properly installed. The detail calls attention to the opening itself and window frame because the wall just wraps into the opening.

[Passive House Retreat by ZeroEnergy Design. Photo by Greg Premru.]

It’s important to note that drywall is not a highly durable material. It can and will get dented, scratched, and abused with normal wear. Because the drywall is returning into the window opening, the perimeter corners are an especially vulnerable point. Installing drywall corner beads are a must if you want to ensure to maintain a nice crisp corner at the return.

Additionally, if you intend to use the window sill frequently, you may want to consider a more solid wood sill in lieu of drywall.

Another (more durable) variation and a more expensive one is to feather in an MDF trim piece flush with the drywall and tapered to allow the drywall mud to conceal the transition between drywall and MDF. The finished look would be the same as the typical drywall return, but you would have a more solid wood perimeter that would hold up better with normal wear and tear.

3. Jamb Extensions & Thin Trims 

A jamb extension is an interior piece of trim that extends the full depth of the wall. Typically, it matches the material of the window frame and gives the impression that it’s actually an extension of the window frame, hence the name. This also gives you a clean simple look but will cost a little more than the options above because there’s more material and more complexity to install.

You can also create a similar detail with a material or color that is different from the window frame. In opting for this trim detail you’d want the thin trim piece to be consistent with other interior detailing in the room. So if you want to have thin wood trim around your windows like the photo to the right below, then you may want to use the same wood somewhere else in the room, perhaps for shelving or stair detailing.

[Boerum Hill House by Jordan Parnass Digital Architecture. Photo by Frank Oudeman.]

[Villa G by Krads Architecture. Photo by Runolfur Geir Guobjornsson.]

There are a lot of customization options for jamb extensions and thin trims that still yield a clean modern look. For example, you can choose the visible thickness of the jamb extension (the edge band that you see from the room). You can also have a flush detail or have the trim piece extend beyond the face of the drywall, with or without a reveal piece.

4. Reveal

[Larkin Street Residence by John Maniscalco Architecture. Photo Courtesy John Maniscalco Architecture.]

5. No Trim

Let’s not forget that if you’re using large window walls that go floor to ceiling, you have the option to forgo trim, reveals, and drywall returns altogether. In these cases, the window and door systems are fully integrated into the wall structure and give the appearance of an “opening” rather than a window. Designing for a home with this design vocabulary isn’t easy or cheap, but it can make the efforts worth it. 

[Tea Houses by Swatt | Miers Architects. Photo by Tim Griffith.]

Whether you choose flat stock trim, drywall returns, jamb extensions, reveals, or no trim at all, what’s most important about your window trim design package is that the details are coordinated with the rest of the interior detailing of your home for a consistent look. As you’re making your decision, make sure you also have a discussion about the base trim, the interior door trim, and the cabinetry design and detailing at the same time. To create a simple modern home aesthetic, all these details should be thought through and deliberately chosen.

If you liked this article, you might also like Modern [Exterior] Window Details.

[Feature image credit: Jeremy Levine via Flickr.]