Designing a modern home is not easy. It takes patience, skill, and thoughtful deliberation.
But what constitutes modern home design, and how do you know if the design for your future home is modern?
What do you do if you’re unsure about the design style or are questioning just how modern it will be in the end because you’re having trouble envisioning it?
What if you had someone create a design for your future home and it turns out that they created a traditional design? How do you modernize a house design?
If you’re designing a home (either by yourself or with a designer) wondering if you’ve got a modern home design, here are some design tips and features to consider to ensure you’re on the right track and/or correct course with your modern home design.
1. Create a Straight-Forward Simple Floor Plan
One of the biggest differences between traditional and modern homes is the floor plan layout and shape of the house. You can usually tell just by looking at a floor plan if it’s a traditional or modern style.
It’s not uncommon for traditional homes to have rooms laid out in a somewhat haphazard, disorganized way. Some spaces look right with a logical progression from one space to another, but then all of the sudden it looks like whoever did the design just took whatever rooms were left over and squeezed them into the remaining gaps in the plan. So you end up with the master bedroom near the garage or the powder room on the other side of the house instead of near the living spaces where it’s more appropriate.
But with modern homes, you tend to see more intentional organization. You see a circulation axis. You see symmetry. You see rooms located in a logical manner that make sense. The resultant layout looks straight-forward and has a simple geometric form. The floor plan tends to have pure rectilinear spaces and is often organized around a circulation path, spine, or connector.
Traditional floor plan
Modern floor plan
One very apparent characteristic of traditional homes is the profile of the front facade and the ins and outs in the exterior walls. The push and pull of the floor plan at the front wall plays into the roof design of the series of pitched roofs that accentuate the front elevation. This articulation is typically not present in modern homes where you see more geometric volumes of spaces and larger sweeping roofs that encompass many spaces. Modern spaces look simple in plan and have simple forms.
Design Tips to Modernize a Floor Plan:
If you’re staring at your floor plans and they seem disorganized without much intention, see if there are ways to make the layout more straightforward.
Can you create an underlying logic to how spaces are organized? For example, does it make sense to group private spaces together along the west wall and public spaces along the east? Or can you create a service/storage zone that is a zone of space that runs through the entire plan from north to south? What can you do to be intentional about the location of your spaces?
If you have a lot of ins and outs in your plan or angles, can you square off some walls? Can you line up some walls to form bigger rectangular forms that appear simpler from the exterior? Can you stack rooms or encompass them under the same roof?
2. Create an Open Floor Plan With Flexible Spaces
Traditional homes have separate, distinct rooms boxed off from one another. The kitchen, living, and dining rooms are their own rooms.
Modern houses have open floor plans where one space flows into the next. The main living areas are typically open to each other allowing plenty of natural light to flow deeper into the spaces. This also allows more space for entertaining because there aren’t as many interior walls to define and restrict the spaces.
[Image source]
Design Tips to Create Open Flexible Spaces:
If your current floor plans have closed-off rooms and you’d like to create a more open modern space, consider opening up the spaces to each other.
Of course, you need to make sure the spaces you want to open up are next to each other. If not, you’ll have to shuffle around your floor plan to allow it. Your designer or engineer can tell you if there are any structural implications of removing walls. Depending on the framing, you may need to add a beam to support the loads above the large open area, but most of the time, this design move is well worth the effort.
Also, make sure your spaces are flexible and adaptable. With open floor plans, your spaces will be used for multiple functions. Modernize your house design and create a space layout, lighting design, and furniture layout that is conducive to multiple activities.
3. Simplify Your Roof Design
Probably the most telling characteristic of a house’s design style is its roof design.
Most traditional houses have gable or pitched roofs, while modern homes are characterized by simple modern roof forms and flat roofs.
As mentioned above, the push and pull of the floor plan that creates the in and out articulation of the exterior wall plays heavily into the traditional pitched roof design of traditional homes. This pitched roof vocabulary also starts to dictate where second-floor walls are located as they interact with the pitched roof profile so your floor plan starts to form itself simply based on the roof design.
With modern homes, however, multiple spaces are housed under one or two continuous roof forms that often cantilevers beyond the walls. This simplifies the roof, eliminates complexity, and gives you more freedom to get the floor plan right without it affecting the roof as much.
[Healdsburg Residence by Nick Noyes Architecture. Photo courtesy Nick Noyes Architecture.]
[Trentham House by Glow Design Group. Photo by Peter Clarke.]
Design Tips to Modernize a Roof:
If you have a home design with a traditional roof of pitched and gable roofs, you have two choices. The easiest choice (although also the least effective) is to keep the traditional roof profile and see if there are other ways to modernize the look of your house exterior. The other option is to re-design the roof so that it has a more modern roof design. This is a more involved process and may result in reworking the entire floor plan, but if you’re serious about creating a modern home, this should be considered.
If you’re sticking with a pitched roof, what can you do to modernize the exterior?
You’ll have your work cut out for you, but it is possible. The best strategy is to simplify as many of the roof details as possible including the eaves, roof edges, roof material and color, and gutter profiles.
Do you need the roof to extend beyond the face of the wall or can it be flush, which will eliminate the fascia and soffit board? Do you need to use the traditional K-style gutter or would a half-round or A-style gutter profile work? How can you simplify the design of the roof venting at the eaves? At the same time, work to simplify the house exterior, such as window trim, as much as you can.
4. Consider Your Window Design
Another big difference between traditional and modern homes is the window design.
Traditional homes have smaller punched opening windows typically made up of standard casement and double-hung sash windows.
Modern houses are characterized by larger expanses of glass, often entire window walls that would have traditionally existed as solid walls. Connection to the outdoors is also a big design principle for modern design. Large windows provide this opportunity, letting daylight in and providing views out.
[Pink House by Scott Posno Design. Photo by Sama Jim Canzian.]
Design Tips to Modernize a Traditional Window Design:
Whatever you can do to help the house exterior read less like standard off the shelf “punctures” of windows will be helpful.
[Waddell – Kunigk Renovation by D’Arcy Jones Architecture. Photo by Martin Tessler.]
5. Be Intentional With Storage
Having a place for everything is important in a modern house. Modern living is clutter-free living. In a modern home, thoughtful consideration is placed on how to properly store and display things. Storage solutions consist of built-in casework, cabinetry, and modern furniture systems. But what differentiates modern from traditional design is the look and style of the storage solutions.
Again, clean lines and simple detailing make up modern casework and cabinetry design. This typically consists of simple open shelving or full-faced flat slab cabinet fronts. Traditional casework, on the other hand, uses recessed panels for doors and various trim profiles, many times out of plainsawn oak.
[Pink House by Scott Posno Design. Photo by Sama Jim Canzian.
[Pink House by Scott Posno Design. Photo by Sama Jim Canzian.
Design Tips for Modern Storage Solutions:
Try to have a specific place to store all your possessions. Keep your home clutter-free and store most of your stuff out of sight.
For built-in casework, simple floor-to-ceiling shelving/cabinetry has a modern look. Flat slab cabinet door fronts with simple hardware offer clean lines and a modern design aesthetic. Avoid the recessed panels and decorative wood profiles of traditional styles. Also, if you are using wood, consider a quarter sawn cut over plainsawn to avoid the cathedral patterns associated with more dated designs.
If you opt for free-standing or modular storage solutions, there are many companies like Ikea that have modern designs. Whatever the case, keep it simple. You can’t go wrong if you select a simple design in a consistent material and look.
[Trentham House by Glow Design Group. Photo by Peter Clarke.]
6. Simplify the Architectural Detailing
Modern houses have simple clean details. This applies to both the interior and exterior design.
While traditional homes may not be overly complicated, they do have a standard vocabulary that makes them… well, traditional, or commonplace. When you think of traditional house siding, you think of vinyl. When you think of traditional window trim, you probably think of a built-up profile that consists of multiple pieces of wood. When you think of a traditional deck, you probably think of posts and railings, pickets probably.
But modern design consists of simple clean lines and minimal adornment. You won’t find complicated trim work, ceiling details or reliefs. Trim, if there is any, is modest and basic in design. Walls and ceilings are typically smooth painted finishes. And materials are simple like painted sheetrock.
Design Tips to Modernize Traditional Details:
Simplifying your home’s detailing can make a huge difference in the look and feel of your home. On the exterior, strip the home down to the essentials. Do you need all that trim and that skirting at the base? Do you need those extra wood profiles at the fascia/soffit? Or those fake supports? Can you use a different siding material or even just switch to a larger sized panel to reduce the number of course lines.
On the interior, start by simplifying the trim. This includes baseboards, door trim, and window trim. Remove or simplify them by choosing a simpler profile. Remove crown molding, chair molding, etc. If you’re using tile, consider large format tile to reduce the number of grout lines that make tiled surfaces seem busy. For stairs, consider simple details for the treads, risers, stringers, and railing systems.
When selecting windows, select ones that have a slender simple profile. For interior doors, go with a flat panel door instead of a recessed panelized door. And for cabinetry and casework, go for a simple basic design. Choose full-faced flat slab cabinet fronts with simple hardware or better yet, consider no cabinet pulls. Any way you can simplify the look of your home, the better. That granite countertop may look a little busy. Why not consider a solid surface? And those textured walls, consider a smooth finish.
7. Consider the Home’s Materiality
Modern homes incorporate materials that look streamlined and consistent as not to distract from the overall feel of the space. Whatever the material, you’ll find a simplicity and consistency in the texture and detail. This is often achieved with larger material sizes such as large-format tiles, wide planks of wood, and large uninterrupted swaths of material like concrete, glass, metal, and sheetrock.
Eliminating joints and gaps in the material (and being intentional when they do exist) simplifies the look and feel of the materials. You won’t find a lot of busy surfaces like wallpapers, knotty woods, small tiles, slender strips of wood, or carpet like you would with traditional homes.
Design Tips for Modern Materials:
On the exterior, if vinyl or fiber-cement board siding is what you’ve budgeted for, make sure you select product lines with smooth surfaces. You don’t need that faux wood look. You may also want to consider wider or larger panel sizes over narrow ones unless you specifically like the look of smaller widths like wood siding has.
If your budget allows, you may want to consider stucco for a simple smooth surface or large sheets of cement board, metal, or wood. But it really comes down to the detailing to get your modern look.
On the interior, you can’t go wrong with simple smooth finish painted drywall. It’s affordable and looks clean. Wood or concrete flooring works nicely for modern homes.
If you select wood flooring, use species and lumber cuts that have a consistent look. Quartersawn cuts have nice, straight grain patterns that lend themselves nicely to a simple modern design. You’ll get more variation with plainsawn cuts which show more of the knots and cathedral patterning, so you may want to avoid that cut of wood. As far as species go, white oak looks nice as does maple and walnut. Wider planks will have a more modern feel compared to narrow planks which look more traditional, but you’ll pay more for the wider widths.
Concrete floors are common in modern homes. They pair nicely with the glass and metal look and work best for slab on-grade installations. A simple polished finish is sufficient and the consistent color and texture create a nice look.
8. Consider a Neutral Color Palette
Modern interiors are light and airy. Spaces are clean and fresh with a heavy dose of natural daylight. Typically, paint colors consist of light, neutral colors with a few accents. Because modern design uses a lot of large windows, outside views tend to play a role in the interior color palette.
While traditional homes may also have a light color palette, they often consist of light browns and creams, which don’t easily work with a modern aesthetic.
[Image source.]
Design Tips for a Modern Color Palette
Of course, the right color palette will depend on your personal tastes, furnishings, and artwork. But to achieve a modern look, sticking to a light color palette will help on the interior. As far as paint colors go, whites and grays are a good modern choice and go nicely with many modern materials. You can add a bright, bold accent color if you’d like, but be careful that the color is complementary and well-balanced in the space.
One interesting feature in modern homes is that because of the larger windows, often the outside views play a role in the interior color palette. For example, with views of the forest outside, maybe you pull the green color in.
Color on the exterior is largely dictated by the material selection of the siding. But if you have options when choosing colors, many modern homes stick to the whites, grays, blacks, and a wood variety.
For tile floors and walls, avoid the brown and cream colors. That goes for grout color too. Same with countertops – avoid the granite or brown tones. Instead, consider a solid quartz material or even stainless steel or wood.
9. Be Selective in Choosing Fixtures, Furnishings, and Accessories
A conversation about modernizing a home’s look wouldn’t be complete without touching on the fixtures, products, and accessories that stylize the home. Again, modern homes are clean and simple. Nothing screams traditional like dated light fixtures, appliances, and home furnishings. Modern products have clean lines. They’re sleek and they’re simple, nothing excessive or over the top.
One thing to mention is that everything in modern homes has been intentionally located and aligned. Things line up in a modern home – meaning registers are centered in the floor or wall under windows. Outlets and light fixtures are evenly spaced on walls and ceilings. Bathroom accessories and shower fixtures are centered on tile or tile joints. Cabinetry modules align in kitchens. Locations for pretty much everything in the home have been thoughtfully considered.
Design Tips To Modernize Your Home’s Interior
This is a very large, all-encompassing category to consider when modernizing your home. Pay close attention to all the products you select and make sure you’re selecting items that are simple and modern. Even the type of hardware finish should be deliberately chosen. Satin nickel and stainless steel are nice modern finishes, but depending on the style other finishes can look modern also.
So as not to forget many of the items to consider, here’s a running list of items that should be thoughtfully selected with modernism in mind:
- kitchen & laundry appliances
- light fixtures
- plumbing fixtures
- light switches, cover plates, etc
- mechanical registers/vents
- hardware (door pulls, cabinetry hardware
- bathroom accessories (towel rods, racks, holders)
- shower enclosure/hardware
- and don’t forget the furniture and home decor
Also, note that there is a big trend in modern lighting design away from the single light hanging from the center of the ceiling. Now, the trend is for more varied and adjustable fixtures that consist of multiple recessed ceiling lights or wall lights on dimmers as well as task lamps. Remember, modern homes have open layouts. One fixture in the center of the space doesn’t make much sense any more. In these larger spaces, multiple light fixtures work best especially when the activities vary in the spaces. Having the ability to adjust the lighting is key to a comfortable space. So, instead of having one light in the middle of your ceiling, consider multiple fixtures in your open concept plan.
Bottom Line:
Keep it simple in space layout, materials, detailing, and furnishings.
As you work to design your modern home, keep the aforementioned tips in mind. Careful attention to these principles will help ensure that you’re on the right track with your modern home design.
And if you really want to make sure you get the kind of modern house that you want, you can always hire a design expert like us to help with the design or provide consultations. Contact us today for help with your modern design. We’d be happy to help you.
Outstanding post.