30 Modern Design Trends That Are Outside The Box

Every individual has a unique style. As good as you know yourself, though, it can be hard to commit to one interior design style. There are many different types, such as modern design, traditional, and farmhouse.

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No matter what you choose, you will want to browse different designs for inspiration. These are some of our best modern interior designs for those who have chosen the contemporary feel that modern designs offer.

These modern designs will show you what’s trending and what minor changes you can make to capture their essence.

It’s Time For A Modern Design Change

Modern Design Trends

Modern interior designs are all about change. Taking your living space and making it better, more unique, and catered to your taste. One of the most inspiring things you can do with your new room is add signs and decor with your favorite words.

Being around words like, happy, love, and change can make a significant impact on how you feel. This room is particularly inspiring because of the way it incorporated the feel-good word into the modern design.

Wreaths are fresh and inviting! Pair it with a sleek, modern couch, and you have yourself a fun yet homey living room.

Shapes Make Things Modern

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The first thing you’ll notice about modern designs is the shapes within them. From hexagons to circles, it seems every modern interior design is cluttered with sharp corners or dedicated spheres. Modern designs don’t usually focus on soft edges. 

This modern living room has hexagon accents made in multi-colored metals. It also adds yellow as the focus color, which mellows out the room while being as festive as ever. This is a shape-focused living room done right.

Boho Rugs Go With Everything

modern design

You don’t need an expert to tell you that boho is in. Moroccan poufs and beaded curtains are all the rage. But not everyone has adopted a taste for it.

However, you can add some of the peacefulness that boho adds with a few simple touches. 

This room has put a huge, bright boho rug in the center. The circular form brings the eye inward, and the colors are bright yet sophisticated. While you can find boho rugs with softer colors, there’s something about bold ones that are truly special.

Neon Lights Are Making A Modern Design Comeback

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For decades, neon lights covered every wall in every bar and modern home. Starting in the 1940s, neon lights were a staple for every modern design available. Although the trend faded for a few years, it seems to be coming back in full force.

This room chooses softer, neutral tones as a backdrop for the neon lights, which happens to be added to a mirror, making it all that much more impactful. This is a room that would be a hot spot in the 1970s and beyond.

Modern Art Is What You Make It

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People love to talk about their knowledge of modern art. But in reality, modern art can be anything you want it to be. Every modern interior design is modern art. When you think of it that way, it’s easier to express yourself as if you’re creating an original painting.

If you don’t know where to start, finding a piece of art that inspires you can help you create an entire modern interior design. People often base their designs on single items. Why not make that item a work of art?

Wide-Plank Walls Are Trending

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If you can go bold enough to paint your wall a bright color, you can do anything. Wide-plank walls and paneling are a great place to start. Interior modern designs often have feature walls. These walls will have a mural or unique color. They stand apart from the other walls in a room. 

The best part about using a feature wall is that you can put your favorite piece of furniture there, and no one will be able to keep their eyes away from it. These chairs are unique, and the feature wall does everything to help highlight that.

Marble Isn’t Just For Floors

modern design

While you may see marble primarily on floors or countertops, don’t let that fool you. Marble is a perfect accent in modern designs. You can find furniture with marble tops, legs, or made with solid marble.

This room is simple enough, but with the marble tables added, it looks like a million bucks. That’s the beauty of modern interior designs. All it takes is one piece to make the value of the room skyrocket.

Turn The Cord Mess Into Something Spunky

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Cords are one of the hardest things to deal with in any home. However, not many interior designs allow you to utilize that mess and turn it into something beautiful.

When you choose modern interior designs, you choose an easy way to turn a mess into a piece of art.

This room showcases that ability by taking the cord from this simple light and showing what can be done with it. You can copy this exact design or invent your own.

You can even rearrange the pathway to incorporate holiday modern designs. 

Commit To A Piece Of Art
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It’s easy to clutter your walls with all of your favorite art. But in modern interior designs, sometimes it’s best to commit to one piece and let it be showcased in your home. Choose one piece for each room and set it at the average eye height. 

This living room went with a unique piece of art that is as interpretive as it is gorgeous. They brought out the yellow by adding gold accents around the room. Dedicating yourself to gold rather than silver is a great way to make a statement. 

Plant-Based Everything 

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If you’ve ever been to the West Coast, you’ll notice that there are plant-based options everywhere. From food to clothes, everything is plant-based. That’s why plant-based rooms are trending in modern interior designs. Bamboo furniture is trendy as are house plants. 

This room even offers a feature wall that is covered in tropical leaves. What’s great about this type of wallpaper is that you can choose your style. You can go country-modern, tropical, or vintage-modern. 

Mirrors, Mirrors Everywhere

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One of the best ways to make your space look bigger is to add mirrors at choice spots in your room. Adding mirrors across from the doorway is a great choice.

If you don’t like looking at reflections or feel it’s cluttery, you can replace the mirrors with glass, adding another ambiance. 

The mirror in this room accents the plants and modern designs of the furniture, giving it a modern feel. The wood frame of the mirror blends in well with the table and bedframe, making sure that your focus is on other things.

These Lights Deserve An Award

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There’s nothing that will make your room stand out more than unique lights. While actual lighting is important, the way that the lighting is displayed is important too.

This is especially true in modern designs as they focus on depth and contrast. 

This room is absolutely awestriking. The lights are unique and fluttering. The walls draw the eye up and out. Not to mention, blue furniture is stunning. But aside from the lights, the real winner here is the modern fireplace. 

The Jack And Jill Everyone Is Talking About

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The best part about a Jack and Jill bathroom is not only having room for two but sharing time with your loved one. Often, these bathrooms will be cramped, with two small mirrors on the wall.

This bathroom takes the cake with the flat-bottomed bowl sinks and an ongoing mirror. A mirror-like this is the perfect way to make your bathroom look bigger. They are connected and almost reach the ceiling, a key feature in a modern design like this.

Take It For Granite

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Granite will never stop being amazing, especially in modern interior designs. It works well with any kitchen and will automatically bring the value of your home up. There’s not a better investment for a kitchen than granite countertops. 

The way that these black granite countertops contrast with the lighter color of the cabinets makes it special. Contrast can make a room look high-end without any special effort. 

Make That Shabby Chic Sleek

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If you’re into shabby chic but want to incorporate it into modern designs, then take a look at this. Rugs like these that look faded but are stark give you a touch of shabby. If you use sunken button furniture, you automatically have a chic look. 

There’s nothing shabby about this room, but it’s the chicest and most elegant one you’ll see today. The colors fit perfectly with the design, and the gold furniture is not something you’ll find just anywhere. 

Natural-Cut Stone Will Make Your Room Pop

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Natural-looking stone may seem like it belongs in the stone age, but it’s always trending in modern interior designs. Stone-textured walls and marble or granite desks can do wonders for the room’s elegance. 

This sitting room is gorgeous! The blue fringed furniture is unique, and the stone-cut desk is built into the wall. While this type of room is generally expensive, you can fit the ambiance into any budget. 

More Than Open-Concept

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Open concepts are the going thing in modern designs. They make houses look bigger and give you more space to work. But you can step things up a notch with a few simple tips.

Try adding glass cabinet doors, for one. This kitchen has a glass wine cooler and open walls. Both of these things make the room look much bigger.

Floating Bathrooms Are The Newest Trend

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Floating bathrooms are trending in modern interior designs, and it’s obvious why. The standard built-in tub is boring compared to a floating one like this. If your frame is white or clear, the floating feature is even more intense.

In this case, the frame is black, which makes the white stand out. The sink and tub match, giving the entire bathroom a theme.

White Wash Can Be Modern Too

modern design

While you may assume white-washed furniture and floors are solely for the farmhouse, they’re definitely not. Whitewash can go with any style, including modern designs. All you have to do is add modern pieces around it.

Although whitewash can be modern, it’s important to add more overtly modern pieces to accentuate the modern features of the whitewash. That’s exactly what’s been done here. 

Pick Your Pop Of Color

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If you want to make a color stand out and not overwhelm a room, try going for neutral colors throughout and adding one piece of colorful furniture. This furniture can be a small footstool or a couch, it doesn’t matter.

In this room, the designers decided to go with a black and white theme. Then, they added a simple blue chair that looks as inviting as can be.

Keeping It Zen 

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The most peaceful colors that you can use in your modern interior design are blue, white, and light-colored wood. The wood keeps it natural, the blue reminds one of calming waters, and the white keeps distractions away. 

While you can get by with simple modern designs with these colors, it’s fun to personalize. Adding house plants and unique furniture can make you feel at home. 

Wood Can Go In The Bathroom

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Forget what you’ve been told about wood in the bathroom. These days, you can get waterproof wood that will make your bathroom as unique as you are. Add a shelf, wall art, or even a rare wood-accented bathtub.

This bathroom has a special quality you may not notice at first. It was placed in the private master bedroom. The new trend of adding a bathtub to your bedroom is old school but works well in modern designs. 

Go Bold With Bright Walls

modern design

If you don’t want to add a feature wall, but you still want the personality it has, consider painting all of your walls your favorite color. Although you can do this in the kitchen or living room, it works best in the bedroom because that’s where you need to relax the most.

This aquamarine color is ever-popular and with good reason. The boldness of the color is fun, while the beachiness of it is calming. There’s not a better pair than bold and calming!

Throw Pillows Are Never Leaving

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Throw pillows have always been and will always be trending. Almost every design style utilizes throw pillows, but none do it better than modern interior designs. With this type of design, you can choose a spunky pattern or keep it simple with your favorite accent color.

The blue color chosen for these pillows really stands out. The color isn’t bold, but it’s one of the more popular baby blue colors popular in kitchens. These colors work best on white couches.

Koi Fish Offer Good Luck

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Koi fish are like yin and yang. They offer a peacefulness with your fortune. While you don’t need a live koi fish, using one as your inspiration can pan out no matter what modern design decorations you choose.

This room is covered in koi fish colors, traditionally orange, black, and white. What most people don’t know is that koi fish aren’t just good luck omens, but they also can live to be over 200-years-old. 

Turn The Extra Room Into A Home Theater

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This year, more than likely, that guest room has not been used. Convert it into your happy place! A home theater is an affordable and trendy way to go. Every modern design deserves a room like this.

Not only does this room have a projector, but the colors are non-distracting, and the chairs lay down like beds. Spend all day and night here and feel like you belong.

Make The Most Of Your Space

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Just because you have a studio apartment doesn’t mean you can’t have a bedroom, living room, and office. Using half walls and slats is a great way to divide rooms while saving space. Adding pullout beds and tables is also a space saver.

This apartment is relaxing with live plants and bamboo slats to desperate the kitchen from the rest of the apartment. Modern interior designs like this are inspiring to those living in small spaces that feel trapped. 

Mix And Match Furniture 

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The definition of eclectic is to mix and match styles. That’s why so many people opting for modern interior designs go with eclectic furniture. You can shop around for different pieces that inspire you without them having to match.

This living area has neutral chairs and a gorgeous blue couch. The wood paneling with a circular window is quite 70s, which was the age of eclectic furniture. 

Perfect Teen Rooms Start With One Color

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At times, it seems like teenagers invented modern interior designs. They love bold colors, sharp edges, and are always looking for what’s trending. So it’s not a surprise to hear that teenagers are often found with modern designs in their bedroom.

This teen room, in particular, is a perfect modern design for a dorm room. With folding desks and twin-sized bed frames, you can keep your roommate in mind. But don’t worry if you’re not a teen and this room inspires you. We all long to be young at heart.

Don’t Forget To Be You

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Being yourself doesn’t have to mean having one of the flashiest modern interior designs in the country. It means staying true to yourself. This relaxing dining or meeting area proves that you can have an upscale room to rave about without sacrificing comfort. If playing cards is what you enjoy, then make that your focus.

Modern designs are specifically for those who are progressive. Those who aren’t afraid to step outside of what’s trending and make their living space into something that makes them smile.