How to Add Midcentury Modern Flair to Your Home

Incorporate Wall Paneling, Bold Accents, and Geometric Lines to Capture This Popular Design Style

Midcentury modern is an architectural and interior design style that surged in popularity after World War II. Architects and designers wanted to develop something that reflected the country’s optimism while maintaining an efficient process that utilized mass production.

Rather than focusing on frills and ornate detailing, midcentury modern took the opposite approach with furniture and décor. Simplicity, geometric lines, and functionality became the main hallmarks of this new approach.

Many homeowners seeking a streamlined look and feel find incorporating midcentury modern elements simplifies their space on numerous levels. In this blog, we’ll explore how wall paneling, raw materials, geometric shapes, and bold accent colors can add some midcentury modern flair to your home.

The Main Characteristics of Midcentury Modern Explained

Before you start shopping for 3D wall panels, new furniture, and accent pieces that provide pops of color, it’s important to familiarize yourself with midcentury modern’s main elements.

Materials: Concrete, steel, glass, vinyl, and wood. Oak, walnut, rosewood, and teak are the most frequently used wood species. The combination of natural and manmade materials is one of the distinguishing characteristics of midcentury modern design.

Accents: Midcentury modern is known for its use of bold accent pieces. Blush pinks, mustard yellows, sages, teals, and vibrant reds are great for adding pops of color.

Shapes and lines: Stick with simple, geometric lines and patterns. Slat or reeded wood paneling for walls, for example, is a great way to add a touch of midcentury modern to your space. Avoid ornate and elaborate designs.

Purpose: Function over fashion. Furniture and décor should be simple, clean, and useful. Most pieces featured in midcentury modern design are utilitarian.

Ways That You Can Incorporate Midcentury Modern Design Elements, Including Updated Versions of Wall Paneling

What people have always loved about midcentury modern design is that it’s easy and relatively inexpensive to incorporate. By avoiding highly ornate and ostentatious pieces in favor of simple and straightforward furniture and décor, homeowners generally find that the cost of redecorating isn’t as much as expected.

Try these ideas to embrace midcentury design in your home:

Decorative wall panels: Most walls are a blank canvas contributing very little to a home’s overall look and feel. By incorporating 3D wall panels, you can add a touch of texture and visual appeal.Wood paneling for walls is available in oak, walnut, and other species to deliver the essential natural element midcentury modern is known for. Plus, the clean vertical lines featured in wall panels offer an appealing visual.

Midcentury modern furniture: If you’re due for a furniture upgrade, you’ll find no shortage of midcentury modern designs developed over the decades. Many famous architects and craftsmen made notable contributions to midcentury modern homes and furniture. Some of the most popular examples include:

• Bertoia chair
• Platner armchair
• Florence Knoll sofa
• Eero Saarinen Tulip table
• Noguchi coffee table
• Egg chair
• Wassily chair
• Barcelona chair
• Eames lounge chair

Word of warning – there are several expensive pieces out there. Don’t feel like you have to go with the designer option. If you keep searching, you can find midcentury modern furniture that uses high-quality materials, is structurally sound, and affordable.

Bold accent pieces: Accent pieces are the decorative items in your space that showcase your personality and style. Because midcentury modern design embraces simplicity and muted tones, your accent pieces play a more prominent role in livening up the space with bold pops of color.

Our recommendation is to finalize your selection of major pieces first. After you are set on tables, chairs, bookshelves, and a couch, accentuate the space using rugs, pillows, and decorative items.

Remember, color sets the mood in the room. For example, blues and greens create a tranquil vibe, while bright yellows, oranges, and pinks elevate and excite. Take a thoughtful approach to how you incorporate color so that it’s effective without overpowering the space. Balance is key.

Time to Embrace Midcentury Modern

Midcentury modern design has maintained its popularity with homeowners because it’s approachable, easy to implement, and showcases homes in a simple, yet satisfying way. The clean lines, elegant combination of materials, and bold accents work in concert to assemble a visually appealing and mood-enhancing final product.

Get started today by picking out your decorative wall panels and major pieces of furniture. After that, you can experiment with the mood of your room using bold accent pieces and décor. Accomplishing an authentic midcentury modern look and feel is a process, so it’s best to start with one room before moving on to others.