The Dramatic Appeal of Mid-Century Modern Home Design

This year mid-century modern design is sweeping through homes from Virginia to California, and the inspiration seems to stem from the unique twist of combining modern furnishings with those from the mid century to create a décor motif in homes that is both invigorating and impressive.
There are many different design themes that can be found in homes, and there are some defining characteristics of mid-century modern home design that capture the feel of a long-ago modernism.

First of all, teak wood is used as part of this design because it invokes a feeling of natural warmth and a strength that wood can provide. The teak is said to provide a pleasant backdrop to the colors and textures that are used in a home that is decorated with this motif, and the mid-century modern design relies on the teak wood to give the home a basis of calm serenity in a world that seems a bit crazier every day. Fiberglass is also popular in homes that are lavishly draped in this type of theme as well.

A streamlined look is the epitome of the mid-century modern look. This is often thought to be the most noticeable feature of the design. Furniture that was made before the 1950s often was curvy but still sleek and not overly cluttered up with too much detail. Smooth lines in the middle of the century became prevalent in a country that wanted to make things as simple as possible, and the furniture that is associated with this era is very distinct because of the simple stream-lined look of the pieces. The whole idea was simplicity.

Other trends in this type of home décor include the wide popularity of materials that had not really been used much previously with furniture. These included Plexiglass, Lucite, and even plastic. These man-made materials quickly found a home with the pieces that are the basis of this style and were used on table tops as well as used for entire furniture pieces such as chairs and ottomans.


And finally another telltale characteristic of the mid-century modern look is the use of many different textures and colors. The blending of the contemporary style with a variety of colors and textures compliment the simple décor very well, lending balance between the bold and the bright with the earth-toned teak and the simplistic creativity that mid-century modernism represents as the fullest and richest of interior trends.