We are currently seeing a shift away from stark modern interior trends toward Modern Traditional, a style that embraces the comfort and richness of classic furniture and decor— rebranded to avoid the word “beige” or “traditional”—while incorporating clean, contemporary lines.
The other day I received an email from a follower who said “Maria, Do you do much with modern traditional or scandinavian type designs?” It got me to thinking, are we just as allergic to the word traditional as the word beige?
Right now, everyone seems to avoid saying ‘beige,’ in this new trend calling it ‘warm neutrals’ or even ‘the Cashmere Kitchen’ instead.
Traditional furniture is trending
As mid-century modern has dominated interiors for the past 15 years, it’s no surprise that traditional furniture is making a comeback.
It’s been downright tough to source off-the-shelf upholstered chairs, counter stools, or dining chairs with classic lines when so many options have been skinny, pencil-legged styles.
Gorgeous Traditional English Roll Arm Chair in a traditional room by Ben Pentreath
Lamps are not old fashioned
Even lamps seem to get the cold shoulder. A friend confessed recently that he steers clear of anything that looks like a ‘traditional lamp’ with a shade because it reminds him of his grandmother’s house.
Maybe it’s time for a rebrand—is ‘lamp’ the new word we’re all avoiding? Here’s a secret:
There are two reasons lamps may seem old-fashioned in your home. First, most rooms simply don’t have enough lamps. One or two metal or beige-shaded fixtures don’t create the inviting lighting that makes a room glow. Second, balanced lighting matters. For example, if you have a sofa against the wall with just an end table lamp, try adding a swing-arm lamp to distribute the light more evenly.
What is modern traditional?
Back to modern traditional, here’s how AI describes the difference:
Modern Traditional design blends the classic, cozy elements of traditional decor—like rich colors, ornate moldings, and timeless patterns—with cleaner lines, contemporary furnishings, and a pared-back approach from modern aesthetics.
Traditional style is rooted in history, featuring warmth, detail, and elaborate craftsmanship; think wood furniture, floral fabrics, and symmetry. Modern Traditional embraces moody, layered spaces and mixes in modern lines, functional furniture, and updated accessories—with less formality and more playfulness than pure tradition.
This style lets you enjoy the richness of tradition while still keeping rooms fresh and relevant, often by balancing deep tones and luxe textures with sleek, contemporary pieces.
Fun to think about: “modern” styles are now historical (think modernism/ mid century modern). What’s currently “new” is more accurately referred to as “contemporary”. And time is left to sort out what sticks as a new classic, and what fades away as a bad trendy experiment. (I’m looking at you, long linear fireplace.)
Yes you can mix modern and traditional
Definitions aside, while my home is a mix it definitely leans traditional. My Director of eDesign and artist Tricia Firmaniuk brings the modern piece to our design team, here is a glimpse of her beautiful living room when she first moved in to her new 70s modern house.
Warm neutral walls: Sherwin Williams 7555 Patience – Pale Pink Beige chosen to match the drapes
Notice that the lamps with empire shades don’t look out of place here? By the way it’s lamp season, it will be dark very early in just a couple weeks, get my Styling School Lamp Module here, you’ll discover how many lamps you actually need to love your living room and kill those overheads. Shop here.
One more thing, modern doesn’t have to mean stark. Which is exactly why we’re course correcting away from stark and minimal modern trends towards a warm traditional/modern mix. Everyone wants more comfort in their rooms.
In our eDesign consultations, we have a detailed questionnaire and ask you to send in a few inspiration images to get a sense of your style. We work to help you create a timeless and versatile envelope in your permanent choices for kitchens, flooring and bathrooms.
Making sure the direction suits the style of your home in a timeless way. So that you can express your style in decorating to find the perfect mix that suits you. You can check out our packages here.
Where do your decorating preferences fall on the spectrum from contemporary through modern and traditional? Are you finding yourself drawn to warmer palettes and more layered looks lately?
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I do like the new direction interiors are taking, hopefully not just because it’s trendy. We are in an old house with a decidedly rustic style and I am really enjoying a sort of streamlined traditional decor, with bits of modern mixed in. I’m no maximalist and appreciate a less busy or ornamented look, yet never monochromatic! And I really love a lot of traditional furniture styles.
Maria, to answer your question, I have always leaned to warm color palettes and furnishings and layering decor. I have never been a big fan of cold leaning contemporary spaces for myself but I can appreciate the aesthetic. I read a lot of interior design related articles and what I am tired of is people claiming design style, type of furniture or color is timeless without considering the importance of context and architecture. While some designs are timeless like interior arches, but interior arches aren’t timeless in every home.
I’m not finding myself drawn to warmer palettes and layered design. I have ALWAYS been drawn to those and always will be. Maybe because I’m a Southerner. Great article!
My tastes lean towards traditional (with warm neutrals), so I’m happy to see this shift! Our color palettes (I love color) are more “dirty” (to put it in your terms, Maria), not “clean” as your home is. But I do love your home, and it suits you perfectly! Thanks for the lovely inspiration photos. Tricia home, while not exactly my aesthetic, is really gorgeous and comfortable looking 🙂
So incredibly excited you featured my question! since I found you I want to dive in to all you have to teach. Luckily I get to start out with things to try to cordinate. but a blank slate is not easy either.