What is your dream home? Which interior design style defines you? As designers, we are constantly guiding our clients to answer these questions. So today we’re guiding you.
You probably have heard tons of ideas. In your research of designing your home, you have probably come across different interior design styles such as “traditional,” “modern,” “farmhouse,” and many others. We understand how confusing this can be. So, this is why we put together a list of the most common interior design styles. Now, it’s your turn to figure out the right one or suitable combinations for you.
1. Art Deco
“Sophisticated”
This interior design style can be bold, opulent, symmetrical, and sharp—B.O.S.S. So, you’d be seeing bold and balanced motifs, sharp angles, and streamlined lines. Deco interiors often focus on patterns, making it a key element to achieve this look. Widely used patterns include leaves, branches, and feathers; trapezoids, chevrons, and zigzags; stylized animals and nudes; sunbursts, and jagged, stepped, or pointed edges that are reminiscent of skyscrapers. Colors are often paired or punctuated with high-shine silver, chrome, or black accents. Thus, the art deco style is also sleek but not minimal. If you’re into that kind of sophisticated look, then this is the design for you.
Here is a good example we did before for a client if you want to see the luxurious lines and glitz and glamor of an Art Deco design.
2. Asian / Zen
We must know that home interior design dramatically impacts our everyday lives. Asian / Zen is the style if you want to set the tone of your house with calmness and tranquility.
Asian style is primarily inspired by the colors of nature—mimicking scenic landscapes or the soothing sound of flowing water on stones. See organic and natural ingredients like bamboo blinds, paper lanterns, river rocks, tatami mats, scented candles, and huge windows that let in natural light. Things are brought down to their most basic form. Nothing is superfluous and has no room for clutter. These elements are balanced to radiate a special kind of peace and tranquility.
If you feel you want that tranquil feel for your home, this is a project we did in the past for one of our clients.
3. Boho
If you have a carefree and adventurous spirit of the avant-garde lifestyle, then this design is for you. It gives a “messy” but artistic vibe inspired by a traveling gypsy lifestyle of getting things from all over the world and layering it all together. So, anything you’ve collected through your life, exhibit it.
A boho style does have some common themes, like the creative application of rich patterns and bold colors, especially those with ruby, purple, and gold tones. There’s not much structure, but it has a lot of carefree layers of pattern, texture, and color. The design rules of boho are that there are no rules. Bohemian style is an attitude, and, in most cases, anything goes as long as you love it.
Boho is beautiful, and if you want to see more of it, here is one of our Boho projects.
4. Coastal
Does water make you feel calm and serene? Then this style is for you.
The Coastal style uses natural wood and a fresh airy palette with tan, white, cream, blue and turquoise colors. This lets light reflect off the water and curtains that can blow in the breeze. Top it off with water elements like seashells, starfish, seahorses, and similar things. Put simply, a beach vibe.
Always popular in Florida, especially along the Emerald Coast community. This is one of several of the many Coastal style designs we have done.
5. Contemporary
If you want to play around with different combinations on your interior and inject modernism, this one’s for you.
A bit of minimalist style is injected and thus has an open-space feel. It includes curved or curvilinear lines that focus on the material used. You can see reflective surfaces like metals, glass, and exposed woods. You can disregard anything heavy or complex patterns. Contemporary can have bold starkness, and it can stay with a stricter palette of monochromatic black, white and gray.
If you’d like to see more examples of Contemporary design, here is one of our projects.
6. Eclectic
While boho style sticks to messy patterns, eclectic style artfully transforms it to attain its unique form. One must be very careful in using this style as there’s only a thin line between being eclectic and a total mess. In a nutshell, it is pretty much about creating coordination in the background and coherence in your space with the elements of different styles.
Tip: Eclectic style should be applied to your whole house and not just some parts of the house. Use the same patterns and textures but different colors or the other way around throughout your space. You wouldn’t want your home to look like a garage sale, would you?
If you feel your tastes go in different directions and wondered if you could unify them, you can check out this project we had for someone who thought the same.
7. Farmhouse
From the name itself, you already know what it radiates. Initially, it focuses on functionality and essential materials such as wood, iron, and steel.
Classic farmhouse leans more into some rustic elements of what you’d expect. So, you start to see things like shiplap, exposed wood beams, wood floors, butcher block countertop, leather, and shades of white and neutrals. You can incorporate a monochromatic color palette, natural lighting, and clean lines to turn it into a modern farmhouse look.
Farmhouse interior design style is always a classic while remaining trendy and popular. If you want to see more Farmhouse designs to help you make your choice, here is one of our projects.
8. Hollywood / Glam
Expect sparkling and bold pieces and textures in a uniform pattern in every part of the room. See crystals, gold and silver details, silky textures, velvet, extreme headboard, animal prints, ram motif, sputnik chandeliers – surrounded by mirrors and furniture that will magnify the sparkle. A black and white checkered flooring is add-up.
Hollywood glam is closely similar to art deco, but the former is more eclectic, ornamental, and theatrical with an over-the-top environment.
An interior design style that always makes a bold statement, here is one of our client’s vision for their space.
9. Industrial
Imagine bringing a set of heavy metal furniture into your home but beautifully arranged for a living. It’s exposed chiefly steel with distressed wooden elements, frequently complemented by exposed brick walls. You’ll see a combination of neutral tones, black wrought iron, dark woods, utilitarian objects, massive steel gears, and metal surfaces. Tweak this style by installing familiar objects from work as decorations.
If you’d like to see more of how an Industrial interior design style would look, with plenty of exposed brick and wrought iron pieces, you can check out this project we had of someone who adored the look.
10. Midcentury Modern
Midcentury Modern was a trendy style with new home buyers in the 1950s. During the post war, many new materials became available to designers that they incorporated into furniture like plastic, plywood, and vinyl. Also, due to technological advancements in the ‘50s, some old traditional furniture designs were stripped down to their basic structures and function. Think of a queen chair stripped down to something a lot more minimal. It combines refined lines, minimalist silhouettes, and natural shapes. Colors include coral, salmon, teal, brown, toned yellows.
Even today, Midcentury Modern interior design style still holds up, and there are people who really adore the look. Here is one who really wanted to give their space that ’50s treatment.
11. Minimalist
Everything in your space should only be things that still serve you, their purpose. Get rid of things that don’t satisfy you anymore, and don’t be afraid to declutter. Everything is toned down from tone to color, which uses a monochromatic or neutral color palette. Closely similar to modern interior design, a minimalist strictly uses bare essentials. Use plain rugs and throws for warmth. If you have a small space or don’t want to bring in too many furnishings that you won’t need, then this design is for you.
Minimalist interior design style really follows the less-is-more philosophy, and many people find that attractive. Here is one such client we have who wanted this style for their home.
12. Modern
This design incorporates minimal clutter with a few décor accessories. Its furniture and space often include clean, straight lines. The aesthetics follow minimalism and have an open-space feel. Patterns are not close to each other, while colors can be cold or stark but filled with plenty of warmth and neutrals. So, if you are into a space that looks well-groomed, smooth, stylish, and elegant, then a modern style may be the perfect fit for your home.
Modern design is a popular take on many homes because of the clean, elegant lines and patterns which are easy on the eyes and feel very open. Here is one example of a modern interior that one of our clients had in mind for their space.
13. Rustic
Stone and wood make up the rustic style which carries natural rough and aged elements.
To capture the organic warmth and “rugged charm” of this style, get these elements: stone and wood walls, exposed beams or cathedral ceilings, stone or hardwood flooring, oversized windows, wooden furniture, distressed items, unadorned leather, suede, weathered woods, items made of clay, hand-stitched fabrics, accessories like animal hides, faux fur, hanging wildlife elements, branches, twigs, distressed metals, and some outdoor garden elements. Then, get the cozy vibe with a fireplace, in a stone or wood stove.
Unlike other design styles, with rustic, you can forget about worrying about perfect lines. Instead, the character of each piece in a rustic style can stand out.
Rustic interior design style gives off a very cozy, familiar but memorable vibe. One of our clients absolutely loved their design, as much as we enjoyed building it up. Find their design project here.
14. Scandinavian
This design blends many light tones with a few earthy tones — bringing outdoors inside your home. So, you can expect some vast windows, airy rooms and a lot of natural wood. Known for its concept of “hygge,” a Danish and Norwegian word for a state of coziness, this design style was, in fact, a design movement that was characterized by simplicity, minimalism, and functionality.
The brightness and airy feel of this design is something we really enjoy working on. One of our clients truly loved the design style and asked us to make a design for their home here.
15. Shabby Chic
Shabby Chic is a vintage-inspired style like Bohemian but with a more delicate, softer, and feminine look. Think of white-washed floorboards or natural flooring, simple white and light pastel colors, antique frames, weathered furniture combined with patterns like stripes, feminine floral, check, and polka dots. You will also see vintage-inspired things like fittings and kitchen wares, soft fabrics like cotton, linen, lace, and net matched with rugs that have jute, distressed, or floral prints. Top it off with vintage crystal chandeliers and lamps with intricate details to pump up the elegance factor. Pieces associated with the style are effortless to find and budget-friendly. Keep in mind to have that worn-out feminine look as the central theme.
A favorite among vintage-lovers, Shabby Chic projects are always exciting because they allow us to explore and combine some really gorgeous combinations. Here is one such project that we did before for one of our clients.
16. Traditional
This design is for you if you love antiques, classic art pieces, symmetry, and ornate elements. It is rooted in European sensibilities including British colonial revival, 18th century English, and 19th century neoclassical and French country. Traditional design includes plenty of sumptuous, comfortable furnishings and an abundance of accessories. It can also be exemplified by a queen chair or a lot of curved lines!
17. Transitional
One of the popular designs in the U.S. Two completely distinct styles that create a classic and fresh interior design when put together. Not too 18th century stuffy and not too minimalist stark. Here are some key elements that make them blend.
It’s a mix of old and new decor, all in a neutral earth-toned color palette. Consider pulling your color scheme all the way through space. This will give the space a blended, layered effect. Fewer patterns and more textures are better.
Think of your design elements as falling into 2 categories: support and accent. The support pieces form a backdrop that allows the accent pieces to stand out and serve their purpose. Floors are mostly made of hardwood (or hardwood look) with rugs that maintain a neutral tone palette. Achieve an almost minimalist quality but remain focused on an essential key element: comfort. Keep window draperies simple or none at all.
Keep a single focal point. Transitional has a lot of loud elements, but keep one focal point and let everything else complement it. It can be anything like a piece of art, an heirloom, antique, etc. Those elements can be the main accent piece that you’re going to use as the focal point, and the rest of the room supports the piece.
Transitional style can go in many directions but must be sleek and vibrant.
The popularity of this design means we have a lot of projects with this style in mind. Here is one good example of Transitional interior design style which we made for one of our many clients.
18. Tropical
Both coastal and tropical make anyone think of a seaside retreat. Though coastal and tropical are often used interchangeably, they have core differences that make them unique. The hint is to recreate the tropical ambiance.
A great alternative to the usual Coastal design many of our Florida clients favor, Tropical interior design style still brings unique stylings, and those who opted for it truly enjoy their home transformations – like this client who really loved the tropical vibe that he wanted to bring it home.
19. Urban
A mix of industrial, modern, and contemporary influences, all in a neutral color palette. Think of sleek and minimal and have comfort but for glamour. Think of light, airy spaces, large pieces of furniture with sleek lines, minimalist features — all of these while taking advantage of the amazing architectural drama of an industrial design.
You’ll see exposed beams or exposed brick walls, unfinished surfaces, and materials such as brick, concrete, and wood. A perfect blend of industrial and luxurious look, and a juxtaposition between hard and soft materials. It smooths out the roughness of industrial design and gives more warmth and softness that you find with some modern and contemporary designs. It is a fantastic complement of a few various styles to create a funky and fresh style in itself.
20. Vintage
The style that could show different fashion trends of the past decades. You’ll see a space that is dominated by low-key colors like gray, beige, cream, and sand. Some pale blue, pale lilac, and light pink will also be visible–decorative elements, antiques, and old or artificially aged furniture. Scrapes, scratches, cracks on furniture may add a more vintage look to your space. All these elements are carefully placed without looking congested and too old. The idea behind vintage interior design is to give you a sense of nostalgia without looking run-down.
Vintage designs feel like a window into the past, bringing all that made those days beautiful into the present. Here is a design for one of our clients who had amassed a considerable amount of vintage items in their home and wanted their space styled around them.
Whether it be a small, minimalist space in the busy city where you can easily go home after a long, tiring day in the office. Or an ample, peaceful area in the countryside where you can enjoy and relax alone or with your family. Your space should not only look amazing, but it should also reflect your style and personality, and it should complement your daily life. While a designer can create stylish designs, you are the one who’s going to live with that style. Thus, the design should revolve around you and not the designer.
So, have you figured out yet the style or combination of styles that will reflect your personality? Or a layout that will complement your daily life? How about looking at some actual designs that we made for real clients? Check out our gallery. You may find some ideas there that may just tickle your creativity.
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