Old trends have a habit of finding their way back to the present, but they never look exactly the same. In the decades that have passed since the middle of the 20th Century, preferences in the ideal living room have changed. One thing remains the same, and that is the way that hardwood flooring manages to make a room classic, trendy and timeless, all at once. LOTH takes on the vintage mid-century modern style and puts a 21st Century lens on top, with color, texture and lighting contrasts to die for.
2017 Flooring Trends: Useful and Striking
The year 2017 is an ideal time for a mashup between mid-century modern and current styles. The latest trends call for color contrasts and clean lines, which hark back to the 1950s and 1960s designs with neat edges and stark contrast between light and dark. Flooring is following close behind, with stains in dark and darker or light and lighter. Finishes in a soft matte leave a truly classic, lived-in feel that appears both show-ready and ideal for a comfortable night at home.
Midcentury Styles Back in Fashion
The hallmark of the modern trend was the phrase, “Less is more.” In short, this style practically begs for you to keep it simple, and avoid making a room’s design more than it needs to be. Modern wood has an elegance that is all its own, unencumbered by concern that it needs to be anything fancier than its primary function. The dark background of the flooring creates almost a blank slate for accents to take the main stage. In this room design, you can see that the modernist view of furniture is also present. Seating and tables follow their basic function, to serve as a place of comfort, but not too much beyond it. Simple chairs, ottomans and a sofa suit the space supremely.
Color Contrasts
Although the traditional modern style typically featured the contrast of black and white, the roll of the ensuing decades calls for a pop of color. This room is full of pleasant surprises, with cool and warm balancing a space that is inviting and could even spark up a conversation. The cocoa brown of the flooring offsets the tangerine orange of the ottoman chairs. The cool navy blue of the corner chairs allows the warm yellow pillows to catch the eye without distracting too much from the overall sense of the space. A sofa and entertainment center in a rich café au lait color helps to unify the cream-colored walls and stone fireplace with the flooring. The final touch–a white rug with a thick, plush shag–conveys the modern need for comfort and contrast. The softness of the rug strikes against the stark, clean lines of the flooring for a warmth that is possibly greater than the fire itself.
Lighting: Brash Meets Genteel
The lighting is another example of the timeless appeal of the clean, industrial design, emanating from the lamps and ceiling. A lamp with curved stand recalls lamp styles of the 1960s, with metal accents that are taking the 2017 design world by storm. Lighting from the middle of the room and the ceiling brings out different hues in the flooring, with hints of espresso and mahogany radiating back. Recessed or track lighting in bright white contrasts with soft yellow lighting from the lamps and fireplace to create a harmony of lighting against the clean lines, without clashing.
Updated Additions
Of course, no 21st Century take on mid-century modern designs would be complete without a few accoutrements that everyone has come to expect from the standard living room. A river stone fireplace that could have been plucked straight from any vintage 1950s home has been given a necessary upgrade that takes it from middling to marvelous. The stones have been extended from the floor to the ceiling, with a built-in fireplace that maintains those clean lines and the comfortable color scheme. A flat screen on the wall provides for entertainment without demanding too much attention. Finally, touches of green peek out from behind corners, providing just the right amount of postmodern upset to the straight-edge organization of the room.
If you had not seen this room, you might not think that a grayish blue could ever look stylish and current in the presence of chocolate and tangerine. This is precisely what LOTH has managed to do, by combining colors that might make you dizzy, in just the right mix to make them subtle, almost understated, yet completely unforgettable.
