How to Make Antiques Accentuate a Modern Decor

A lot of conventional thinking is that antique furnishing and modern décor do not get along well with contemporary interiors. This isn’t true. The truth is that mixing them together can produce astonishing results. However, while some decorations will work well together, others certainly won’t. For example, a neutral sisal rug might work with Turkish furniture but would look completely out of place beside a Persian one.

Combining different styles can be a way to constantly introduce fresh new patterns into your interiors. Here’s how to do it.

Planning a Decorating Scheme

A lot of people prefer their décors done according to one particular style, but mixing different looks can actually help you create a more unique space. That doesn’t mean that you can just blend styles without planning properly. As mentioned above, not all elements can work well with each other. It will be better if you have an idea of what exactly you want to achieve and then strategically approach that goal. Here’re a few ways to do it:

• Mix contemporary or modern decorations with some antique décor accessories
• Add modern or contemporary accessories to an antique themed interior
• Pair a group of items around one specific antique or contemporary item
• Choose decorations around themes like simplicity, shabby chic, shades of blue etc.

Once you have decided which approach to take, you can mix and match the items accordingly.

Blending the New and the Old

After you’re done choosing a specific theme, it’s time to start exploring and selecting the items. No matter which approach you take, these need to be selected and placed in a certain manner if you don’t want your living space to end up looking like a museum.

The following guidelines will be able to help you harmonize vintage and traditional elements with modern or contemporary decorations.

1. Allot a Specific Spot for the Antiques

The best thing you can do to avoid turning your interior into a museum is to keep the vintage décors in one particular area rather than have them scattered around. By doing so, you can utilize these furnishings to enhance the décor of the room.

Some good ideas for placement are:

• The living room corner,
• Behind the sofa, which is the usual place for the coffee tables,
• The chimneypiece,
• And where you would normally place the TV or game console. (An antique secretary desk would be perfect for this.) 

2. Organize According to Colour

Antique galleries and museums categorize their items based on their respective type, geographical region, and the time period from which they belong. You don’t really need to group them according to these strict parameters, but you can at least group the furnishings according to their colour to create uniformity. For example, you can match antique lighting with a same-coloured contemporary coffee table.  It’s a very simple yet effective trick and saves the eyes from the pain of staring at non-matching shades. You can follow this method to categorize non-antique décor as well. 

3. Utilize Leather as Much as Possible

Most of you probably haven’t ever considered this option as when it comes to matching with vintage furnishing, ceramics and wooden items are the preferred choices over leather.  But leather works great, especially for your home office décor. Try placing leather accessories, like a leather mouse pad, leather document case, leather sofa etc. around your desk. This helps give your office a more exciting appearance. 

4. Keep the Antiques Within Reach

It’s a common practice to keep the vintage items out of reach; the usual choice of places being the top of a shelf or behind the displace case. But this is how museums keep their collectables. Since we have decided to avoid giving that vibe, let’s take a completely different direction. Try keeping the antiquities nearby, for example on a coffee table, on the centrepiece of the living room etc. This will also mean that you would have to take more caution to keep these valuables intact. But when it comes to keeping a homelier appearance, this method works best.

5. Create a Look That Reflects Your Taste

Blending a different time period into your contemporary space is not an easy task and takes an eye for detail. Don’t rush out and get the first item that fits the bill, if you are planning to mix design styles of the different time period. Try taking an approach that exhibits a gradual transition. This works perfectly to showcase an evolution of art through time.

Presence of vintage items don’t stop you from incorporating modern decor elements into your interior design. You just need to make sure that the items are not entirely incompatible with each other. Experts at our store can help you strike a perfect balance between the past and the present with a compatible selection of high-end furniture and décor accessories.