Photo by Expect Best: https://www.pexels.com/photo/modern-building-against-sky-323780/ 

Our guide to ensuring your home feels modern

A modern home is something we all strive for. When your home is modern, it feels tidy, clean and very welcoming – ideal for when you have guests coming round. Thoughtful design choices, uncluttered spaces, and a sense of balance help create an atmosphere that feels calm yet stylish. 

Creating a modern feel can be achieved in many ways, some changes affordable, others more expensive. The more affordable route includes using a mirror, decorating your walls and ensuring you have the right furniture. Expensive changes can include updating your flooring, changing a room completely or you could go down the route of a home remodel, through a company like sullivan design and build. 

Whatever you decide, there is no right or wrong answer. You could make a few pricey changes, as well as more affordable updates. Alternatively, you could delay making any updates, put a spreadsheet together as a budget and then make all the changes once you have enough money to do so. 

To help inspire you and start your transition to a modern home, we have put together a brief guide on six changes you can make. Keep on reading to learn more about them and pick the best changes for you. 

Using mirrors 

Mirrors are a great place to start, as they can very quickly make a room feel more modern. Mirrors are often used to make a room look brighter and feel bigger – the reasons being they reflect light and mirror what’s in front of them. They come in all shapes and sizes and are extremely affordable, which is why they are often a lot of people’s first choice when trying to ensure their home feels modern. What’s best is to pop down to your local hardware store and see what mirrors they have available. It’s useful to see them in person, as this will help inspire you. 

Updating your flooring 

A middle ground update, which you can make, is an update to your flooring. Flooring has a significant impact on the overall look and feel of a space, and updating it can instantly make rooms feel cleaner, brighter, and more contemporary. Choosing modern materials, neutral tones, or natural textures helps create a cohesive foundation that complements the rest of your décor while remaining practical for everyday living. Why not take a moment to look over Pinterest to see what other interior experts have put together for their flooring? You could swap from carpet flooring to laminate (which is ideal if you have children), or you could do it the other way and go from laminate to carpet. Another option is to combine this and use laminate in your main rooms and then carpet in your bedrooms, as carpet can be more cosy. 

Improving your furniture 

If you haven’t updated your furniture in a long time, then more often than not, this is a quick way to update your home and bring it to the modern age. Old furniture ironically looks and feels old. Even if your decor is modern, if it’s surrounded by old furniture, your home can look tired. Updating key furniture items with cleaner lines, lighter materials, and more functional designs can instantly refresh your home and give it a more current, cohesive look.

Lighting improvements 

Too many people neglect their lighting, even though it can make a big difference to the overall feel of a property – especially when trying to make your home feel more modern. Lighting can be used to highlight key areas of your home, create atmosphere, and enhance architectural features. Layering different types of lighting, such as ambient, task, and accent lighting, helps spaces feel more balanced and inviting. Modern fixtures and warmer, well-placed light sources can instantly transform a room, making it feel stylish, comfortable, and up to date. When updating your lighting, ensure you look at smart lights, as these are cheaper to run and a lot more practical. The reason we say practical is that you can control them via your voice or an app on your phone – you will never need to get up to turn the lights off when you get in bed and realise you have left them on. 

Repainting your rooms 

Another simple and affordable task that you can do is repaint your rooms. Painting makes a room feel fresher as well as modern when using the correct colours. Neutral tones, soft greys, warm whites, and muted shades create a contemporary backdrop that feels bright and timeless, helping each room feel more open, cohesive, and up to date. Why not spend the day doing some research on a new colour palette for each room and then give it a go yourself – there are plenty of tutorials online that you can follow. Even small updates, such as going from a fresh white to an off white/light grey, can make a big difference. 

Accessorizing your rooms 

Finally, accessorizing your rooms with different items is a quick win that you can do within a day. There are so many different ways to accessorise a room, and what it comes down to is your taste. You could use rugs to add a new dynamic to your flooring, or you could use a throw to dress up your sofa or bed. A lot of people will decorate their side tables with accessories which are related to their recent travels, for example, a cruise ship that they have been on, on their console table. 

Creating a modern home doesn’t have to mean a complete renovation. Simple updates such as refreshing your flooring, improving your furniture, upgrading your lighting, and repainting your rooms can make a noticeable difference. By focusing on small, thoughtful changes, you can transform your home into a space that feels fresh, welcoming, and effortlessly modern.

What changes are you going to make in 2026 to make your home feel more modern? Which of the above suggestions will you be doing, and are there any suggestions that you would like to put forward that we haven’t included? Let us know in the comment box below. We look forward to hearing from you.