If you love the opulence of Old Hollywood glamour — chandeliers, faux fur rugs, gold trim, and the like — but prefer to create a design style that’s part of the 21st century, an urban modern design with a glamorous twist just might be what you’re looking for. So what is urban modern interior design? It’s the perfect design style if you’re indecisive because it fuses the glamorous, chic, minimalist, contemporary, and transitional design styles together to create a one-of-a-kind look.
Urban modern basically takes the elements of a downtown metropolis loft (i.e., a traditional urban style) and softens them up so that they’re comfortable and inviting, not sterile and cold. For those who make fabulous cosmopolitans for their dinner parties and love to add a fashionable twist to their décor, you can infuse some Old-Hollywood style into an urban modern design to pair the sophistication of the city with the glamour of a bygone era.
If you’re looking for urban modern interior design ideas that are heavy on chicness, here’s how to create an urban modern style with a touch of Old Hollywood glamour.
1. Start with a Decorative Accent Bench
Nothing says “Old Hollywood Glam” like a decorative accent bench. If you watch your favorite movies from the 1930s, you’ll see ornate, opulent benches in every bedroom and sitting room. To give it an urban modern feel, choose a bench that’s simple in color, pattern, and style so that this vintage type of furniture piece has a sleek, minimalistic look that’s characteristic of its urban modern counterparts.
This particular accent bench has a slightly textured gray linen fabric, which is a staple color in urban modern design. To add a chic touch to this bench, we can turn to accent throw pillows and blankets to get the job done.
2. Mix Old Hollywood Textures and Colors with Urban Modern Accents
Urban modern décor often consists of straight lines and neutral colors, so various shades of gray, cream, tan, and taupe are great options for accents pieces such as throw pillows and blankets. This particular throw pillow’s main color and shape would easily be found in an urban modern design, and the metallic gold and silver accents give it a glamorous twist. Finding décor pieces that marry both contemporary urban living with chic, Old-Hollywood taste isn’t too hard to find when you look for pieces that have at least one characteristic of each. For example, you can implement an urban-inspired geometric piece of furniture with a traditional button-tufted suede. Another example is a classic piece of lighting, such as a chandelier, that has a modern design (i.e., a sunburst shape without crystals). Since there are so many hybrids in design styles these days, a quick Google search should help you find the décor that you need!
In this particular room, getting the best of both worlds is achieved once again with this faux fur throw. The deep gray color fits into the chic minimalist, contemporary, and transitional design categories, while the faux fur texture pays homage to the allure of Old Hollywood sophistication and glamour. While it takes some creativity and a little extra time to find the right mixture, the payoff, in the end, is totally worth it.
3. Choose Abstract Wall Art with a Splash of Color
In urban modern interior design, the art is contemporary and abstract but doesn’t always have a lot of bold colors (although it can), as you’ll usually find lots of tans, grays, and blacks in the artwork to maintain a transitional look. To capture the old Hollywood colors found in ornate gold chandeliers and red, pink, and burgundy wallpaper and bedding, this two-piece canvas was placed above the bench. The abstract design channels the artistic vibe found in a downtown loft, while the color palette is reminiscent of the days when opulence and luxury were integral parts of interior design.
If you have an artistic and creative side, you can even make your own canvas art to customize the colors or design. To stay in line with a modern design that has touches of vintage glam, add gold metallic accents and infuse colors from the same color range (i.e., various shades of purple) to embody this one-of-a-kind design style in your artwork.
When it comes to modern interior design, there really aren’t any hard-and-fast rules. So many design styles are now being fused together to create one-of-a-kind looks that you won’t find in your history books — looks that speak to the creatives of this generation. Urban modern design is just one of many, and as seen here, you can add a touch of Old Hollywood glam to take it up a notch, or if it suits your fancy, a touch of farmhouse or mid-century modern aesthetics. That’s what’s great about interior design today: There’s a style for everyone!
