Trend Spotting: The New Modern

Decorating rules soften, and the new modern decorating gets personal.

Decorating used to mean following specific rules that promised to transform our homes into the drool-worthy ones found in our favorite magazines. Craving country? Look for farmhouse tables, baskets and faded florals. More traditional? Then heavy drapery, fringed pillows and leather club chairs are for you. Follow the rules, buy what you're told and you'll be happy.

Not so fast. There's a new, modern approach to decorating that's brewing. Design enthusiasts everywhere are leading the way and reinventing the idea of just what modern means to them and loving it.

"There's definitely a new modern style emerging right now," says blogger and lifestyle expert Eddie Ross."It's this mixing and matching of different styles from different time periods. We're making our own rules rather than having someone else dictate them for us. For so long there's been a certain lack of personalization in design and I think that's where this new approach is coming from."

Ross finds this freedom of mixing things up and even altering furniture and accessories to fit one's lifestyle to be liberating. "I love the idea of say, taking a traditional-style coffee table and updating it by having a sanded-edge mirror cut to fit the top. That little touch of glamour is just enough to transform an ordinary table into something that I will absolutely adore," says Ross of a recent furniture makeover for The Nest (above), which transformed traditional, hum-drum nesting tables into modern showstoppers.

Making the most of what you have and embracing current technology and creativity to do so, is a huge part of this new modern revolution says Estela Lugo, owner of ModernDose.com, an online home furnishing web site.

"I think we've all realized how important it is to embrace what truly makes us happy in our everyday lives," she says. "Whether it's a beautiful lace rug handmade using recycled materials or a functional piece of space-saving furniture (above), to me, the new modern means seeking out well-made, well-designed items that celebrate what's important to me."

Of course, at the end of the day both agree that to really embrace this new modern style, we have to take the time to get to know ourselves. "Knowing what you like and don't like is half the battle," says Ross. "Once you do, finding what you love is a piece of cake."