Using Wall Panels in Modern Interior Design

Modern interior design is becoming more popular with each passing season. The clean lines, innovative materials, and creative use of texture are fantastic for making a home feel alive while remaining stylish. Using wall panels in modern interior design is a fantastic way to accent your walls to give each room a unique feel and distinct personality of its own.

Today we’ll be recommending how best to use panels, be it 3D wall panels, textured wall panels, or classic panelling to give your house that personal touch to make it feel like a home.

Let’s begin with:

What makes an interior modern?

There are a host of different interior design styles you can adhere to, and all create a specific atmosphere for your home. Modern design is about simple and geometrically pleasing arrangements that make your home feel new, elegant, and sophisticated without going over the top and feeling futuristic. Equally, modern interior design is about updating from older styles in a way that avoids the melting pot of neo-traditional looks. There’s nothing wrong with futuristic looks or neo-traditional looks, but modern is about what your home feels and looks like.

Some key characteristics of a modern style are:

• An emphasis on functionality and utility. Unlike traditional styles, almost all furniture or furnishings will have a use and purely decorative furnishings are minimal. A good example to illustrate what modern interior consists of is to consider what it isn’t. For instance, Victorian-era styles are not modern because they place an emphasis on decoration of furnishings to the extent they look opulent or extravagant.
• Clean geometric arrangements and lines. For modern design you’ll very rarely encounter curves or bends as a core focus of the look. Straight lines and geometric shapes are the go-to.
• Minimalistic decoration of features. We’ve briefly covered this, but modern designs tend to be noticeably void of additional decoration for furnishings, walls, and the furniture itself. 

Great use of natural light. A big characteristic of modern designs is their reliance on natural light. This often means large open areas, large windows, or skylights that allow rooms to be lit naturally during the day. Usually, lighting features will use soft, white light as opposed to yellow, orange, or beige tones.

Why Use Wall Panels in Modern Interiors?

Wall panels are a brilliant idea for any home makeovers you have planned. Or, if you are a contractor, they are a great choice for client projects. There are dozens of reasons why, but the main reasons wall panels are perfect for modern interiors are:

• They are cost effective. Wall panels are more affordable for your makeover or project as they allow you to create looks and designs that would be expensive to re-create with hardwood (and almost impossible to recreate with paint and plyboard).
• They emphasise straight lines and geometric shaping. When applied correctly to walls, ceilings, skirtings, and any other aspect of home design you can think of, they highlight those straight lines and clean shapes modern interior design is known for.
• They are simple and easy to maintain. Due to the ease with which wall panels can be installed and altered for a variety of different modern design styles, they are easy to replace should an accident befall them. Depending on the panel you go for they can also be lightweight and easy to repair due to their material.
• Wall panels add texture to your designs. The variety of 3D wall panels available in all kinds of styles will help you provide texture and depth to the walls you are working on; making them truly unique.
• Waterproof panels.  All of our wall panelling & 3D wall panels are waterproof making them ideal for commercial & retail shopfitting.
• Acoustic properties.  Many of our 3D wall panels will help with both acoustic and thermal properties in your room.

Popular Wall Panel Styles for Modern Homes

When choosing what wall panels you want from your home or your project, there are a few standout types of panel that’ll elevate any modern space:

• 3D Wall Panels. These types of wall panels are fantastic at adding depth to a wall and a room. They are great for accenting walls and making dramatic statements with your spaces.
• Wall panelling.  We have a whole selection of classic or simple wall panels that are a perfect match for a whole host of projects.  From fixed size wall panels to panel mouldings which allow you to cut and create your own panel sizes.
• Wainscoting wall panels. While most wainscoting panels are better matched to more traditional or neo-traditional looks, there are some that elevate a modern look in a sophisticated way.

A few other things to think about is the style of the panel. There are a few to consider, each with a unique flair:

• Matte panels. Great for those furnishings or areas of the home where you want a more subtle look.
• Glossy panels. Fantastic for bathrooms and kitchens that have furnishings that reflect light, like ceramics.

Our wall panels are all supplied primed so are ready for you to paint with either subtle or bold colours.

Aside from the panels themselves, there are various features that can be used with panels to create a truly gorgeous interior, such as:

• Dado & picture rails. These are great for etching out those clean lines associated with a modern look.
• Skirting boards & skirting covers. These are brilliant for ensuring the bottom of your wall matches the aesthetic you are crafting for the wall panel itself.
• Contemporary coving. Just like skirting boards, coving will take care of the aesthetic of the top of the wall where it meets the ceiling.
• Uplighting Coving. For a more functional twist, there are plenty of coving designs we provide that also offer uplighting features that fit in splendidly with modern interiors.

How To Use Wall Panels in Different Spaces

The space you are furnishing and designing will dictate what kind of panels you’ll want to use. We have a few recommendations for you, depending on the room you are working with:

• Living rooms. When furnishing a living room using wall panels, their purpose will be to create accent walls and focal points that will help define the feel and atmosphere of your room. This means you can afford to be a bit more indulgent with your designs while keeping in mind the characteristics that make up a modern interior.
• Bedrooms. For the bedroom, wall panels can create a sense of depth and can be used to make bedrooms feel bigger than they are. This is great for a modern house design vision, as airy, open plan spaces are a big part of creating a home that feels modern. Due to their size, bedrooms can often be the trickiest room in the house to modernise. Wall panels can help overcome this challenge that bedrooms present for a cohesive and themed home.
• Kitchens & Dining Spaces. The kitchen and dining space of a home are more functional rooms, meaning that minimalism can help to highlight the centrepieces of these rooms. A modern design depends upon minimalism. Wall panels can help create this sense of minimalism by adhering to straight lines and geometric shapes. This allows you to have an interesting kitchen or dining room that remains functional but beautiful.  Adding pops of colour will also create a unique wall feature in your space.
• Bathrooms. When it comes to bathrooms, wall panels are almost an essential component to ensure they remain safe but stylish. Waterproof wall panels that have a modern twist will not only improve the lifespan of your bathroom and its appliances, but it’ll make the room look spectacular too!

Why Choose WM Boyle’s Wall Panels?

WM Boyle are a seasoned supplier of not only wall panels, but all kinds of interior mouldings. As long-standing industry professionals we know what makes a good wall panel from a great one. We stock only the best, durable panels made from high-grade materials, all at affordable price points.

We have a variety of wonderful options for modern wall panels, such as:

• ORAC Square Flat Wall Panels – great for simple but elegant designs.
• ORAC Ridge 3D Wall Panels – a superb choice for those who want a statement wall.
• ORAC Matrix 3D Wall Panels – for those areas that need a more subtle, textured touch.
• ORAC Autoire Wall Panels – for a sophisticated, timeless look that easily blends well with any kind of modern aesthetic you can think of.

Order free samples or get in touch for expert advice.