7 Moulding and Trim Ideas for a Modern Home

April 3, 2022

By: The Finished Space

Are you craving new and fresh ideas to elevate your modern aesthetic? Filling your house with eye-catching statement pieces, sleek furniture, and chrome accessories isn’t the only way to perk up your design.

Stylistically, your home can consist of many things that make it modern, but sleek and streamlined crown moulding is the ideal accessory to tie it all together. It’s also the quickest and most budget-friendly way to turn up the volume without stealing focus. 

Here are seven brilliant moulding and trim ideas to inspire your next home improvement project.

1. Classic Moulding with Picture Rail

For Blog Only - Hanging Picture Rail

Merging a modern aesthetic with classic sensibilities can have a tremendous impact on your home. That’s why this traditional moulding and picture rail design is first on our list. When dealing with ornate picture frames and modern architectural features, you need to keep things simple.

Notice how the classic moulding and trim don’t detract from the intricately designed light fixture. Plus, keeping the wall and moulding powder blue perfectly complements the golden frames and elegant wood grain table. This is an ideal example of modern styling and professional restraint.

2. Soft Colored Wood-Look with Picture Frame Moulding

Soft Coloured Wood with Picture Frame Moulding.png

It’s important to remember that there’s no one way to use moulding. In fact, there are almost limitless possibilities with this amazingly diverse accessory, so don’t restrict your imagination. For example, check out the soft-colored wood look used for this picture frame moulding.

The designer of this room didn’t want to distract from the intricately carved ceilings, so they kept things light and breezy. The soft pinkish hue perfectly complements the white walls to create a calm atmosphere. Plus, the extra dimension made by the picture frame moulding adds elegance and luxury without drawing unnecessary focus.

3. Two-Tone Ceiling and Door Moulding with Complimentary Panel Moulding 

Masonite - Livingston - Hallway of Door and Picture Mould

When adding moulding to your home, remember to play with symmetry. You don’t have to keep everything the same color, size, or proportion. Instead, mix and match different stylings to create your own unique vision.

This two-toned ceiling and door moulding paired with complementary panel moulding are a perfect example of this principle. Notice how the ceiling and floor moulding are white, but the casing around the door matches the paneling. This choice creates a level of cohesion that is both thoughtful in concept and masterful in its execution.

4. Grey Wainscoting with Matching Window Casing

For Blog Only - The Gold Hive - Gray Wainscot Bedroom - Cropped

The Gold Hive

Remember that moulding also has a practical purpose, as well. It’s not just an accessory you put in your home to add a subtle touch of elegance and create cohesion. It’s also used to protect your walls, windows, doors, and floors from dust, scuffs, debris, and abrasions.

Wainscoting and window casings are used to protect your walls and windows, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be stylish. This designer chose to use matching grey to tie the two elements together. As a result, they have an armor-like quality compared to the white walls and wooden shades, which is sort of poetic and fitting.

5. Minimalist Moulding and Color-Matched Cabinetry

For Blog Only - David Heide - Blue Trim Kitchen

David Heide

One of the hallmark features of a modern design aesthetic is to keep things simple. When you’re adding to your home, you don’t need to get flashy. Sometimes, a simple minimalist crown moulding and color-matched walls are the way to go.

In this home, your attention is drawn to the gorgeous fixtures and simple trim. It’s pretty evident that the designer of this home understood how to have restraint while still using color, and their home is stunning as a result.

6. Lustrous Wooden Moulding and Trim to Match Beautiful Double-Entry Door 

Wooden Moulding and Double Entry Door Entryway.png

We’re talking about modern aesthetics, so we can’t forget to include natural woodgrain and hardwood floors. If you are choosing crown moulding for your home, remember that you don’t have to get it painted or order it in a specific color.

If your home needs a little natural magic, why not just buy the crown moulding as it comes? In this home, the lustrous wooden trim and moulding pair perfectly with hardwood floors, double doors, and window casings. The entryway is yet another example of how crown moulding can be used to tie things together.

7. Clean White Moulding with Victorian-esque Wainscoting

G.A. White Homes - Office - Fashion Forward

If your modern home is the picture-perfect example of sophistication and luxury, then you are likely already familiar with crown moulding. The designer of this home used clean white moulding to enhance all that elegance.

This is a room ripped straight out of a Victorian-esque mansion. The interior work is absolutely stunning, including the beautiful hardwood floors, the modern windows, the intricate, grey paneling, and the minimal, yet chic, white crown moulding. Every element was used to perfection to create an elegant atmosphere of pure extravagance.

Choose the Correct Moulding the First Time

Are you curious about which moulding style is suitable for your design aesthetic? If you are, you should check out Option {M} today. It’s an innovative design tool that matches different moulding styles with popular design trends.

If you’re looking for some more inspiring ideas to spruce up your home, check out our inspiration galleries

We’re huge fans of big ideas and gorgeous execution, so we feature incredible designers from all over the world. No matter your design aesthetic, we have something for you.