What's the Difference: Traditional vs. Transitional Style Interior Design | The Kitchen Showcase (2024)

Not every style can be placed in one particular style box. You may love traditional interior design, but also be looking to modernize. The difference between traditional style interior design and transitional style interior design is subtle. Let’s take a look.

Traditional interior design

What's the Difference: Traditional vs. Transitional Style Interior Design | The Kitchen Showcase (1)

You’ll recognize traditional style interior design by the ornate and luxurious elements. There are intricate design patterns in the woodwork. Although the traditional style comes from 17th and 18th century Europe, the style is rich and timeless. Intricate crown moldings on cabinets and decorative legs on tables and chairs create lavish texture to your kitchen, while the natural wood finished in deep, rich colors will ensure the kitchen still feels warm and inviting.

Transitional interior design

The transitional style trend is going to take the characteristics from traditional design and modernize it a bit. The elaborate and ornate details in crown moldings and other areas are going to be more subtle and subdued. The lines in a transitional kitchen are going to be softer and smoother, helping your traditional kitchen slowly transition to a more modern kitchen. The colors are going to go from dark to lighter, more neutral tones.

What's the Difference: Traditional vs. Transitional Style Interior Design | The Kitchen Showcase (2)

Similarities

Both styles are elegant and timeless. They celebrate the classic characteristics of traditional design, but the transitional will take the ornate details and tone them down for a more modern effect. The transitional style elements will allow you to add modern touches, like lighting fixtures and hardware.

Classic taste with a modern twist

If you’re ready to take your classic taste and make it more modern without sacrificing some of the traditional elements that you love, look at transitional kitchen design.

Check out the difference between traditional and transitional kitchen design when you visit The Kitchen Showcase in Denver.

What's the Difference: Traditional vs. Transitional Style Interior Design | The Kitchen Showcase (2024)

FAQs

What's the Difference: Traditional vs. Transitional Style Interior Design | The Kitchen Showcase? ›

Both styles are elegant and timeless. They celebrate the classic characteristics of traditional design, but the transitional will take the ornate details and tone them down for a more modern effect. The transitional style elements will allow you to add modern touches, like lighting fixtures and hardware.

What is transitional style kitchen? ›

Transitional kitchens, which blend contemporary and traditional styles, are bright, relaxed, and often loaded with storage. So it's no surprise a recent National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) study identified them as the most popular style (and predicted it to remain that way for the next few years).

What is the difference between transitional and modern interior design? ›

Transitional interiors are a bit more warm, layered, and softer than a true contemporary interior,” Okin explains. “Where a contemporary space might use cooler toned metals and palettes, transitional might be a warmer greige palette, unlacquered brass, and nubby neutrals.”

What is the difference between traditional and modern interior design? ›

Traditional styles can be considered more similar to maximalist styles, as traditional design focuses on rich, dark colors, floral patterns, and lots of details around the home. Modern styles focus on appealing to minimalism by emphasizing muted light colors, open spaces, and fewer details.

What does traditional interior design look like? ›

Traditional style often includes silk, linen and velvet upholstery and window coverings in damask, florals, stripes and plaids with ornately detailed dark wood, inspired by 18th and 19th century designs. Layered in color and texture, traditional style interiors bring a sense of history and glamour to a space.

What is the difference between traditional and transitional? ›

Both styles are elegant and timeless. They celebrate the classic characteristics of traditional design, but the transitional will take the ornate details and tone them down for a more modern effect. The transitional style elements will allow you to add modern touches, like lighting fixtures and hardware.

What is a traditional kitchen style? ›

Traditional kitchens typically incorporate painted cabinets with or without glass front doors, simple granite or laminate countertops, and hardwood floors. The best traditional kitchens lean on classic elements, while still allowing room for family fun or guest entertainment.

What does transitional style look like? ›

Transitional Style Prefers a Neutral Palette

Transitional spaces evoke a clean, serene atmosphere by relying on soothing, neutral hues: think taupes, tans and vanillas paired with dark brown for depth.

What are the colors for transitional design style? ›

Some people opt for a subtle take on the traditional decorating style. On the other hand, others create a layered mood by going for four/five tones of the same shade or darker hues for a dramatic feel. Typically, a transitional home uses a neutral color palette. This has shades of tan, beige, taupe, ivory, and grey.

What is the difference between modern farmhouse and transitional style? ›

Open cabinetry is a hallmark of modern farmhouse kitchens, providing you with ease of access and the ability to display your dish and pan collections. With a transitional focus, your kitchen is all about clean, timeless features that won't go out of style.

What is traditional modern style? ›

The modern traditional aesthetic combines the best of modern simplicity (think clean-lined furnishings, minimalist spaces, and relaxing monochromatic palettes) with cozy traditional design elements (think elaborate patterns, ornate furnishings, collectibles/heirlooms, and crown molding/trim, paneling, or wainscoting) ...

Can you mix traditional and modern decor? ›

Mixing traditional and modern design styles is easier when starting with a neutral color palette. Shades of white, gray and beige create a blank canvas for traditional and modern design furniture and decor. You'll also have more freedom to mix and match different textures and materials to create a harmonious look.

What is the differences between traditional and modern? ›

Traditional lifestyles, rooted in heritage and community practices, often revolved around natural and DIY approaches to health and nutrition. However, the advent of modernity has led to a shift towards convenience and consumerism, impacting consumer behavior and spending patterns.

How to transition from traditional to modern decor? ›

Furniture, art and area rugs can be changed out with more modern pieces. Take a look at the room as a whole and don't try to make everything match. A coordinated decor of complimentary pieces is more interesting than playing “matchy-matchy.”

What does traditional design mean? ›

As you would have probably surmised, traditional design is inspired by, well, tradition. It's a timeless style taking cues from the 18th and 19th centuries, incorporating classic art, antiques, and pieces with history.

What is a traditional house style? ›

Traditional-style homes typically feature balanced and symmetrical designs focusing on classic, well-defined lines. Common characteristics include pitched roofs, dormer windows, gabled roofs, and a mix of materials like brick, stone, or wood. Interior spaces often have a formal layout with separate rooms.

What is the difference between transitional and farmhouse? ›

Personal Aesthetic

Granite and quartz countertops are often found in transitional kitchens. You're more likely to find an apron-front sink and mixed metals like reclaimed wood, subway tiles, and brushed nickel or black hardware in your modern farmhouse kitchen.

What are the colors for transitional kitchens? ›

When it comes to kitchen color ideas, opt for soft and neutral. Hues such as deep gray, warm beige, pale blue, cream and white are common in the transitional kitchen palette, and allow framed artwork and other meaningful accessories to stand out.

What is the meaning of transition style? ›

In interior design and furniture design, Transitional Style refers to a contemporary style mixing traditional and modern styles, incorporating old world traditional and the world of chrome and glass contemporary.

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