Style Defined: What's Transitional?

What defines transitional style? Transitional style emerged out of the contrast between modern and traditional design. Where modern styles tend to feature clean horizontal and vertical lines and less adornment and traditional styles can be ornate and layered with intricate moldings and historical references. Transitional design blends all of these elements to create a distinctive, yet melded design choice.

Transitional styles may seem like a compromise between two ends of the design spectrum, but it has forged its own identity in the last two decades. Transitional style was born in the 1950s when the stark modernism of the 1920s and 1930s seemed too disparate from the conventional American and European traditionalism of prior centuries. Think of split-level homes with less glass than modern design and more open floor plans than traditional design. That evolved into our contemporary transitional style that is more relaxed than traditional design and less angular and geometric than modern design.

Materials commonly seen in Transitional design

One of the signature elements of transitional style embraces the use of natural materials like wood and stone. Transitional colors run the gamut of the color spectrum, similar to modern design. These include the cool tones white, blue, gray, taupe and metallics to the warmer tones of expresso brown, coral and red. One of the differences is the use of contrast with darker stained lower cabinets and lighter colored upper cabinets or a combination of some open shelving.

Another difference is the introduction of pattern and texture. Curves and softer patterns are widely used in transitional design – think of tile and carpeting or rugs that introduce a wider design scheme than linear modern styles but are still less ornate than traditional styles. Texture is more pronounced in tile and countertops – think solid tile with a relief, or that looks like linen or leathered granite.

In kitchens and baths, there are more cabinet door style choices – inset panels and raised panel are often used. Hardware gets a bit more intricate as well. Finally, the countertop edge choices are less austere. Dupont edges and bullnose with their softer curve detail fit in to transitional styles and are commonly seen in baths and kitchens. Glass is used but in a less prominent way than in modern design.

Open floor plans are still a hallmark of transitional design but the introduction of barn doors and some pocket doors, provides a clue that you’ve stepped away from simple modern design.

Our final blog post in our Style Defined series will be what we call New Traditional. If you missed last week’s blog post on Modern Style Defined, you can read it here.If you’re unsure of your style preference, the KitchenVisions team will guide you. Our goal is to create the best solution for your design aesthetic!