Defining the style
What Is Modern Interior Design?
Modern interior design pairs clean lines and open floor plans with warmth: honest materials, a calm palette, and a strong connection to the outdoors. Living with Lolo designs and builds modern interiors across Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, and Arcadia under one contract, because the firm holds both an interior design practice and an active Arizona general contractor license, ROC #347577.
This page covers what defines the style, how Lauren Lerner applies it in Scottsdale, what a project like this costs, and why homeowners choose one firm for both design and construction. Living with Lolo was named Phoenix Magazine Best Interior Design in 2024, 2025, and 2026, and our work has appeared in Architectural Digest and House Beautiful.
Modern is often confused with Contemporary, Mid-Century Modern, and Modern Southwest. It differs from Contemporary by anchoring to a specific 20th-century movement rather than whatever is current today. It differs from Mid-Century Modern by favoring simple geometry over sculptural, era-specific furniture forms. And it differs from Modern Southwest by drawing its material language from glass, steel, and universal modern materials rather than regional adobe and stone.
Simple rectilinear forms and unbroken lines define every room, with no applied ornament to soften them.
Rooms connect visually and physically, with few walls interrupting the sightline from one space to the next.
Wood, stone, glass, and metal appear in their true form, never disguised as something else.
Soft whites, warm grays, and natural wood tones keep the palette calm and restrained, never cold.
Every piece earns its place through use, with sculptural forms that still serve a clear purpose.
Large windows and sliding glass draw daylight and outdoor views deep into the home.
How we apply it
The Building Blocks of a Modern Home
Every material, finish, and furnishing decision is made with the full room in mind. Here is how we bring modern design to life room by room.
Clean Lines and Open Floor Plans
Modern interiors are built on simple geometry and open, connected rooms. We remove visual noise and let each space flow into the next. Because Living with Lolo also builds, we can open walls and reframe structure to achieve that flow, not just decorate around it.
A Warm Modern Palette
The palette stays calm and warm: soft neutrals, natural wood, and stone, with restrained contrast. This warmth is what separates a welcoming modern home from a cold one. We layer texture so the clean palette still feels rich.
Natural Light and Indoor-Outdoor Living
Modern design and the desert share a love of light and the outdoors. We plan for glass, sight lines, and easy flow to patios so the Sonoran landscape becomes part of the home. In Scottsdale, that connection is central to how people actually live.
Function-First Furniture
Modern furniture is chosen for how it works, not how much it announces itself. Sculptural forms and honest joinery replace applied decoration, so every piece has a clear reason for being in the room.
Honest, Uncomplicated Materials
Wood, stone, glass, and metal appear the way they naturally look, without faux finishes or busy patterns standing in for the real thing. That honesty is part of what keeps a modern room feeling calm.
Minimal Ornamentation
Decor stays restrained and purposeful. A single sculptural piece or a considered art placement carries more weight in a modern room than a shelf full of objects ever could.
Why it works here
Modern Design Fits the Desert Southwest Naturally
Scottsdale's clear desert light and connection to the outdoors are part of why modern design suits the region so well. Walls of glass, simple rooflines, and easy flow to patios read as native to the Sonoran desert, not borrowed from a coastal or big-city reference.
Most Scottsdale homeowners hire an interior designer and a separate general contractor, and that split is where budgets slip and details get lost. Living with Lolo removes it. As a licensed general contractor in Scottsdale holding ROC #347577, plus a full interior design practice, we carry your project from concept through construction on one contract. If you want a warm, clean modern home built correctly, working with a single luxury interior designer Scottsdale AZ team that also builds is the most direct path there.
Our Desert Interlude project shows this warm, clean approach at a full-home scale: simple geometry, a calm material palette, and glass that draws the desert landscape inside. It is also where design and construction benefit from sitting under one roof, since the structural changes that create true open-plan flow have to be built, not just styled.
A modern home should feel calm because it was built with intention, not because it was stripped bare. That is what modern design does best in Scottsdale: clean, warm, and honest to the desert around it.
How we work
From First Conversation to Finished Home
Award-winning design and licensed general contracting under one roof. One contract, one point of contact, zero finger-pointing.
Discovery
A discovery call and virtual home consultation to understand your lifestyle, goals, and the bones of your home.
Design Presentation
A complete design concept: space plan, material palette, furniture selections, finish specifications, and 3D renderings.
Procurement and Construction
We handle all purchasing, permitting, and construction management as a licensed Arizona General Contractor (ROC #347577).
White-Glove Installation
You return to a fully installed home. Every piece of furniture, art, and accessory is placed exactly as designed.
Recent work
Modern Design Projects in Scottsdale
Every project is designed from scratch. No templates, no repeat concepts. See more of our work.
Dining room · Scottsdale
Living room · Scottsdale
Let's begin
Ready to Design Your Modern Home?
Serving Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Arcadia, Desert Mountain, Silverleaf, Gainey Ranch, and the surrounding Phoenix metro area.
Schedule a discovery call →Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions About Modern Design in Scottsdale
What is modern interior design?
Modern interior design pairs clean lines and open floor plans with honest materials, a calm palette, and a strong indoor-outdoor connection. It grew out of the early-to-mid 20th century and favors function and simplicity over ornament. Living with Lolo warms that structure with natural wood and stone for the desert.
Is modern the same as contemporary?
No. Modern refers to a specific 20th-century design movement, while contemporary means whatever is current today and shifts over time. The two overlap in their shared preference for clean lines and open plans, but a modern home commits to a defined era rather than a moving target, which is why Living with Lolo treats them as separate design-style pages rather than one blended style.
What materials define a modern interior in Scottsdale?
Modern interiors rely on wood, stone, glass, and metal used honestly, in their true form rather than disguised as something else. The palette stays calm and warm, built from soft neutrals and natural materials rather than stark white and chrome. That warmth keeps a modern Scottsdale home livable, not cold.
Who is Lauren Lerner?
Lauren Lerner is the founder and principal designer of Living with Lolo, named Phoenix Magazine Best Interior Design in 2024, 2025, and 2026, with work featured in Architectural Digest and House Beautiful. She also holds an active Arizona general contractor license, ROC #347577, so she leads modern design-build projects from concept through construction.
What areas does Living with Lolo serve?
Living with Lolo designs and builds modern interiors across Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Arcadia, Silverleaf, DC Ranch, and the greater Phoenix metro area. The firm takes on both full-home design-build projects and furnishing-only work within this service area. Lauren Lerner and her team meet with prospective clients by discovery call before scoping any project.
Do I need a separate general contractor?
No. Living with Lolo holds an active Arizona general contractor license, ROC #347577, alongside its design practice, so design and construction run under one contract with one accountable team. Most Scottsdale homeowners hire a designer and a contractor separately, which is where budgets slip and details get lost, especially on a modern project where achieving true open-plan flow means moving structure, not just furniture.
How much does a modern home cost in Scottsdale?
A full design and build typically runs from the mid six figures into the low seven figures, depending on square footage, structural scope, and finish level. Furnishing-only projects start lower. National remodel benchmarks understate the luxury tier, because achieving true open-plan flow often means structural changes, not just new furniture, and because authentic modern materials like natural stone and solid wood carry a premium over their imitations.
Lauren Lerner
Principal Designer, Living with Lolo
Lauren Lerner is a luxury interior designer based in Scottsdale, AZ and the founder of Living with Lolo. Her work has been featured in Architectural Digest, House Beautiful, Vogue, Martha Stewart Living, The Wall Street Journal, and GQ. She specializes in high-end residential design across Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Arcadia, and the greater Phoenix metro area.