TV family stage sets: They’re hitting close to home

Steve Levitan, the co-creator of the 2010 Emmy-winning comedy “Modern Family,” didn’t have to look far to find the home of the series’ Brentwood patriarch.

“It actually is the house down the street from where I live,” Levitan says. “I would drive past it every day, and it looked like the modern house that so many rich divorced older guys seem to end up in.”

“Modern Family” is just one of several new or sophomore-season shows to reflect the changing look of the American family home. Like Levitan’s series, “Parenthood” and “No Ordinary Family” are set in California and speak specifically about West Coast style, be it vintage Craftsman or art-gallery modern. All three, in their own ways, not only use interiors to express character but also give wider exposure to trends in home décor.

On the set of “Parenthood,” you can spot a hall chair covered in an Uzbekistan suzani fabric and decorative sofa pillows made from African mud cloth.

“Middle America can absorb that and not think it’s too exotic,” set decorator Julieann Getman says. “You can go into World Market and find that.”

In addition to ethnic textiles, primitive art and Asian furniture and accessories are part of the visual vocabulary, says “Modern Family” set decorator Amber Haley. Asian accents are found throughout the duplex where Mitchell and Cameron are raising their adopted daughter.

“We like to joke that they went to China to get a baby that would match their décor,” says Eric Stonestreet, who won an Emmy for his portrayal of Cameron.

“Modern Family” also dabbles in a decorating style that production designer Richard Berg calls “rough luxe,” an extension of the trend first identified in The Times a year ago in an article titled “Burlap Is the New Velvet.” Berg says the look is an evolution of the Hollywood Regency style that peaked in pre-recession L.A.

“Now people are putting the ornate period chairs of that style around a farm table,” he says, “mixing glamour pieces with primitive and rustic pieces from the flea market.”

In the case of “No Ordinary Family,” the pilot was filmed in a classic Hollywood Hills Midcentury post-and-beam but has since been replaced by a set that is influenced by what production designer Maria Caso calls “Bay Area modernism.” When the show premieres Sept. 28, design fans may fall in love with the open plan home, which flows around a central fireplace with a winding staircase to the second story.

“As far as the look being sleeker and more modern, that’s simply evolution,” show co-creator Jon Feldman says. “People want to see new and comfortable, sure, but they also want to see identifiable. We find looks that satisfy wish fulfillment while still creating a relatable environment for viewers.”

Caso incorporated another design trend — using recycled and salvaged materials in décor. She also called upon a banquette detached from a wall as dinner table seating.

“I don’t think I’ve seen that on TV before,” she says. “There were a few raised eyebrows about having a sofa at the dining table, but it’s a great way to keep the kids at the table, and I think that might catch on.”

Here’s a closer look at the homes in these shows.