A living room is basically a room in the house that is meant for relaxation and socialization. If the room is just before the main entrance of the house, it is also called the front room. A living room is the spirit of the house and the environment of the living room reflects the personality and mentality of the house owner.
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With a large number of things one desires to put in the living room, the room may look cramped and messy if not properly designed. Hence, a proper planning regarding the colours of the living room walls, furniture choices, etc. is essential to make the living room look spacious and create a welcoming ambience for the guests as well as the inner residents.
No matter how big your patio is, your living room is still a targeted place that attracts high traffic. Irrespective of the size and shape of your living room, you can transform your living room into any desired style with a wee bit of practical ornamentation.
The living room, the most popular place in the house, needs to be airy and the least cramped. As the Living room sees the most activity, you cannot block free movement here even by mistake. You can put up a sofa or a comfy chair for reading, white or coloured walls, it is your choice. But as this is the room where everybody first enters, make sure it is the best.
You need to convey your idea clearly and make it a friendly atmosphere. Consider the following 16 tips to give your living room an almost immediate makeover.
Small Living room
To make a small living room look more spacious, placing a large mirror on the mantelpiece, using high shine and polished furniture with fitted mirrors makes the light reflect across the room. To create a mix and match of patterns such as florals, trellis, ikats, etc. the major trick is to choose a proper set of big solid colours such as red, green, blue, etc. A collection of architecture combined with open weave coffee table and rattan, cane or bamboo furniture with their proper positioning may add a unique ancient and nostalgic feeling to the room.
If the room is small, then instead of a long sofa, it is a better option to replace it with armchairs, combined with a multi-functional firm padded footstool or replacement of a sofa with a snuggler near the window may help in saving a lot of space.
Invest In the Right Textiles
The textile you use in your living room goes a long way in personalizing your space. Pick interesting textiles that can inject an element of exclusivity into the environment. A combination of different textiles can create a layered effect that can add immense interest to your room; varied patterned fabrics for the upholstery and drapes can differ to create appealing layers. Hand-woven Oushak rugs from a reliable source can infuse an additional dose of texture – rugs can pull the room into one piece.
Art Is Not Limited To The Wall
Add elements of art in the form of furniture pieces, lamps, and colourful glass wall arrangements to your living room and change the conventional way of using art only on the walls. A tree root coffee table, an unusual tree stump side table, or a quirky recline chair can be ideal additions to inculcate natural art in your living room. Beautiful silverware like goblets and candlesticks can be used as art accessories for an artistic outlook.
Elements of History
Revive history by adding stuff from the past. It could be an antique hurricane lamp, typewriter, or even a buggy or travel chest transformed into a center table. These additions add interest to your space and can show off your creative sparks. Most of these additions are readily available in your storeroom or can be easily found at a garage sale.
Unexpected Arrangement
Don’t be afraid to create an entirely different furniture arrangement that does not resemble anyone’s home decor. Break the rules by using furniture that you actually need; there is no hard and fast rule that you need to have a sofa or a loveseat – eliminate these and replace them only with your favourite armchairs. Such an unusual arrangement not only gives you more space to work with but also saves money on accumulating unnecessary furniture.
Accessorize Windows
Window drapes are a common way of accessorizing or rather masking the windows completely. Break this monotony by adding window scarves and wooden pull shutters. Sheer window drapes can flaunt your distinct taste in choosing window patterns while allowing a flood of natural light to enter your living room. Utilize windows to the max as they are the most prominent and permanent fixtures in your room.
Unconventional Lightings
Chandeliers are a focal point in any interior setting that adds elegance and charm. These elaborate lighting fixtures need not be one of those conventional meandering chandeliers; custom-made shimmer chandeliers that reflect your personal taste could be an ideal addition to further enhance the beauty of your ceiling.
Personalized Accessories
Accessories that are made to order are a sure way to surround you with lovely memories. Stuff like, a custom-made cushion cover that has the family’s birthday dates imprinted on it, a personalized family key holder or even the family pictures on a wall gallery can add a personal touch to your living room embellishments. Such additions not only take you down memory lane but also create a point of interest for all those visiting your home.
Furniture
To emphasize the height of the ceiling in the living room, the trick is to have long, lower furniture shapes and floor length long curtains. A major component of the living room is the sofa; hence an appropriate selection of the size, design and colour of the sofa with its proper positioning in the living room can enhance the living room environment as a whole.
Flooring
The last most important thing is the flooring of the living room. Having white floorboards or polished wood flooring designs or light coloured tiles with green carpets near the sofa space may add light to the living room.
Split level design
Another modern living room idea is a split level living room design, which helps in the sectioning of the living room into separate unique spaces, each designed for its own purpose. For example, the space may be divided using a long sofa and dining chairs to separate the dining space from the space meant for family conversations and relaxation. Also, a space may be created for office work if needed.
Heavenly blue
Blue just never looks too much, the calm and serenity it provides makes it the popular colour. Combining white and shades of blue in your living room can create a soothing effect on the mind. It can be combined with different shades to create the look you wish. You can also add a reading corner with a soft blue coloured chair and a light to brighten the area.
If not blue, you could choose other colours such as mauve, green, beige, etc.
Coloured accents
Addition of bright natural colours to the living room such as yellow, light green, orange gives the room a natural, airy atmosphere. Again a combination of dark colours like charcoal coloured walls, combined with accessories of a dark rich texture and dark grey furniture may make the living room look like a dreamland, beyond the conventional living room ideas.
The entire room can be painted white, a calming shade. Accentuate the room with a particular colour; it could be red, purple, pink, etc anything you want. Pick pillows, rugs, paintings and other decorative articles of the colour of your choice. These accents will give the room a bold look and make it creative.
Monochrome
The shades of black and white can be used to create fabulous designs. Your walls can be worked on by different patterns and textiles. This simple look is very sophisticated and brings light to certain arts and other beautiful things in your home. Even though it is simple, monochromatic looks have their own type of elegance.
Colourful
The colour of the living room walls determines the basic look of the room as a whole. For example, a living room designed with white walls, with curtains and furniture in various shades of grey and white gives a sense of sophistication and adds an extra dimension to the room, making the room look more spacious. The painted floor and designed walls, the creative pillows and the rustic mirror, all combine to form a colourful living room. You can fill the room with exotic colours and different patterns. The bold look will keep you very active and energetic. Make sure you don’t overdo it and each has a spark of its own.
Pure white
If you wish to create a neat heaven in your living room, you can. The neat and light-coloured walls combined with white fine furniture will put the mind to rest. If you want to add a little colour, you can use an extremely light hue of grey or brown. No high gloss shimmer, no colour burst.
As you plan your living room, make sure you keep in mind to put essential articles in appropriate places, according to the size and layout of your home, and suit yourself. You can fill your room with sofas, a chandelier, chairs, a coffee table, a mirror, lots of styled lights, flowers, cushions, curtains, lamps, paintings, and the list goes on.
Choose what goes best with the design in your mind and don’t stuff the place up. Design in such a way that each article gets its due notice and leaves a mark. You can mix and match and add your own touch to the living room after all you are the great designer of your home. You are definitely going to spend a lot of time in this room so design it to make you feel comfortable.
Overall, a combination of proper colours and designs with appropriate accessories may make the living room the inner heart of the house.
