The living room is a space in your home where you should be able to relax, to interact with others and to make lots of happy memories. With that in mind, here are super awesome living room furniture ideas that will help you to do just that!
1. Choose a focal point. When it comes to designing the layout of your living room, it’s important to choose an area of focus and to build around it, otherwise you’re likely to end up with a mish-mash of cluttered furniture! Think about your family’s lifestyle and what kind of space you want your living room to be. The focal point could be your TV, the fireplace or your coffee table. Once you’ve decided, place your seating areas and other furniture around it in a circular or semi-circular fashion. This will ensure it becomes the main attraction and the place that people are naturally drawn towards.
2. Don’t sit against the walls. It can be tempting to push your sofa and chairs back against the wall to free up floor space. While somewhat true, it also makes the living room less inviting. Pushing your seating areas towards the center of the room creates a cozier, more intimate feeling and can actually make the room seem bigger.
3. Coffee tables don’t just have to be practical; they can be stylish too! As we’ve already mentioned, it can even serve as the focal point of your living room. Whereas a dull coffee table will likely go unnoticed, an interesting or well-designed one could be a conversation piece, as well as storing everything you could possibly need. The perfect coffee table should be slightly lower than your seating height and approximately two thirds the length of your sofa.
4. Multi-purpose furniture Depending on your preference, you could even try replacing a traditional table with a pouf or a chest. A pouf or an ottoman can double up as a table or a chair, which is useful for when you have extra guests. Meanwhile, a chest not only adds character but it’s fantastic for storage and you can put stuff on top of it when the lid’s closed.
5. If you live in an open-planned house or apartment, use large rugs to represent different areas of your abode, such as the living room. Rugs provide a warm, comfortable feeling and are particularly welcome if you have hard flooring.
6. Many homes these days have done away with the old-fashioned dining room, with the living room often doubling as a place to eat. If this is the case for you, instead of eating on your sofa or from your coffee table, why not add a small cafe-style table and chairs to the corner of your living room. When done tastefully, it can work very well and is also much more hygienic!
7. Lighting goes a long way in setting the ambience of your living room. A grand fixture like a chandelier is best positioned above the main seating area but you can add visual interest and depth to a room using floor and table lamps at different heights too. Remember to consider where natural light enters your living room during the day and place your sofa and chairs accordingly.
8. Not everyone is going to have a chandelier in their living room but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a fancy, colorful light fixture hanging from the ceiling. Lampshades are a bit dated but adding a dash of color to the fixture itself and choosing a quirky design with multiple bulbs and other features can really brighten things up… pun intended.
9. Another key element to think about is the flow of your living room. It’s all well and good looking wonderful but if there isn’t enough space for people to easily wander in and out then your beautiful furniture becomes more of an annoyance. Round furniture is often better for flow than sharp-edged tables and chairs. Interior designer, Katie Rosenfeld, says, “In each room I design, I try to include at least one round piece, such as a coffee table, that people can walk around without bumping their knees”.
10. Adding a sizable mirror to your living room is a great way of creating the illusion of more space. However, a mirror on its own is considered more of an accessory than actual furniture. Not to worry though, because you can also get mirrored furniture such as tables and chairs which have their own built-in reflective surfaces. These pieces help to amplify natural light and enhance mood lighting, giving your living room an extra bit of glitz and glamour.
11. If you have a fireplace in your living room and you’re tired of looking at the traditional brickwork (or if it doesn’t fit in with your room’s aesthetic), don’t be afraid to give it a lick of paint. The same goes for any other old furniture that you’re tired of and that you can paint over. Remember that you don’t have to stick with a particular color scheme, you can always mix it up and get creative!
12. Arguably the most important piece of furniture in your living room is your sofa or the main seating area. It’s where you will spend the most time and for that reason it needs to be both comfortable and durable. As well as style, there’s the material to ponder. If you have young children then a velvet sofa may not be the best option, since it can be difficult to clean. Leather on the other hand is easily wipeable and while it may not be as comfy and luxurious as something like velvet, it’s still pleasing to the eye. If you’re not sure where to start when designing your living room, choose a great sofa and build from there
13. Multi-use trolleys Rather than using standard side tables which are pretty limited in terms of both movement and function, get yourself some bar carts! They can hold your wine collection, flowers, books, art and much much more. Plus, if you get one with wheels then it’s easy to move it around the room. They’re way more practical and especially useful for hosting dinner parties!
14. Ornaments, knick knacks, toys….they all have to go somewhere. If you’re in need of storage space in your living room, don’t opt for bulky units that have little to no versatility. There are lots of light, spacious options available on the market these days. A combination of slimmer, chic shelving units with fabric boxes or baskets is much more modern and far less hassle.
15. Speaking of slimming down, instead of filling out your living room with extra recliners that rarely get used, opt for slimmer, simpler chairs that take up less room. Basic yet elegant chairs like those made from rattan & cane can be boosted visually with a simple throw and cushion.
16. Making your room feel light and fresh is much easier if you use sheer curtains rather than thick embroidered ones. The main purpose of sheer curtains is to filter light, but they also add a touch of class. You can use them in conjunction with heavier curtains if you prefer, especially if you want to stay warm in winter but let the sun shine through in summer.
17. If you’re a fan of the rustic countryside look, add some natural wood furnishings such as wicker baskets or a pinewood dresser. They match well with almost any color scheme and tend to age gracefully. You can even repurpose old wood and use it as shelving or a tabletop surface. Shiplap is very popular at the moment.
18. A quick and easy way to spice up any room is to buy some brightly colored cushions. It doesn’t matter if they don’t match the rest of the decor. You can buy some really wacky designs or even make your own! In fact, if you go for vivid colors then the whole point of them is to stand out and to inject some fun and liveliness into the room.
19. Should you find that your room is looking a bit chaotic, try applying some symmetry for a more organized look and feel. That’s not to say that all the furnishings have to match in color or size exactly, but try to replicate on one side of the room what you do on the other. This works particularly well if there is something the room is centered around a light fitting or a table for example.
20. For lovers of literature or the arts, why not transform your living room into a home library or art gallery and surround yourself with books and paintings? It makes sense to stylize your lounge with something you’re passionate about. Well… as long as everyone else in the house likes it too. Install a bookshelf, put up some frames and enjoy the what you love in the comfort of your own living room.
21. If you have large windows and a pleasant view, make the most of it by using the outside world as your living room’s wow factor. You can position your sofa directly under the windows and be backlit by the sun’s glow. Or, you can put your couch opposite and stare out into nature for hours on end.
22. A minimalist style of living room is preferred by many and the advantages are clear to see. There’s plenty of space and the plain white furniture makes everything feel clean and elegant. At the same time, there’s just enough color to keep the room from feeling sterile or boring. Achieving the perfect minimalist look requires a lot more effort than you might think! Which of these living room furniture ideas is your favorite?
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