Living Room Decorating

Project by: Karen Knox of Making Spaces Location: Harrogate, Yorkshire Karen’s clients were ready and willing to do a full renovation of their Edwardian home but wanted to ease into the process with their living room, which only needed a cosmetic upgrade. After talking with her clients about how they saw themselves living in the space, and the type of design they’re drawn to, she created this dark and layered space.

Built in 1928, this Michigan house came with plenty of architectural charm when Justin bought it, but it needed updating. And that’s just what Justin did, transforming the dated interior into a modern, cozy abode. Every room packs in interior design inspiration, but the living room deserves a longer look. It’s a simple, elegant composition that looks sophisticated and high-end. But you can totally pull this look off on a budget.

How to make guests as comfortable on your couch as they'd be at the Ritz-Carlton (ok, maybe not exactly).

Project by: Sandra Gudaviciute of The Knotted Touch Location: Godalming, Surrey, United Kingdom Sandra transformed this living room from fine, if a little basic, to a dark and cozy statement room. Given a lot of great elements to work with (helllooooooo floors) she really upped the drama of the room, giving a little nod to the Victorian era in which the home was built. From Sandra: The house was built around 1900, converted into maisonettes in 1950.

If you’ve ever lived in an apartment, particularly a small apartment, this situation probably sounds familiar: you’ve signed a lease, you’re so excited about your new place, and then you realize—you have no idea where to put the furniture. And that’s where we come in. In this new column, we’re tackling the weirdest and most perplexing space planning solutions. Did the Room Layout Doctor do a good job of fitting everything in? You be the judge.

Having a small living room can be a bit of a challenge, especially if you love to entertain. How do you fit in seating for all those people and still leave room to move?

If the long, dark winter days have got you down, it may be time to warm up your home’s lighting. While adjusting your lighting may not be something you think about on a daily basis, you’ll be surprised how much adding an extra table lamp or switching lightbulbs can alter the mood of a room. Don’t believe it? Take the challenge: Try one of these nine lighting tips, and we’re willing to bet you’ll find the results to be illuminating. Nothing screams “dorm!

Poufs, floor pillows, low ottomans and small stools—these are all great decor elements to add to a living room whenever you need extra seating or more softness. But it’s not always crystal clear exactly where your newly purchased or DIYed pouf or floor pillow should go. In the place of side chairs? As a coffee table? Kind of floating off to the side?

Are you staring at the blank wall above your sofa with hammer in hand, afraid to punch the first hole to hang your art? Or maybe you’ve already hung art above your sofa, but every time you look at your handiwork, something feels “off.” Hanging art isn’t rocket science, but with so many different variables, it can sometimes be difficult to get just right.

Humans don’t hibernate, but we do an approximation of it. If you live in the northern climes, chances are there are a few months where you just barely leave the house. During these months your home becomes more important than ever before: you want it to be a place that’s cozy, that’s welcoming, a place where you would feel good being trapped in a blizzard.

You might not think about coffee table heights as the sort of thing that fluctuates throughout the years, but like any design element, the ideal coffee table height not only changes from room style to room style, but also according to what’s in vogue in living rooms that are being lived in, in the current moment. Low coffee tables are just what they sound like: coffee tables with a top surface that sits a fair bit lower than your usual coffee table find.

Benches look great in hallways and under windows. They function perfectly in an entryway. They’re a surprising but useful addition to a dining room furniture set. But in living rooms they’re often to relegated to the sidelines — along the walls — and usually housing some decor vignette. There’s nothing wrong with benches in your living room looking pretty. But they can do so much more.

Living in a small living room, like living in a small home, is a delicate balance of aesthetics and sacrifice. Your living room is often the central hub of your home, and so should have special attention paid to it, particularly if it’s on the small side. Instead of (or in addition to) a wall collage of art, use mirrors to expand the space, reflect light and make the space feel livelier. → 10 Ways To Use Mirrors To Make Your Space Look Larger.

We talk a lot about streamlining. Minimizing. Cutting back. Paring down. And we really think that’s good. But it’s not always best (for you or your style). Sometimes “busy” decor, rooms bursting with things you love and that inspire you, is the right choice for your home. Take a page from these “busy” living rooms to learn lessons on how to make a full, exciting living room work for your style, without overwhelming everyone who spends time in it.

Living rooms are like living, breathing things that constantly evolve along with their inhabitants. We watch them change over time, as tastes and moods shift. Where are they today? If you’re thinking of redecorating or renovating, here are four of the top trends for modern living rooms. We’ve seen a lot of light wood and Scandinavian pastels in recent years, but lately there’s been a shift — perhaps ushered in by Abigail Ahern — towards dark walls and moody decor.

Either by choice or by the vagaries of fate, you have found yourself living in a studio apartment. That’s it. Just one room. And maybe you’re cool with that, but you don’t feel like looking at your bed all day long. Or you need a little privacy for when houseguests stay, or you just want to create a little separation between the parts of your apartment devoted to sleeping and waking. Apartment Therapy has a few ideas.

Are you struggling with how to fit your furniture in the living room, and can’t for the life of you come up with a good layout? You might need to “float” your furniture — or pull everything out from the wall and create an island of sorts comprising your sofa, chairs and tables — and anchor it all with an area rug. What decorating magic is this do you ask? And how will you know if this is the answer?

It’s one thing to add in a lot of color into a living room. It’s another thing to mix a lot of bold colors expertly in one compact space. How do you do it so it’s exciting and not a messy jumble of hues? A favorite house tour with a particularly colorful living room holds six secrets worth stealing for your own colorful home.

We live hard in living rooms. It’s where we entertain, relax in the evenings, watch TV, and do countless other activities each day. Yet when we get sick of our surroundings and need something different, it’s tough to make big changes in the context of our busy lives and small budgets. That’s when small, cheap tweaks come in handy… Here are eight small ways to switch it up at home, on a budget: 1.

Sometimes, a room just doesn’t quite feel right, but it’s hard to put your finger on the exact reason why. The most beautiful rooms are often perfectly balanced compositions of a number of different elements, and you probably wouldn’t be surprised to know that when one of those elements isn’t quite right, a room might feel a bit “off.

The 1940s were a tumultuous time. It is impossible to understand those years outside of the context of WWII. The war not only defined the decade but from a design perspective, split it virtually in half. During the first half of the decade, new design was halted, as supply shortages and rationing demanded that all available resources — material and otherwise — be directed towards the war effort…Socially, the decade featured a similar split.