5 Living Room Trends That Are Going to Rule the Rest of 2024, According to Designers
Although a beautiful room that really captures your unique design perspective can transcend time and trend, I have to be honest with you: It can be fun to rework your space to accommodate the latest fads. Perhaps no area is better suited to the trend-driven treatment than the living room. Not only is your living room a blank canvas that can be designed any way you please, but it’s also one of the most frequented areas under your roof.
It’s a common area friends and family can enjoy — for game nights, movie marathons, and slow mornings at home — plus, it’s also where your guests spend the most amount of time. And wouldn’t it be nice to have your best friend tell you that they love what you did with the place the next time you stop by? But, as most design enthusiasts know, trends can come and go in the blink of an eye. In other words, what was once considered “cool” and “popular” earlier this year is now decidedly not so.
As we approach the last quarter of 2024, I can’t help but wonder which trends will take over the remainder of the year. To help, I tapped a few of my favorite designers to share their predictions for the most fitting fads.
Add a beautiful bar.
According to designers Monica Santayana and Ronald Alvarez, the husband-wife duo behind MONIOMI Design in Miami, home bars are on the rise. In fact, many people are trading in the portable bar cart for a more intentional (and permanent!) setup in their living rooms. “The bar area serves as a focal point for social gatherings and entertainment,” says Santayana. “It’s designed to be both functional and visually appealing with elements like built-in glassware storage.”
This budding trend might be functional, but there are also plenty of opportunities to have fun. “We love adding color saturated glassware and accessories to our bars; it gives a feeling of beautiful jewelry to the overall space,” Alvarez says. Cheers!
Go for a moody moment.
After what feels like an eternity of favoring light, airy shades, the pigment pendulum is swinging back to the dark side. “I suspect people are tiring and getting bored of the all neutral, white and beige bouclé aesthetic that has been ruling Instagram in recent years,” says designer Tara Engelberg of Tara Felice Interiors “Homeowners are looking to inject some personality into their personal spaces, and I think color is one way that will happen.” That said, there’s a very fine line between drama and drab, so how do you bridge the gap? “One way to soften the appeal of a darker color is by adding a texture to it,” recommends interior designer Taniya Nayak.
If painting your walls a deep, dramatic shade is too much of a commitment, Engelberg says you can always sprinkle in some statement-making furniture, textiles, and accessories. “Any way you cut it, people are seemingly more encouraged to make bolder choices to stand apart from the masses,” she says.
Rework your wallpaper.
If a darker color scheme isn’t your cup of tea, designer Kevie Murphy of KA Murphy Interiors encourages you to pack on the personality with wallpaper. “Some people claim that ‘wallpaper is back,’ but true wallpaper enthusiasts know that it never went away,” she explains. Instead of settling for the typical accent wall (or ceiling!), try placing your favorite repeat somewhere unexpected.
“We often take all the colors in a wallpaper and run with the design from that scheme, and so having wallpaper inside a bookshelf is a more subtle and unexpected way to bring the whole space together,” Murphy shares. “It holds up longer than a paint job, and there’s wallpaper out there for everyone stylistically, structurally, and financially.”
Bring on biophilic design.
The urge to bring the outdoors in is increasing as time actually spent in the outdoors is reducing. Murphy actually believes biophilic design will be a hit for the rest of 2024. “People generally feel better when they are surrounded by nature,” she explains.
The good news is there’s more than one way to reference Mother Nature in your living room. “I think that can be intentional in interiors with elements like grand windows and tactile organic materials like wood and stone,” she says.
Try ridin’ solo.
The biggest thing to remove from your living room? Believe it or not, Breegan Jane says it’s your sofa. “Let’s face it — no one wants to sit on loveseats or squeeze between people on a couch,” the designer explains. “It’s like the middle seat on an airplane: The least desirable spot because it gives you the least space.”
Instead, a few arm chairs will give both guests and dwellers the opportunity to kick back and relax on their own terms — not be squeezed together like a pack of sardines! “They also can be positioned for easier conversations because you can face someone instead of having to crane your neck to see the person sitting directly beside you on a couch,” Jane adds.