Your home is key to your well-being and The Living Room is perhaps the most deserving of rooms to concentrate our efforts on when considering any interior design.
It’s a good idea to start with the basics – how the room is to be used and then to plan a layout that works. Furniture may need to be reimagined or repurposed, this could be reupholstery or more simply, the addition of fresh scatter cushions and throws.
Seating arrangements should be generous to accommodate all the family and think to incorporate additional seats when numbers swell. Pouffes, perches and occasional swivel chairs are ideal. These can be used fireside, under tables or grouped to form a larger centrepiece arrangement. Use practical trays on top for drinks and snacking.
Ideally, chose a restful palette for this room, to offer a calm canvas – think of watercolour hues. Add some zesty punch on upholstery, scatters and table lamps or lampshades.
At the windows, simplify your treatments with wide-width wool or linen sheers, keeping things textural, luxurious, and understated. Walls might be painted, there are so many delicious colours to tempt, or you might indulge in a mural wall over art. Printed designs that fill an elevation can be a worthy starting point when looking for initial inspiration.
Decorating your living room will be a priority. Look beyond the ubiquitous white or off-white woodwork opting instead for a tone-on-tone approach, ultimately taking your lead from the wall colour or wallpaper. This is particularly useful when designing smaller spaces, less stop and start, more ebb and flow. There’s also the fifth wall to consider (overhead) this can be more dramatic with a darker tone, again steer clear of the brilliant white.
Stay original, nothing too matchy-matchy. Texture is your friend – use boucle, velvet and teddy bear fabrics in abundance, these are all on-trend and set to stay.
Reorganise photographs, books, and objets, grouping together and reframing where necessary. Turn books around for less colourful/jarring spines and jackets. Bring the outdoors in with a fresh stock of houseplants. A jungle of greenery will instantly enliven a dull corner and can be displayed in pots on stands for added height or grouped as a trio for impact. Seasonal fresh flowers are equally pleasing and help bring an interior to life.
Breathe in this reimagined interior with these ideas and reap the life-changing rewards.
FAQ’s
Q: How can I improve the decoration of my living room?
A: Start with the general arrangement of furniture, reorganise, and then re-evaluate every piece deciding what’s in and what’s out.
Q: Where can I find good interior design ideas?
A: The quality interior design magazines still deliver every month and obviously Instagram and Pinterest, provided you know who to follow and what to search for!
Q: What are the best tips for sofa placement in a living room?
A: Choose your sofa with care – not too greedy on arm space and deep enough to accommodate your arrangement of scatter cushions. Place a sofa so that there’s space enough in front for a coffee table or stool.
Back-to-back sofas that incorporate a slim sofa table in between are a personal favourite.
Include more than one sofa if space permits, always preferable to have a sofa and pair of chairs for delivering a more coherent scheme.