BRING A LITTLE BIT OF LUXURY INTO YOUR LIVING ROOM

The modern individual lives in a home that needs to be multi-purpose.  More than ever, our home is our sanctuary and the place we spend most of our lives in, as we eat, sleep, relax and might even work from home. Many different types of people will come into your home over the course of your life, and you will need to cater to a variety of ever changing circumstances, a growing family, and your individual needs. This means that the importance of getting your home just right has never been more important. Designing and re-decorating your home is an excellent way to take control of your personal space and infuse it with your taste and specific needs, particularly if you’ve just moved in. Taking on your entire home as a project is costly and time-consuming, however, and it is far more economical to focus on transforming one important space in your home, rather than attempting to design various rooms at the same time.

Photo sourced from Flickr

It is therefore, the living room, front room or lounge, that is perhaps the most significant space in your home and the focus of a design project. A place to entertain guests, settle down with a good book or watch a film, a living room is an area that needs to be inviting, comfortable while appearing effortlessly chic. It’s also space, apart from perhaps your kitchen, that gets the most usage in your home, especially if you have a family and small children, and don’t get me started on the wear and tear caused by pets.

Attempting to create a balance between the practical and the aesthetic might appear to be difficult if not impossible, but knowing what you options can help you make the decisions, you need to make based upon your living arrangements and specific budget.

Whether you want to go for contemporary or traditional styles, there are hundreds if not thousands of options to choose from. Choosing what works for you and your particular tastes is key to creating the perfect living room.  You shouldn’t feel like you need to settle for comfort over style or assume that elegance comes at the cost of comfort.

If you want to revamp your living room, and take control of your front room once and for all, there are some simple changes you can make to bring a little bit of luxury into your home while still maintaining an inviting yet practical space.

Paint an accent wall

Painting one wall of your living room can be a bold statement or a subtle undertone which can transform a room. This can break up a room and draw attention to a particular feature in your room that you might wish to highlight.

If you’re feeling particularly adventurous, choose a mural. For an accent wall to pop and stay sophisticated, keep the other walls neutrally painted and forego other big decorative statements. If you have a color scheme in mind, paint the accent wall this shade while carrying on this theme in other subtle pops of color through the furniture, paintings or fabrics. Choose between warm and cool tones, matte or muted hints and bold and bright colors. If you’re stuck for ideas, do some research and have a look at some inspiring accent walls.

Choose a corner sofa

What all living room’s share in common, is the need to provide comfortable seating. Invest in a corner sofa for the ultimate luxury seating that will suit any home. Fitting comfortably into any space, corner sofas are incredibly versatile and can provide an excellent frame for any room.Consider choosing  leather corner sofas as these will give your space a sense of timelessness that translates well to modern or traditional style living rooms. An extra plus of this material is that it tends to be easier to clean and maintain, unlike some other textiles which may stain.

Create a central point of focus

This might be a mirror, piece of art, or coffee table that brings together a room and adds a focal point. Hanging a large statement painting,  for example, draws attention to the room and allows you to showcase your style and taste. If you choose to go for a mirror, which opens up smaller spaces, invest in a designer or vintage piece with an unusual or unique shape to add some panache to your room. Choose to place your piece in the center of the room or even along the side of a wall to draw attention to this side of the room.

De-clutter your room

Investing in a select few pieces of furniture is crucial while adding too many can be suicide for your interior design. There is nothing worse than having a messy and cluttered space particularly when you are trying to go for chic and sophisticated. If you are a lover of sentimental photographs and souvenirs,  only leave out the essential ones or consider creating a designated photo area in your hallway as a way of adding a personal and welcoming touch to your home.

Get rid of, or hide your TV

Big widescreen televisions are so early 2000’s. It shouldn’t be a case of ‘bigger is better, ‘ and in fact, there is nothing more vulgar than an over-sized widescreen TV  that takes center stage in a living room. Of course, most of us enjoy cozying up to a good film once in awhile, and you don’t have to get rid of your TV entirely if this feature is an important part of your life. Do however place your TV somewhere that subtly conceals, or allows it to feel like part of the background, rather than the focal point of the room. There are sliding mirrors which can hide the television from sight, or you can consider building it into the wall or a shelf space for it not to jut out quite so much and feel like part of the background rather than the foreground.

Focus on a fireplace

There is nothing quite so cozy as a crackling fire in winter, and maintaining or adding a fireplace is a great way of incorporating both style and comfort. Even when the winter months have long gone, an empty fireplace is a classy addition to any living room. Painting the mantelpiece or adding a statement mantel made from marble or granite creates a luxury feel and functions as a point of focus for your room to be based around.

Photo sourced from FreeGreatPicture

Arrange coffee table books

Artfully placed coffee table books are an incredibly chic and stylish way of injecting your room with some culture. Including several books on a coffee table can give your room a sense of elegance and good taste while also being a thoughtful way of entertaining or amusing guests. Coffee books, such as the ones recommended here are great conversation starters and light reading material to keep you entertained without the need for the background noises of television.

Choose your  lighting carefully

Choosing the right lighting for your living room can change the look of your room entirely. Rely as much as you can on natural lighting to open up the space you have, and avoid overly bright overhead lighting which can give a harsh clinical feel to a living room. Lamps, candles and tea lights can provide warm touches of light and color, but do not go overboard as this can lead to a cluttered look.

Bring music to your room

Keeping a piano or cello in a particular part of your room exudes class and culture. If you or somebody at home plays an instrument, using it as a decoration or statement piece in your living room brings out the personality in a room. This acts as a showcase for your talents and is on hand for when you have guests to entertain. If you are interested in learning how to use musical instruments as decoration check out this post for some inspiration. Alternatively, if you do not play instruments, adding a record player can add a groovy, vintage feel to your space and gives you the added benefit of being able to listen to music while you sit.

Curtains, drapes or blinds?

Choosing what to furnish your windows with can make or break your room. If you have spent time and effort carefully picking out what to place in your living room, only to ignore your window furnishings, it can let down all your hard work and throw off your room. With so many options out there, choosing the right window furnishings is often very confusing. Do you go for blinds? Drapes? Curtains? There are many factors to consider when choosing the right furnishings and it depends entirely on the look of your room and whether you are going for a contemporary or traditional feel. Silk and velvet are useful materials to consider using if choosing curtains, as they do not fade quickly, are incredibly versatile as well as hanging nicely. Drapes are much more formal than curtains and do have a certain elegance to them. As they tend to be pleated, however, they may be difficult to maintain and clean. Choosing blinds over curtains or drapes is a good option for those wanting to go for a modern look. There are a variety of blinds, such as roller blinds which provide a clean silhouette to a room without detracting from the room itself.