collaborative post | The living room is one of the most important rooms in the home, and also one of the most used. The sheer amount of time that families spend in their living room means that it’s one of those rooms that often needs refreshing more frequently than other rooms in the house.
Fortunately, homeowners don’t need to undertake significant upgrades to bring their living rooms up to standard. There are plenty of ways to make your living room more relaxing, enjoyable, and visually appealing without having to spend significant amounts of time, energy, and money.
In this post, we’ll run through some of our favorite ways to refresh and update a living room without having to contact a long list of contractors.
Rearrange the Furniture
We’re big fans of rearranging the furniture, which is about the easiest way to radically transform your living room without having to spend a penny or even that much time. It’s something you can do in a matter of 30 – 60 minutes, provided you have some help.
The reason we recommend it is that, in many cases, homeowners don’t have their furniture in the optimal position. They just have them in the place they chose when they first moved in. Rearranging the positioning of your furniture can improve the balance and energy of the room, as well as help foster enhanced conversation. Many homeowners have their couch facing the TV, but you’ll find that you and your guests talk much more if the seats face each other.
Upgrade The Pillows and Throws
Modern couches are made to last, and in reality, you likely won’t need to replace them for around 8 – 12 years. But that doesn’t mean that you don’t have to replace anything connected to your couch. The pillows and throws you use will have a much shorter lifespan, and if you’re not updating them on time, then you’ll likely be subtly dragging down the quality of your living room. Pillows and cushions, for example, should be replaced every few years.
And this is good news, since you can really influence your living room’s decor through your pillows and throws. Choose ones made from high-quality fabrics, and you’ll quickly have made your living room look and feel a lot more plush.
Sophisticated Lighting
Lighting has a big impact on the feel of a space. By utilizing the right type of lighting, homeowners can give their living room a cozy, elegant, and sophisticated feel without having to undertake significant work.
The best way to light a living room is to use staggered, layered lighting that uses warm LED bulbs. Light fixtures made from bronze, antique brass, and polished nickel, such as Corston wall lights, work particularly well, providing an elegant, timeless look while still offering maximum functionality. Combine that with floor and side lamps, and you’ll have a living room that encourages you and your loved ones to sink into relaxation.
Hang Large Works of Art
For whatever reason, artwork seems to be an underutilized strategy when it comes to improving the look of living rooms. It’s easy to do, has a big impact, and can even be counted, in some cases, as a long-term investment.
If you have a large, bare wall in your home, then perhaps now’s the time to go art shopping. Just remember to follow the rules for buying art for your home — it should be original, and you must like it. Art is designed to inspire joy, after all.
Just one last word of advice: if possible, go big. You’ll pay more for a large work of art, but it’ll make a big impression, functioning as the focal point of the room.
Add Mirrors
Dealing with a smaller-than-you’d-like living room? We feel your struggle. Living rooms are supposed to be spaces for relaxing and unwinding, and that’s a little hard to do if it feels like a small box.
You probably can’t change the physical dimensions of your living room, but you can make it feel bigger. Adding mirrors to strategic points in the room will allow light to bounce around the space. In addition, moving your furniture slightly away from the wall can also help. While it can seem counterintuitive, putting a little bit of space behind your couch and other furniture can help to create a layered, expansive look.
Create a Clean Look
And while we’re talking about making the space look bigger, be sure to create a clean, refined look wherever possible. This will have the benefit of, again, making the space look bigger, as well as making it simply look more neat and tidy. Having too many items creates a cluttered look that can have a subtly negative impact on your mental well-being and enjoyment of your room. It’s also recommended to conceal any wires, which always make a space look a little messy.
Plants
There’s much to love about adding plants to your living room. Indeed, we’d wager that you probably won’t find anyone who regrets buying plants for their home! They offer so many benefits, and all they ask for in return is a little bit of TLC. By adding house plants, you’ll be helping to add visual warmth, more texture and color variation, and even give your living room’s air quality a boost. If your living room doesn’t currently have any greenery, then take a trip to a florist and see what they have available.
Switch Out the Curtains
It’s easy to overlook the impact that curtains can have on the look and feel of a room. The truth is, they really can make a world of difference to a room’s aesthetic. Plus, in some cases, they can even offer significant boosts to the room’s energy efficiency. If you’re looking for curtains that’ll have the biggest impact, then we’d recommend opting for large, plush drapes. They’ll work to make a big statement, especially if paired with a few of the other tips from this list, such as buying a large work of art or installing brass light fixtures.
