4 steps to creating the perfect living room

4 steps to creating the perfect living room

Your living room is a very important space in your home and one you should have a plan for decorating and designing. You likely spend a lot of time in the area, whether it’s relaxing, conversing or reading a book. It’s not a room you want to just pull together and hope for the best, but you want to make it look perfect.

There are four steps you can take to create the perfect living room and a great spot to spend time in or show off when visitors are over. Use the following tips to help you make the most out of this space and ensure you’re satisfied with the end result.

Living room furniture

1.            Choose the right furniture pieces

One step to creating the perfect living room is to choose the right pieces of furniture. Make sure you measure the room and have plenty of seating available but also ensure that it doesn’t appear overcrowded. Invest in the sofa or main seating and build around it with accent pieces and a coffee table. When shopping around, consider these Brosa Design Coffee Tables that will add a sense of elegance and sophistication to your living room. You may also want to have a bookshelf, sideboard or roll-away bar where you can keep drinks so they’re handy to grab on a whim.

Sitting room decoration

2.            Decorate & add personality

Another step to creating the perfect living room is to take the time to decorate it and add some personality. Be choosy about what colour scheme you use in the room and make sure it’s soothing and not too dark or dramatic.

Apply fresh paint to the walls, hang colourful artwork pieces that are unique and special to you and bring in some nature and greenery with a plant or two. Display only your favourite and most cherished items to avoid creating any clutter or chaos.

Chandelier on a living room ceiling

3.            Have the right lighting

Having the right lighting is essential for creating the perfect living room. You want to have many options so that you can set the right tone and mood depending on the time of day and occasion. Consider what natural light you can draw in during the day and have window treatments available that you can close at night and will add some texture to the room. Make sure you have a light fixture on a dimmer switch and that you have lamps and candles available that you can turn on and light as you see fit.

Comfortable furnishings in a sitting room

4.            Make it comfortable & cosy

Most importantly, you want your living room to be comfortable and cosy if it’s going to look and feel perfect. Have soft and colourful pillows on your furniture and throw blankets you can place out and use if necessary. Think about layering carpet with rugs or placing down an area rug if you have hard and cold floors in the room. Now might also be a good time to look into the cost of installing a fireplace not only for the aesthetics but to warm the room in winter too.

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Get their look: Retro pastel kitchen

 

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Colour Pop at Home (@colourpopathome)

What’s not to love about this retro pastel kitchen diner? The sugared almond colours bring the space to life. Although candy pink is the dominant colour, the addition of chalky lemon, mint and white prevent it looking overly ‘girly’.

At first glance, the classic, mid-century look appears as though it would have been very expensive to achieve. With a bit of time, creativity and planning, you can create a lovely interior like this for less than you think.

The dining chairs are from Homebase and cost £100 per pair. A single Ercol Originals dining chair is over £300. Similarly, the Tulip table is a replica, a Knoll original will set you back almost $6,000.

Get their look

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Prices & links correct at time of publication.

Pastel ‘Love’ print
Pastel ‘Love’ print
Permasteel two-tone patio rolling cooler
Permasteel two-tone patio rolling cooler
Illy Francis Francis X1 espresso machine
Illy Francis Francis X1 espresso machine
Wesco Kickmaster pedal bin
Wesco Kickmaster pedal bin
White Eero Saarinen Tulip table
White Eero Saarinen Tulip table
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, dusty pink
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, dusty pink
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, lemon
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, lemon
Pastel ‘Love’ print
Pastel ‘Love’ print
Permasteel two-tone patio rolling cooler
Permasteel two-tone patio rolling cooler
Illy Francis Francis X1 espresso machine
Illy Francis Francis X1 espresso machine
Wesco Kickmaster pedal bin
Wesco Kickmaster pedal bin
White Eero Saarinen Tulip table
White Eero Saarinen Tulip table
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, dusty pink
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, dusty pink
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, lemon
Laura spindle back chair – set of 2, lemon

Get their look: Inviting nook

 

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Agi (@agi_at_59)

Isn’t this corner the most inviting nook? The petrol blue walls are the perfect cosy backdrop for the pastel pink armchair… a colour picked up in the adjoining door painted in Dulux’s Floating Petal.

The walls are adorned with a beautiful selection of wall art; from cheeky fashion illustration prints to wire work inspirational quotes. The wooden floor is a wonderful warm brown and are softened by the circular jute rug. Nature is introduced by the collection of cacti, spider plant and vases of flowers.

The space is given a dose of fun, glitz & glamour by the neon sign and the gold glitter balls bouncing disco light across the walls & ceiling.

Get their look

Some of the links on our blog are affiliate links. We may receive a small commission - at no cost to you - if you click through and make a purchase.
Prices & links correct at time of publication.

‘Life is good’ wire plaque
‘Life is good’ wire plaque
Green spiral jute rug
Green spiral jute rug
‘The Secret Letter’ luxury cushion, green
‘The Secret Letter’ luxury cushion, green
‘This is our happily ever after’ neon sign
‘This is our happily ever after’ neon sign
The Day We Caught The Train Eturelana canvas print by Alexander Grahovsky
The Day We Caught The Train Eturelana canvas print by Alexander Grahovsky
Gold glitter balls
Gold glitter balls
‘Floating Petal’ paint
‘Floating Petal’ paint
‘Life is good’ wire plaque
‘Life is good’ wire plaque
Green spiral jute rug
Green spiral jute rug
‘The Secret Letter’ luxury cushion, green
‘The Secret Letter’ luxury cushion, green
‘This is our happily ever after’ neon sign
‘This is our happily ever after’ neon sign
The Day We Caught The Train Eturelana canvas print by Alexander Grahovsky
The Day We Caught The Train Eturelana canvas print by Alexander Grahovsky
Gold glitter balls
Gold glitter balls
‘Floating Petal’ paint
‘Floating Petal’ paint

Get our look: Guest bedroom

Our guest bedroom

On Mondays, we usually publish one of our Get their look posts which features someone’s interior or exterior space that’s caught our eye. Today, we’re giving it a little twist and looking at a room in our own house. We’ve been doing up our cottage for about 18 months now. It’s coming together nicely and we’re actually reaching completion in some areas. This has brought us to the point of sharing this first space, the guest bedroom, which we consider is just about done and ready to receive visitors.

This room has seen quite a transformation. We started with the essential maintenance & repairs. We extended central heating and installed a radiator; improved insulation; stonework was repaired; pipes & wires boxed in; the ceiling was clad in tongue & groove timber; floorboards cleaned & sanded – and all the walls and woodwork painted. We chose a variety of complimentary colours – a slate grey floor paint, Shirting white distemper for walls, a greyish white matt emulsion for ceiling & beams – and a pale brown ‘rolling fog’ eggshell for cupboard doors and window frame.

After all that, we were ready to add all the furnishings and accessories. We love the character & patina of country antiques and have been able to find space for a nice old chest of drawers, stick back Windsor chair and small coffer. We’ve introduced more natural materials in the form of large sisal rug and wicker baskets. Copper highlights are dotted throughout the room – lamps & shades, candle holder & reflector,  jugs, artwork – and the water pipes, which we left exposed. It’s such a welcoming, warm shade. We’ve used a pair of vintage wooden tea chests as bedside tables – and old luggage for extra storage. And finally some welsh textiles to soften the space, including a welsh wool tapestry bedspread and roller blind.

For details about sourcing the furniture, fittings and accessories we’ve used in our guest bedroom, please scroll to the end of this page.

We hope you like what we’ve done!

We’ll feature further rooms as and when they’ve been completed.

Guest bedroom looking towards the ceiling

Looking towards the Velus window

Antique coffer and Windsor armchair

Antique metal candleholder, match holder and copper reflective backplate

Antique chest of drawers and vintage bentwood linen drum

Antique wooden bowl filled with various pine and spruce cones

Antique wooden clothes hanger on a coat hook

Flowers in an antique white ironstone jug

Get our look

Some of the links on our blog are affiliate links. We may receive a small commission - at no cost to you - if you click through and make a purchase.
Prices & links correct at time of publication.

Globe style vintage Edison light bulb
Globe style vintage Edison light bulb
Edison 60W squirrel cage light bulbs
Edison 60W squirrel cage light bulbs
Vintage wooden tea chests
Vintage wooden tea chests
Copper sequin cushion
Copper sequin cushion
Sisal ‘Small Boucle Classics’ rug with caramel linen boucle border
Sisal ‘Small Boucle Classics’ rug with caramel linen boucle border
Antique copper Wee Willie Winkie chamber stick
Antique copper Wee Willie Winkie chamber stick
Antique Windsor armchair
Antique Windsor armchair
Welsh wool tapestry blankets
Welsh wool tapestry blankets
Endon Waldorf copper lamp
Endon Waldorf copper lamp
Grande black gold-lined lampshade
Grande black gold-lined lampshade
Vintage pigskin luggage
Vintage pigskin luggage
Vintage industrial wicker laundry basket
Vintage industrial wicker laundry basket
Dorma 300 thread count 100% cotton sateen plain black bedding
Dorma 300 thread count 100% cotton sateen plain black bedding
Lucia king size bed frame
Lucia king size bed frame
Little Greene ‘Rolling Fog’ flat oil eggshell
Little Greene ‘Rolling Fog’ flat oil eggshell
Little Greene ’Shirting’ distemper
Little Greene ’Shirting’ distemper