Creative Interior Design Ideas for Living Rooms

You are moving into a new house and you need some great first home buyers tips? Your living room will be the hub of the house where you will be spending most of your leisure time (watching TV, reading a book, enjoying a glass of wine with friends, playing with kids or snoozing on the sofa), so make it top-notch. Unlike kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms, living rooms are not so difficult to design. What do you really need besides a comfy sofa and a TV? Perhaps some pretty cushions, a nice rug, some ambience lighting, a cool artwork or whatever you think will make the space super cosy, beautifully lit and comfortable? These are the key design elements you can combine to make a modern Aussie-style living room:

Plenty of Natural Light

Big windows or a glass wall will connect your living room to the outdoor space and provide an abundance of natural light. It is also a fantastic way to take advantage of the inspirational views if you are surrounded by nature or if you have a show-stopping garden. A huge window can fill the room with warmth but it isn’t exactly what you will be looking for when temperatures are sizzling. How to work out what is the best position for the big windows? North-facing windows will award you with plenty of winter sun while they can easily be protected from the heat and blinding light during the summer months. This is the ideal position for both kitchens and living rooms in Australia (keep this in mind when building or redecorating your house).

Mixed Materials

One of the key features of modern living rooms is their eclectic feel. Flick through interior design magazines and you will notice a vivid mixture of colours, textures, materials and styles. You will even see a clash of sixties-inspired furniture and bohemian luxe, a blend of muted and vibrant shades or a combination of smooth lines and rough textures, and yet it all looks perfectly harmonious. To achieve this fashionable eclectic look, stick to a particular style (or theme and colour scheme) but feel free to combine disparate elements such as wood and metal, earthy hues and furious vibrant shades, curvy objects and sharp lines or soft and rough textures. Make sure to mix pieces that have common elements and work well together.

A Statement Sofa

A sofa should be the centrepiece of your living room. It will set the tone and impact the feel of the whole room, so it is worth splurging on a really good piece. The first step is to decide on the style. Do you want a comfy and flexible sofa that can be adjusted and transformed to suit different room layouts? Then you can opt for a modular sofa which is one of the most popular styles at the moment. Or perhaps you want a piece of furniture that oozes with vintage flair? Then you can pick a French provincial sofa or an English rolled arm sofa (a style popular in English country houses in the 1900’s). Once you select a general style you like, think about practical issues such as the size and the main purpose of your sofa. How many people should it accommodate? Do you want it to be a flexible piece that can turn into a bed for unexpected visitors? Should it be comfortable for sitting or lying down, reading a book or watching TV?

A Bold Rug

The second most important detail that will define the look of your living space is the rug. Think about the colour, texture, size and design. It is a piece that will connect all the furniture and decorations together. Even if you have a muted colour palette comprised only of neutral shades, a bold, colourful rug can fit in. To make it resonate with the rest of the space, add a few details in the same hues (it can be anything from lamp shades to candle holders, vases or artworks hanging on your walls). A whimsical, bohemian carpet can set the theme of your living room while a neutral one can tone down the overall design if you already have furniture in vibrant shades.

Various Lighting Options

Being the hub of your house, the living room is a multi-purpose space which is being used for entertainment, relaxing, watching TV, reading and even working. This why you need a mix of lights to cater for all needs and serve all purposes. The lighting has to be practical as well as aesthetically pleasing, so the best solution is to have a mix of different lighting options (such as overhead lights, table lamps, floor lamps and wall lamps). Some of them can have the sole purpose to highlight furniture or artwork pieces, some of them will be used only for reading while some of them will be ideal to create ambience lighting. A dimmer is ideal for living rooms because you can control the amount of light depending on the effect you want to achieve.

Clever Storage

You don’t want a cluttered living room with books, magazines, toys and gadgets all over the place. Think about different storage solutions that will work best for you. Where to put your TV? You can buy a smaller TV unit with some storage space or a big TV cabinet and a bookshelf in one. If you love reading magazines, then invest in a magazine rack and if you don’t know where to store your stylish crockery, you can purchase a display cabinet. The clever way to store things in your living room (even if it is small) is to utilise empty spaces underneath your furniture, hang shelves on walls or use decorative boxes and baskets.

Equilibrium Homes specialise in individually designed single and double storey homes as well as custom renovations and additions. We provide all our clients with a personalised building experience that is stress-free and enjoyable. We make your dreams a reality. As Perth’s leading custom home builder we strive to achieve the highest standard in every home we build. It is our attention to detail, as well as a high level of communication with our clients throughout every project that makes Equilibrium Homes your first choice.

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