Level Up Your Living Room with Our Best Decorating Tips from This Year
When it comes to decorating ideas, Apartment Therapy has every room in your house covered. It’s easy to find inspiration when browsing through hundreds of published house tours and DIY projects. There’s one room in particular that has no shortage of decorating tips: the living room.
It’s easy to understand why living room style tips are so popular: In addition to being the most used space in the home, living rooms have become much more personalized over the past few years. They serve as areas for entertaining, for watching television, or as necessary flex spaces for dining or working. Because of their frequent usage, it can be hard to keep them organized and stylish. Take a look at these seven living rooms that are bursting with style, color, and personality. You’re sure to find a decorating takeaway or two that you can incorporate into your own home.
Mix & Match Textures
There are tons of textures in this vibrant and colorful Brooklyn apartment’s living room. Between the bouclé loveseat, velvet barrel chair, wooden buffet, and glass-top coffee table, you can see plenty of fabrics and materials in the mix. The combination adds dimension and creates visual interest without feeling overwhelming or busy. With tons of seating options, a dining nook, and colorful throw pillows, the space feels warm and inviting.
Use Monochromatic Color
Who says you can’t paint your ceiling? The deep green walls — and ceiling — in this Houston, Texas, home’s living room make a huge visual impact. Even the leather sofa matches the one-color scheme! The European-inspired accents, like the gilt mirror, crystal chandelier, and wall moldings, make the room feel elegant and timeless, while the addition of contemporary furnishings makes it feel more modern. The fireplace mantel is a decorative add-on, finished with a dark tile backsplash and filled with a fireplace candelabra and candles to recreate the ambiance of a wood fire.
Try Soft, Curved Furniture
The architecture in this Los Angeles loft is stunning; it allows a lot of natural light to come through the tall, glass block windows into the living room. The room’s furnishings enhance the bright and airy vibe — especially the furniture. The curved edges of the couch, bench, and glider chair make the room look comfortable and inviting (the bouclé and velvet textures add even more comfort). Rounded corners on the bar table and the arched mirror above the fireplace bring in more dimension to the space. The muted colors used in this living room make it a perfect place to relax and unwind.
Let Your Furniture Multitask
Over the past couple of years, living rooms have become the most versatile rooms in people’s homes. In addition to being a place for general, informal everyday use, they sometimes function as a home office or even a place to eat when space is limited. The living room in this Argentina apartment features a cozy dining nook using an unconventional piece of furniture: a curved sectional. Setting up the eating zone directly next to the library area was intentional so the sectional, dining chairs, and tulip-style table can be used for mealtimes, but also as a place where you can curl up to read a book.
Add Colorful Couches
What better way to show off your personal style than by choosing a bold color couch? Plus, these days it’s easier than ever to get upholstered furniture in any color you can imagine. In this Melbourne, Australia, home, the fuchsia couch serves as the primary focal point in the living room. We love the addition of house plants and the extra pops of color from the apple green vase and burnt orange throw pillows. The flokati rug adds texture and warmth to the room.
Lay Down Vintage-Inspired Rugs
This Jersey City apartment is brimming with personality, thanks to tons of antique and vintage finds scattered throughout the living room. Vintage elements help tie the room together, and the vintage-inspired rug in this room features timeless colors and patterns that complement a wide variety of design styles. The mid-century furniture in the room meshes well with the DIY TV console and storage cabinet. Even though it’s a mix of old and new pieces, everything works well together.
Mix Patterns Too!
The living room in this Philadelphia, Pennsylvania apartment is decorated with a wide mix of patterns: A checkerboard shag rug, bold motif wallpaper, and even a green peel-and-stick panther printed wallpaper (which isn’t visible in this shot). The collision of style might seem intimidating, but this room fully embraces the fun prints and ties it all together with a cohesive color choice: orange. The rug, wallpaper, and chair all contain a bright orange tone, while the contrasting green velvet sofa adds depth and dimension. The endless amounts of natural light that come through the window add extra brightness to the room.
