Top Ways and Ideas to Improve Your Living Room

According to recent studies, homeowners spend the second most time in their living rooms out of all the rooms in their house, averaging a whopping 1.606 hours per year. The only room we stay more in is the bedroom, exceeding 2000 hours per year. Even so, nobody can deny the incredible importance of the living room in one’s family and social life. The living room is the place where you and your family gather after a long day to talk; it is the place where you entertain guests, and, during holidays and celebrations, it is the place where everybody gathers and spends the bulk of their time.

It only makes sense to look after this place and even upgrade it from time to time. After all, considering how much time we spend in the living room, it’s only natural that it will see some wear and tear. Check out the following tips if you’re looking to give your living room a makeover.

Image source: https://unsplash.com/photos/l9nngSmvCVY 

Move furniture

It may seem like a pointless thing to do, but you don’t always need to get completely new furniture in order to change the look of your room. Rearranging what you already own will likely do the trick as well. You may even end up with a completely new arrangement that you realize works leagues better than what you had before. This isn’t a task to finish in one day. You should do some planning in advance, sketch a map of your living room and keep in mind what you’re trying to achieve. Would you like more natural light at your desk? Are you looking for an arrangement which will give you more unoccupied space? After you’ve found the answer to all those questions, start moving the furniture around and see what a big difference it makes.

Color coordination

If you’re going for color coordination but don’t know how to start, a useful tip is to try the 60-30-10 rule. The primary color you choose for your living room takes up 60 percent, the secondary color takes up 30 percent, and the remaining 10 goes to the accent color. You should try to avoid overcomplicating the palette and choosing too many colors because it can be distracting for your vision and make the colors the center of attention, drawing the attention away from the other aspects of the room. You can apply color coordination only to some parts of your living room, and your bookshelf is such an area. Stacking your books based on their colors means you can end up with a striking rainbow wall.

Sofa, so good 

We all love spending time on our sofas. After a long day at work or in school, relaxing on your sofa feels like a God-sent. It’s the place where we eat pizza in front of the TV and really loosen up and de-stress. If you know you are the type to bring food and drinks inside, choose an easy clean sofa that won’t give you any hassle if you ever spill something. Adding pillows in a stain resistant fabric will energize your room and invigorate the entire atmosphere. Keep in mind the colors and tones in the rest of your room. If your living room consists of mainly pale, minimalistic beiges and grays, pillows in fun, vibrant shades will add a much-needed splash of color to your space. If, on the contrary, your room is brightly and boldly colored, go for muted tones, like ecru or soft pastels. Think of pillows as accessories. If you love adding accessories to your outfits, you will surely love mixing and matching with pillows as well.

Consider throwing a blanket on your sofa for that added coziness factor. It’s a statement piece and will give your living room that effortless yet enviable look you see in interior design magazines. Not to mention that it will be very comfortable to snuggle up in it during the colder months. Pick a chunky blanket with a thick knitting pattern, or knit one yourself if you’re feeling up to the task. You can even try to dye the yarn a different color if you’d like a blanket in a bold, beautiful color you just can’t seem to find on the market. But before you start, make sure you own upholstery made from stain resistant fabric so you can go about your DIY project in complete confidence.

Lighting 

A vital part of a good-looking living-room is the light. Natural light is the best, but if you aren’t in possession of immense living room windows, don’t despair. There are many types of artificial lights to choose from. You can incorporate both strong overhead lights and milder options such as lamps. In this way, you can switch from a fully bright space to an intimate and comfortable atmosphere. It’s all about the lighting. On the other side if you feel like you’re getting too much natural light and would like to tone it down a little to get more rest, keep the temperature down, protect your privacy or furniture, invest in sunblock curtains. They’re certain to do the job. This way, you don’t have to crank up the AC and get additional protection from harmful UV rays.

Art and flowers

The best way to beautify your living room is to bring art and flowers to the mix. Art is great for giving a chic air to any room. High art isn’t needed; pick some paintings that you find relaxing and calming. Natural landscapes are always a good idea, and water or mountains give off peaceful energy and are perfect for inducing that feeling of restfulness and contemplation you are probably craving. You can go for something more abstract and modernist as well, such as geometric shapes or splashes of color. It all depends on whether your personal style leans more towards Monet or Mondrian.

Flowers add much liveliness to a room. You can go the classic route and buy flowers you arrange in a beautiful, ornamental vase, or  try various flower arrangements. Ikebana, the traditional Japanese art of flower arrangements, is an option. While considering Japanese aesthetics, you may want to try a bonsai, guaranteed to provide an air of tranquility to your room. However, pick low-maintenance plants like succulents if you’re not among the lucky few who possess green fingers.

If you follow some simple tips, it is easy to make your room as stylish as possible while not compromising on comfort and uniqueness.