Guest Post... Stylish Living Room: Decor and Ideas

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Today's Guest Post is all about spicing up your living room with thoughtful and fun pieces!

Your living room is the most prominent in your home—it is where you relax, host events, entertain guests, bond with your family, and get creative. Since you spend so much time here, it’s a worthwhile effort to decorate it to showcase your personality and your sense of taste. There is a plethora of living room decoration ideas, each as varied and unique as the people who utilize them. Take some time to create a stylish living space, and you will gain a wonderful place to unwind and show off to all your friends. The following tips will help you craft your perfect living room.

Walls

Your living room walls are the largest project to decorate, and also give you the most versatility when it comes to choice of décor.

Wall Color
Wall color is an important choice to communicate the ‘feel’ of your living room. Soft, warm colors like pastel blues or purples invoke relaxation. If you are feeling bold, paint only one wall of your living room a strong accent color like red. Painting stripes on your wall creates the look of more space and adds an eccentric vibe. Thin stripes are more classic, while thick contemporary.

Wall Hangings

If you’re short on space, an age-old trick to create the illusion of more space is to hang mirrors. Experiment with different shapes and sizes of mirrors; though don’t go too large—you don’t want your living room turning into a ballet studio! Don’t feel the need to stick to plain square or rectangle shapes; try a star, heart, or spiral shape. Your walls are also a great place to display a unique collection you may have, such as ornamental dish trays or even clever t-shirts. Flowers also aren’t just for vases anymore—try displaying some dried, pressed flowers on your wall.

Display your favorite quotation on one wall with large black letters made specifically for wall decoration, or paint them on with a stencil. For a more contemporary touch, proudly display your family photos. Try hanging one large print with smaller prints surrounding it, or make a collage of your favorite memories. 

Accent Pieces

-The trick to adding decorative pieces of your living room is to place enough things to develop a personality, but not so many pieces that any visitor feels overwhelmed in your home.

-Flowers are a timeless decoration. A vibrant-colored set of flowers in an equally vibrant vase can bring a bold pop of color to the room, and fresh flowers bring in a pleasant scent as well as sight. 

-Don’t limit yourself to just placing flowers in a vase, though: also try large feathers or colorful sticks. Another take on flower decoration is to have a few long-stemmed fake flowers in a large vase as a stand-alone piece. Add some colorful pebbles in the vase, and you’ve given the look an edge.

Other Accent Pieces

 

-A bowl of seashells and sand adds a casual vibe, and a funky lamp can add just the right amount of personality to your living room. 

-Antique stores are great places to find unique accent pieces for your living room. Hang a couple shelves on the wall to display your finds.

-Another way to create a relaxing atmosphere in your home is to install a small fountain—the gentle sound of the flow of water is very soothing. 

-If the rest of your living room in one shade or one color, adding a pop of another completely different color keeps the room looking vibrant—try it with an accent pillow or throw rug. 

Floors

While deciding what to put on your living room floor, keep in mind the flow of traffic in your living room and decide where you want to direct it. Placing rugs strategically creates clean lines in your home and keeps everything looking orderly. Your rugs should be fairly simply designed and colored to keep from overshadowing the rest of your room.

Furniture

Deciding which furniture to place in your living room is probably most important, as it needs to accommodate visitor’s comfort levels as well as their sense of taste. As with decorating the floors, when placing furniture keep your flow of traffic in mind and make sure nothing will be obstructive. Do not feel limited to just placing your furniture against the wall: angling it creates a surprising contemporary edge. When buying furniture you can really allow your creativity to shine through, as there are so many choices for what to put in your living room. A light or cream colored couch and chairs open up the room and are a good choice if your walls are already highly accented. Create a modern feel by pairing all similarly toned or colored furniture with one piece that is radically different. Adding an ottoman or two not only refreshes the living room but provided additional seating spots. 

Image Sources: Shop4Furniture , Scrollmag

However you decide to decorate your living room, be most concerned with pleasing yourself and your family. Do not worry too much about making it trendy if that is not what you want—you will have to live in it every day! Be creative and, most importantly, have fun.

Author: Lisa Jolan

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