The Best Living Room Decor Tips & Tricks
Feeling stuck when decorating your living room? Today, I’m going to share all of my favorite living room decor tips to help you decorate your living room to feel more like you!
I think that a lot of us fall into a rut when we move into a home. We pick our furniture, we plop it into place, and then we look around at our big, blank living room and think to ourselves, “what next?”
Knowing how to decorate a living room doesn’t just come naturally – it takes trial and error and planning and (so many) mistakes. Trust me, I’ve made my fair share over the years! But, I’ve really honed in on my style and have reached a point where I feel like I know what I’m doing. So, today, I’m going to share my best living room decor tips, ideas, and tricks for how to decorate your living room. I promise, if you’re feeling like you are in a rut with your space, you’ll walk away from this post feeling inspired and excited!
How to Decorate a Living Room
Let’s start with the basics – where do you even begin when it comes to decorating your living room? It might feel overwhelming, but I promise that once you break it down, it’s really manageable.
Make a Plan
This might sound overly simple, but I think it’s probably the most overlooked piece of decorating any room. We often get caught up in just wanting to make some progress, and we start buying things randomly just based on what we see and like in the store. But, without a plan, your space can end up feeling disjointed or unfinished.
You might be really eager to get started, but it’s always worth taking the time to formulate a plan. Maybe that looks like a Pinterest board with inspiration for your space. Maybe it’s a full-blown mood board (learn how to make a mood board here!). Or, maybe it’s just a quick list on your phone of things you want to include and a general style you want to stick to. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, but you will find the process easier if you take the time to make a plan.
Start Where You’re At
After you’ve got a plan, it’s important that you don’t get ahead of yourself. Again, I think so much of designing a room comes down to getting out of your own head and grounding yourself in the space you have. Maybe your plan includes giant built-ins along your fireplace wall, but you don’t have the budget for it right now. Or, maybe your sofa is 20 years old and you desperately need to replace it but that’s still a year or two down the road. Does that mean you can’t get started yet? Absolutely not!
Sometimes we get so focused on the end result that we forget that there can be a lot of joy in the in-between. Maybe you can’t replace the sofa yet but you can grab some new armchairs or a new coffee table. Or, maybe you can’t afford any big furniture changes yet, but you can grab some accessories to make things feel more homey in the interim.
We don’t live in an HGTV show. You don’t need to hire an interior designer and renovate your entire space at once! You can do one small swap or project at a time, and eventually you’ll get where you want to go. Don’t let your future plans get in the way of creating a space you love today.
Consider Your Lifestyle
And finally, as you’re beginning the process of decorating your living room, you should always consider how you plan to use the space. For example, I always find myself drawn to really beautiful formal living rooms when I’m browsing Pinterest. I love a space with really cozy mood lighting and couches tucked across from each other, with no television in sight and also zero toys or signs of children in the space.
But, let’s be real. That’s not the life I live. We use our living area to watch TV and play games. There are wrestling matches and living room campouts and toys strewn all over the place. So, when I plan my space, I need to take that into account! There needs to be ample floor space for my kids to roll around and spread out their toys. I need a place to tuck away all of the toys at the end of the day. I need us to be comfortable in this space, and I need it to fit our lifestyle. You need the same for your space!
Living Room Decor Dos and Don’ts
So, now that we’ve talked about the basics of planning out your living room decor, let’s get to the details. This is where we’ll really break down some of my more specific tips and tricks.
DO choose the Right Size Rug
One mistake a lot of people make when planning their living room design is getting a rug that’s too small! Counter to what you might think, a too-small rug is going to make the family room feel even smaller than it is! Make sure that at least the front legs of every piece of living room furniture will be able to touch your rug.
Our living room has a 9×12 rug, and it’s the perfect size for our space. An 8×10 would make the room feel small and disjointed. When in doubt, my recommendation is always to go for the bigger size, as long as it fits in your living room.
DON’T Forget Storage
Please, please, please do not neglect to make sure that you have ample storage space in your living room that is also attractive. This doesn’t need to be anything fancy, but just don’t forget to pay attention to it! It can be easy to think “oh, I’ll just toss these toys in an open basket” or “my kid will put their toys away, I don’t need anything in the living room”. But then, you’re left side-eyeing a chaotic mess every single day. Trust me when I say you want plenty of storage, and if it’s for toys, you want it to be closed storage.
A few storage solutions we have in our living room:
- One fireplace hearth drawer dedicated to toys, and one dedicated to video games
- A coffee table with a shelf to hold our family photo albums
- A large basket for throw blankets
- Open shelves that can hold small boxes for little trinkets and doodads
DO Take Your Time
I said it before and I’ll say it again – you don’t need to decorate your living room all at once! This is a process that SHOULD take time. Months. Years! Let your space slowly evolve over time, and you’ll be much happier with the finished result, I promise.
Of course, along with this comes that note that you shouldn’t let taking your time get in the way of making any progress! Pick a cadence for changes in your living room (for example, I’m going to make one change each month) and try to stick with it. You’ll be amazed at how great it feels to watch it slowly come together.
DON’T Buy the Matching Furniture Set
I know. It’s tempting. You’re in the store and you see a set of matching furniture that would solve all of your problems. One swipe of the credit card and you’re done! But, hear me out – spaces that have matching furniture sets often end up feeling dated faster, and don’t always feel as dynamic and interesting as spaces that are a little more collected.
Does that mean all matching furniture sets are bad? Of course not! If you love what’s in your home, that’s all that matters. But, if you’re putting a concerted effort into learning how to decorating your living room and curating a really unique space, I recommend staying away from anything that’s too match-y.
DO Focus on Lighting!
Lighting is important in any space, but I’d argue that the lighting in your living room is one of the most important components to how the space feels! Sure, you might have great overhead lighting, but you should always consider adding some accent lighting around the space, too.
For example, in our living room we have:
- A small rechargeable table lamp on our side table.
- A table lamp on the open shelving
- Two wall sconces flanking the fireplace
- AND a floor lamp behind the couch!
Having some accent lighting in a space helps create a really cozy environment and makes your room feel more complete. Don’t forget it!
DON’T Skip Side Tables
Side tables are an often-overlooked component in your living room design. As you’re planning your room, make sure that each seat in the house has access to some sort of flat surface where guests can place a drink. Having side tables also gives you a chance to add some extra decor to your living space!
As you’re planning side tables, you can also consider adding a console or sofa table behind the couch. I built a really simple sofa table to go behind ours, and it has been so helpful and functional!
DO Play With Texture
Texture makes a huge difference in how a finished space feels. As you’re choosing furnishings and décor for your space, try to choose a variety of textures and finishes. Maybe choose an armchair with a different style of upholstery from your sofa. If you go for velvet curtains, add some different fabric textures in the throw pillows. Or, if you go with bold patterns on your curtains, pair them with some neutral wooden shades or white blinds to balance things out.
Other examples of textures to play around with include:
- Wood tones
- Brass
- Brick
- Other metals
- Ceramics
- Plants!
Basically, as you layer in furniture and decor, consider the textures you’re choosing to keep things interesting! This also goes for your color palette. Decide ahead of time if you want a neutral color palette or if you want to use bold color throughout your space. And then, layer in a variety of coordinating colors in your new color scheme. You can pair a colorful sofa with neutrals in the other furniture. When it comes to this, I recommend studying other spaces that you love in magazines and on Pinterest to see how they play with color. It can help a lot!
livinA bonus tip? You can also add some texture and visual interest to the ceiling! Get some ceiling here!
DON’T Keep the Matching Couch Pillows
And finally, just like I don’t recommend buying a matching furniture set, I don’t recommend sticking with the throw pillows that come with your sofa! If you’re working on creating a well-decorated living room, it is really helpful to mix things up and add in some other colors and textures. Typically, those pillows you get with your sofa are the exact same color and fabric as the sofa itself! Swap those out with some affordable throw pillows that make you smile, and you’ll be amazed at what a difference it makes.
My Living Room Decor Staples
Alright – are you feeling inspired yet? Hopefully at this point, you’re feeling armed with lots of new ideas and motivated to dive in to decorating your living room.
Before we wrap it up, let’s talk about some of my living room decor staples. These are the things I have, use, and love in my space. Maybe they’ll give you some ideas for what can add some personality to your space, too!
- This is my favorite rug. I’ve had it for about five years now and it has lived in both our bedroom and our living room. It’s the perfect mostly-neutral backdrop for the entire living room!
- The coziest throw blanket. This is a new addition to our house and it immediately became a favorite of everyone in the family. It’s so soft and warm, but it’s also beautiful.
- This throw pillow is my favorite throw pillow I have. It’s so pretty and looks great on any seat. It’s not the softest throw pillow we own, though – if you’re looking for something super soft, I also like this one!
- I love this coffee table – the shelf on the bottom holds a ton, and it’s the perfect size for our space.
- Having a huge floor mirror can really bounce light around your space, and it’s a good addition for literally every style.
- Adding some faux flowers to a pretty vase is always a good idea.
- I love using a digital picture frame to add a personal touch!
- And finally, don’t forget something that feels unique and special to you. This sassy vase is my favorite little touch!