Creating a comfortable and functional living space is the most important, but often the most demanding task, after buying an apartment.
Therefore, arranging the living room, as a space in which we spend most of our time resting, hanging out, and watching television, occupies a central place in that task.
However, arranging the living room becomes more difficult and demanding when the apartment is of average or not so spacious size.
We all dream of huge living rooms on Instagram or Pinterest – but in reality, arranging a living room is a difficult and demanding job – such that in recent years it has often been left to interior experts.
If you are also looking for a living room, Grading will try to help with a few tips. The most important thing is to know where to start, and what is most worth taking into account, in order to satisfy both the functional and aesthetic needs of the tenants.
Step 1: Decorating the living room starts with an idea
What kind of living room do you want? Is the rest area the most dominant in it, or is it divided into a dining area?
In order for the living room to be as pleasant as possible and give the impression that someone is really spending time in it – it is necessary to imagine yourself in it.
If you have a lot of things, you need to plan the cabinets, maybe start buying furniture that allows additional storage of space under the seat, think about how to match the colors, and similar.
The owners usually want to connect the living room with the kitchen almost imperceptibly, so if that is your wish, we advise you to read our text on “How to arrange the kitchen?”.
Take care of the size of the room
Through many years of practice in building and arranging living rooms, as well as in communicating and working with a large number of clients, one of the most dominant problems was the small living space.
Lack of square footage can often make our living space seem overcrowded, but – there is a “cure” for that. More about How to organize a small apartment can be found in another text. We highly recommend it.
Step 2: Choosing a style for decorating the living room and color palette
The colors you choose in the living room should be found in other rooms as well. Interweaving colors and details in the same or similar shades is a great way to achieve balance in the home. This way, every corner will be pleasing to the eye, and you will feel comfortable in every room.
Bright colors of walls and furniture will always give the effect of a visually larger space, but that does not mean that you have to give up muted tones if you are a fan of them. Incredible eclecticism is achieved when we pack gentle, light shades with details in black, indigo, or dark green.
You can read more about colors, their fitting, and the unusual way of combining shades in the blog that we will link HERE.
When deciding on the direction and style you will follow in decorating the living room, in recent years it is extremely popular to combine three styles: Rough industrial, warm and romantic boho expression, as well as timeless “Bauhaus”, which puts functional characteristics of space first.
Decorating the living room in an industrial style (details)
Industrial style is the fastest growing trend in interior design in recent years. Bare walls, brick details, high ceilings, and floors in cool colors (maybe concrete?), between which hang interesting hanging lighting.
This arrangement of the living room is practically a symbol of many, of today’s modern interiors. Inspiration is mostly sought and found in old buildings and industrial plants.
Decorating a living room in an industrial style can start with combining old and new furniture, as a combination of industrial charm and modern space. However, all the beauty of the application of industrial elements in modern space lies in adapting current styles to the old ones.
Boho, as the king of combining textures for decorating the living room
Whether it is natural, living materials, or printed fabrics, the texture is responsible for bringing movement and some special expression into each space. As the king of combining textures and a special experience of space, we consider Boho.
The warm, “homey” atmosphere in white and cream shades of almost antique bedspreads, combines with details that in themselves radiate exoticism and some distant, warmer landscapes.
Boho is a bohemian style. It combines modern fashion trends in a unique way, with romance and obligatory casualness.
Bauhaus –a modern way to decorate the living room even today
The double-sided kitchen island is located in the center and functions as a dining area or dining table. The sofa in the living room is surrounded by two brightly colored armchairs, and the club table in the middle is of a simple design and does not take up too much space.
Sounds familiar? Bauhaus is extremely easy to achieve in decorating a house, almost imperceptibly, unintentionally.
The Bauhaus is a direction in architecture that originated a little over 100 years ago. Arranging the interior according to the rules of the Bauhaus implies subordinating the aesthetic criteria of functionality and obtaining more space.
By the way, the Bauhaus is a kind of precursor to industrialism, and it has been among us for so long that we spontaneously began to think within the framework of the Bauhaus.
Bauhaus and the human need for space. Something like the question: Who is older, the chicken or the egg?
Step 3: Details that make a difference
Beauty always comes in details. If your color palette is more or less the same throughout the room, it would be ideal to add a few details in a different shade, pattern, or texture.
As most people choose soft, earthy colors for the base of their apartments, such as brown, ochre, beige, etc., details in green, indigo, or orange shades will give the soul such an ambiance.
Wood as a detail for decorating the living room
Wood, apart from the warmth and charm it brings into the space, is the only material that can be subsequently made shiny, polished, and modern again.
With a restrained color palette and refined aesthetics – wood is a winning combination in all possible combinations to create a comfortable and sophisticated place to live.
Lighting
Recessed lighting is a very popular way to bring a touch of modernity into a home. The most popular way is to install LED lamps and strips behind the TV stand, behind the wall shelves, inside the cabinets, and similar.
It has become especially popular to combine glass shelves with lighting, because they are transparent, and allow light to illuminate objects inside and the space in front of the shelves. Mirrors can become another way to make a room bigger, and in combination with small lamps, even warmer.
Wall lamps and freestanding lamps also have a timeless look that fits perfectly into almost all living room decoration styles.
By combining several lamps, we can achieve soft and pleasant lighting, with a unique look. Warm light will make the atmosphere comfortable, and at the same time, it will have a decorative effect.
We also wrote about the ways to choose and combine lighting in a separate text. Read it and start the action of lighting the living space.
LINK: How to have the perfect lighting in the apartment
Plants – bring the exterior inside
Many believe that the design of the living room is complete only when the plants are brought in, so even designers do not ask whether plants will a part of the plan or not.
In addition to cleaner air, plants also provide a dose of elegance to the living room; depending on the species chosen to adorn our living space, of course.
Succulents, cacti, ornamentals, deciduous plants and irreplaceable orchids are considered to be among the most popular (but also the easiest to maintain).
Glass, stone, and steel
Steel, glass, and stone are materials that provide unique firmness and elegance to the interior. Usually, when arranging the living room, these materials are often chosen for bed frames, chairs, chests of drawers, and various other furniture.
Also, the industry is turning to these materials due to energy efficiency in production and improving the quality of life. Stone, steel, and glass have become more affordable, and furniture and details made of these materials are seen as modern and easy to fit into
Contact Grading for interior design
If you still want to apply our tips and guidelines shared in this text in practice, Grading is keeping their fingers crossed!
In fact, we reward you with another user, mini-guide through the specific decoration of the apartment. Find it at the link below.
LINK: Three tips on how to design an apartment on your own
However, if you want help with arranging to house, Grading is your safe partner! Do not hesitate to contact us.
