Creating your dream living room: a guide

Let’s face it, when you’re feeling in need of some chill out time or to snuggle up with your partner, the living room in your home is the obvious target. It’s a place of sanctuary after a hard day’s work, a place to hang out and discuss the stresses and strains of life – and a place to watch the TV and some films. In creating a homely and comfortable space, there are lots of things that go into getting that dream environment. Here’s a guide to making that dream a reality.

Strip it back

If you’ve got a bit of spare cash and you want to give your living room a makeover, or if you’re moving into a new property, that the best place to start is going back to basics: stripping it all back and starting from scratch.

Have you already come up with a plan for the room, including how you want it to look and what you want to feature? If not, and you’re struggling to come up with a plan despite kind of knowing what you want, then you could always call on an interior designer friend or another creative to lend a hand and come up with some ideas. Failing that, take to the internet and have a look around at home design websites and blogs, there are loads of fresh tips out there to give you that dream look.

Get decorating

One of the places you should be focusing on as you create the ultimate living space is what’s on the walls. Do you have dull, dark paint right now which is making the room feel smaller, bringing the walls in on you? If so, have a think about incorporating brighter pastel shades, like lemon or pale orange. Colour can be very subjective, down to individual tastes, but if you’re going for that feeling of space and brightness, the lighter colours are, the better.

As well as the walls, you may also want to think about changing the flooring. For example, why don’t you swap that old carpet for some wood panels like Kahrs flooring? Also, think about your curtains and blinds because what you choose to dress your windows in can have a dramatic effect within the room.

Get some comfy furniture

Once you’ve done the decorating, focus on those things that will truly get you comfortable – the sofa and chairs. After all, you’re likely to spend a lot of time sitting on them when you are in the living room! If you like something soft, but cool and sleek, then why not look at leather options? As well as the traditional pieces, you could also think about investing in a reading chair with a footstool. It will make reading a book even more relaxing!

Dress it up 

Once the décor’s looking good and the furniture’s in place, then you need to personalise the living room. Put up some family photos, display some of your favourite ornaments and try and get some plants or fresh flowers into the room. It all adds up to a dream living room!