Unless the recent change of seasons has caused
you to hibernate in your bedroom, chances are when you’re at home you spend much
of your waking time in the living room. If such is the case, you want it to
look good.
You want it not only to look good for yourself
but to impress guests (we want the same thing). Your house is an extension of
yourself, and the way you choose to decorate it can show a lot about who you
are.
Through our experience selling furniture,
we’ve gotten pretty good at figuring out how to use your furniture wisely to
make the spaces it occupies look the best they possibly can.
You know how they say that a picture says
1,000 words? Well, we think a living room sofa and other furniture choices do,
too. In other words, your living room furniture sums up your home’s style, and
if you think it’s time for an update, check out these tips to help you plan
more effectively:
Trends Come and Go
Timeless, classic decor is always relevant.
Get the most life out of your living room by keeping it simple and traditional.
That doesn’t mean you can’t implement trendy touches in here and there—in fact,
we recommend that. Just don’t go all out fully remodeling your living room to
align with a style that you won’t like in two or three years. Doing so just makes
the homeowner look insecure. Mixing and matching timelessness with trendiness is
very tasteful if you do it right.
Keep the main pieces of the room classic—sofa,
chairs, coffee table, and entertainment center. Then accessorize with things
that suit your style at the moment; pillows, area rugs, items to display on the
mantelpiece, candles, vases and whatever other relatively inexpensive items
that can be easily replaced as your tastes shift.
Alternatively, have only real mementos and
collectibles, shifting their display by theme or season: holiday, spring, etc.
Store items not on display in an accent cabinet.
Use Color Wisely
Remember the relative or co-worker with the
loud clothes? Colors can scream at you and your guests if you don’t choose
wisely. Generally, to present a higher class statement, start your living room
palette with neutral colors. Think earth tones, maroons, grays… almost the same
scheme as the clothes in a finer men’s store. These not only calm the people in
the room but form the perfect background for the spots of bright color you DO
showcase in your living to add what designers call “pop.”
Maybe you have a gray reclining sofa with muted
red pattern accent pillows, a different patterned oversize storage ottoman in
an elegant neutral taupe, and a bright canary-yellow vase on the table next to
them. Set that all against a pastel blue area rug.
That’s just one idea, but the options are
limitless. Just keep the big stuff classic, and from there feel free to play
with ways to accent them.
Of course we hope these suggestions get you
started on the living room you want. That said, we understand are many
different personality types, and a different style to suit each of them. Just
remember: keep things generally simple and stay true to who you are. If you
follow that mantra, your home will look stunning in no time. And if you need
the furniture to make it happen, our St. Stephens Church, VA store is here to
help.
