Tips to Create a Well Thought-out Living Area

How To Design Your Living Room like a Professional Interior Designer

Determine How You’ll Live Within the Space

When clients hire, me the first thing I do is attempt to find out what their home lifestyle looks like. It’s truly the foundation to any interior design project. Determining how you’ll live within your home is more important now than ever before. A lot of us are now need dedicated workspaces because we’re working from home and or homeschooling children.

The Essential Items For a Living Room

When designing living rooms for clients (and myself) I build the design around these foundational pieces to set to tone for the overall space.

  • Sofa

  • Area Rug (preferably an 8’x10’)

  • (2) Side Tables

  • Coffee Table

  • Table Lamps

  • Window Treatment

*Remember, these are my ideal essentials. Feel free to adjust according to your home lifestyle.

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Shopping for Furniture

When you’re shopping for furniture, remember to keep it simple. Opt for a timeless solid, textured fabric vs. bold patterns. Not only do you end up with a space that’s more luxurious than playful, the solid fabric choice will outlast the bold, printed option ANYDAY.

Mock-Up Furniture Layout With Painter’s Tape

No matter how nice your furniture is, if it’s not the right size for the room, it won’t look as great! Once you’ve found the perfect pieces for your space, you’d want to write down the dimensions of all the furniture. Then grab your painter’s tape and start taping out where each piece of the furniture will ideally be placed. By doing this, you get a sense of size of furniture and the layout.

DESIGN RULES I LIVE BY

  • No rugs smaller than 8’x10’! Larger area rugs allows for all of the furniture to rest on the rug, that creates a more “pulled together” look and a cozier vibe.

  • Hang your curtains as high as possible, not just over the window frame.

  • Coffee table should be 18”-24” away from the sofa so that you have ample space to move around.

  • Always have multiple light sources to create different moods.

  • Always mount artwork at eye level.

  • Plants and fresh flowers are a must.

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