How to Decorate a Small Living Room
Decorating your small living room is a fun opportunity to play with scale and express your unique style within a smaller footprint. Here’s how to maximize your space—and your design potential—using a few key guidelines.
Determine the purpose of the room, then choose a focal point.
Is this a high-traffic living room, a TV room, a place to relax with no screens? The purpose of the room will determine the layout, and your focal point.
Once you’ve locked in the room’s purpose, locate your focal point—this could be a TV, fireplace, window, or piece of wall art—then plan to arrange your seating around it. If you don’t have a focal point, make one! Hang a large piece of art or create a gallery wall of your own. The idea is to draw the eye in.
Plan your layout.
When it comes to your layout, you’ve got options.
OPTION 1:
Arrange seating that faces each other, if possible—to define the space—but keep the pieces on the smaller side and with streamlined silhouettes.
OPTION 2:
Opt for a single piece of seating that fills the space (and yes, you could go with a sectional here). This creates a grand, warm feel and defines your space without crowding it with multiple pieces of furniture.
Select your furniture.
In either case, be strategic with your selections. Consider multi-functional designs, including: a two-tiered coffee table, side tables with built-in storage, nesting tables, an upholstered ottoman that plays triple duty as an extra seat, a place to kick up your feet, and a perch for your things—the list goes on.
For a more airy feel, look for seating with visible legs. Silhouettes featuring soft curves and clean lines create a streamlined look while remaining inviting. When possible, pull furniture away from walls to prevent a boxy feel.
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Go vertical.
Your best asset in a small living room is vertical space. Tall shelving or wall-mounted storage frees up real estate and clutter and draws the eye upward. Sconces add ambience without adding an extra element in the floor plan. Using your empty wall space is not only efficient, it creates a personalized, lived-in feel.
Choose your color palette.
Don’t be afraid to fill the space with color—as long as the colors are complementary, it’ll work. Choose a palette and reference it when selecting your accents and colorful elements. Layer on the patterns and fabrics or color drench for an extra-cozy feel.
Play with scale.
Often, oversized is the way to go in a small living room. When choosing a rug, go for the larger size and place all of the furniture on it where possible (and definitely at least the front legs). Bring in an oversized mirror or piece of wall art to create a bold focal point that makes the space feel bigger. Hang curtains high to create an expansive effect. You get the picture.
Finishing touches.
Get creative. Use your books as décor, with stacks of three or four of them dotted about—on the coffee table, side table, mantel—and coordinate the spine colors for an intentional visual effect. Bring in a plant or two to create an airy, lively feel. Localize knickknacks and trinkets to a consolidated, layered display to avoid creating a cluttered feel.
A small living room is an opportunity to create a comfortable space that’s all your own. Choose your seating approach, think outside the box when it comes to useable space, and don’t be afraid to go bold or oversized.