Top Tips for Living Room Interior Design

As a Melbourne Interior Designer, I am often asked for my top tips on living room interior design. Today I am going to reveal my go-to methods for bringing your living space to life with a little design transformation.

Furniture Placement

Furniture placement is the key to every successful living room, but it’s not as easy just placing a sofa in front of a TV. Getting your furniture placement right will make or break your living room. Every element of the space needs to be considered, from how many people you want to seat, to how big the TV is going to be – it’s like piecing together a puzzle!

If you’re after a sure-fire way to nail your living room layout, get in touch and let’s explore your space’s potential.

Rugs

Almost as important as your living room furniture plan are the rugs that ground your arrangement. Rugs have the power to unite or divide your living room.

As you know, I’m hardly a fan of rules – after all, the best designs defy convention. But, with rugs, I make an exception. The basic rule is that a rug should be wider than your sofa and it should extend beneath your sofa at least 30cm, if not more.

You want most of your furniture – sofas, armchairs, coffee tables, etc – to be on or touching your rug. At the end of the day, the role of the rug is to tie your individual furnishing elements together to create a cohesive look.

Seating

The cornerstone of living room interior design hinges on the perfect seating selection. The living room is a space of relaxation and recreation, so comfort should underpin each piece. The goal is a seating arrangement that feels as good as it looks.

I like to have different types of seating in my living room interior designs. Incorporating sofas, armchairs, benches and ottomans can take a space from ordinary to extraordinary in an instant.

Colour

Colour is so much more than a pretty backdrop for your space to be built upon. The right colour in your living room interior design sets the tone of the room. Do you want your living room to be cosy and intimate, or open and airy?

For large, open plan spaces, warm whites and soft nudes invite in light and amplify the spacious feeling. For smaller living rooms I like to lean into soft pinks or a deep charcoal for a cosy, snug feel.

Curious on how you can incorporate colour throughout your whole home? Take a look at my blog: Incorporating Colour into Your Home.

Lighting

Understanding how to work with natural and artificial lightening is key to getting the most out of your living room interior design.

Natural light is always honest, which can make it either great to work with or very difficult. For rooms that have plenty of bright light, embrace it and design your living room with a bright and airy feel.

However, if your living room has poor natural light, why not use this to your advantage to create a moody, cosy space? Woking with what you have is always going to look better than forcing something that just doesn’t fit.

With artificial light, I like to use many lamps dotted around the living room. Use warm light globes as they will make your room more inviting and cosier than white light.

Living rooms are the heart of our homes. I hope these tips can help you transform yours into the space of your dreams.

If you’re still feeling a little lost for inspiration or guidance, I am here to help. Get in touch and together we can form furniture plans, colour selections or complete living room transformations tailored specifically to you.