Jaw Dropping Living Room Design Ideas That Will Inspire Your Own Style Refresh

Monica Gray - July 24, 2023

Everyone loves a refresh, whether that’s getting a new haircut, painting our nails, or revamping our entire living room. There’s nothing wrong with a little bit of newness. Not only does revamping your home enhance your daily life, but it may increase your property’s value. All it takes is a little bit of imagination and grease work. Tons of mental benefits come with revamping a room, too. In regards to rearranging your space, Resilience coach Dr. Nicole Villegas said, “You are in decision-making power, and practicing this can signal your nervous system to feel safer and more relaxed.” Relaxation is a good thing, especially in our stressful, day-to-day lives. We’ve listed the best living room ideas that’ll inspire you to get rid of the old, and bring in the new.

Surprise Yourself With A Bean Bag Seating Area

Instead of using your regular, everyday seating, add bean bags to turn the space into a cozy seating area. Everyone’s used to chairs, so why not revamp your living room into something refreshing? This is a surprisingly simple solution for chic comfort. And buying a bean bag doesn’t mean you have to go cheap, there are designer bean bags out there that exist. Some of them even have reclining capabilities, while others come in black velvet or leather. Add a standing lamp next to your bean bags for a complete look (Freshouz).

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Implement Luxe Style Elements

Elements like hardwood floors, a fireplace, and floor-to-ceiling windows with a view of your garden certainly lighten anyone’s mood. Give your living room more lighting and a cozier ambiance with these features to make it seem bigger and more open. To make it even more luxe, add a floor lamp as a statement piece, wall mirrors to reflect more light, or as a backdrop to white sofas, or oversized art to make your space feel high-end (Houzz).

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Paint Your Walls A Deep Hue

Moody is in, especially when you paint your moldings and trim the same shade of moody. We suggest going for a striking navy blue color, with lighter pillows and couches as a contrast to the shade. By painting your walls this deep shade, you’ll give them a dramatic flair and a sense of comfort. You can use mirrors to reflect the color, and white upholstered chairs with a bench in the center of the room to match the deep shades around it (BHG).

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Go Vintage With A Gallery Wall

Your living room is the perfect place to hang out with guests, relax, and show off your impressive vintage thrift store finds. So why not hang these vintage pieces up on a gallery wall? You can use unique family heirlooms and vintage pieces against a dark-colored backdrop to make those pieces pop even more. To do this, hang an odd number of vintage pieces, and use muted pieces of art that add more pop than brightly colored artwork. Choose the size and shape of your frame carefully, too (The Quick Journey).

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Upgrade Your Throw Pillows

One quick fix is to upgrade your throw pillows. Designer Nathelie Macchioni said, “New throw pillows will instantly liven up a couch or chair. Etsy is a great resource for artisanal vendors at affordable prices. Just cover your existing pillows with pillow covers in new colors, patterns, and/or textures for a fresh vibe.” This works if you already have neutral, simple tones in your living room and want to brighten up the space with several focal points. You can customize your pillows, or DIY by adding tassels, sequins, and embroidery (Apartment Therapy).

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Conceal Your Television

There’s no need to have your shiny TV hanging on your wall, especially when you can conceal it as decoration. The Samsung Frame TV doubles as artwork when it’s not in use, so it fools people into thinking it’s a piece of stunning art. Better yet, it changes design, so you always have a new piece of art in your living room. If you can’t buy a Samsung, you can also use a canvas that slides up when your TV is not in use, hiding your TV. Or, prop a large-scale painting against your wall to hide the television. Designer Kristin Fine used a door to hide her television, where “The TV is above the fireplace and hidden behind custom plaster sliding doors that were designed to be asymmetrical, to read more like a piece of contemporary art when closed.” Choose the best design that suits your layout and budget (House Beautiful).

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Install A Floor To Ceiling Shelf

A floor-to-ceiling shelf immediately draws the eye and instantly creates a dramatic, artsy look. It’ll give your living room the refresh it needs since it’s a great way to display vintage items, books, trinkets, souvenirs from traveling, and heirloom pieces. You can get creative with a floor-to-ceiling shelf to let your personality shine through. This is a fun DIY project that’ll give you ultimate freedom and ability to design (Family Handy Man).

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DIY Stylish Storage

You can get creative with this DIY stylish storage idea for your living room. Whether you’re using a vintage suitcase as a TV stand, or building your cabinets into the wall, DIY storage will freshen up your space and give you more storage in your home. Try building drawers into your walls or using the space above your door or window for shelving (Pinterest).

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Invest In A Sectional Sofa

While sectional sofas tend to be pricier, they’re great for large families and can provide more comfort in the end. Plush seating is key when you’re revamping your living room, and it’s important to provide as much comfort as possible. A sectional sofa means families bigger than three can sit on the same couch. You can easily seat a large number of people and provide the same view of the television, or another focal point, for everyone (Localoverstockwarehouse).

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Build A Rotating Bookshelf

Just like a DIY floor-to-ceiling shelf, a rotating bookshelf will also provide a fresh look that’s decorative and serves a purpose. It’s a brilliant way to change up your living room too, as you can use different trinkets and other items on the bookshelf from season to season. You can use furniture-grade hardwood, paint, and wood finish to give it that pop (Country Design Style).

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Use Cool Colors

Similar to using warm colors, using cool colors also make a living room pop. If you play around with cool shades and use your furniture to mix and match, you’ll give your living room its very own moody charm. It works whether you’re going bold or minimalist, and matching your furniture and accents to the walls is another secret to giving it that wow factor. Better yet, if you can skillfully mix cool and warm colors, it’ll give character and coziness to your space. Using the color wheel to pair warm and cool colors together is the key to mixing and matching perfectly (Stone Gable Blog).

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Incorporate A Wood Slat Into Your Fireplace

If you have a dated brick fireplace in your living room, give it a refresher with a modern wooden upgrade. This DIY fireplace makeover is a fun afternoon activity with stunning results. You can easily transform the old fireplace into your living room’s focal point. Doing it yourself will save you tens of thousands of dollars, and you’ll have full control over the layout and design (Average Inspired).

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Pair Wood And White

Nothing screams clean lines more than wood and white together. It creates a dreamy living room interior that compliments your entire home. Whether it’s the middle of winter or summer, wood, and white pair well together. Truth be told, wood and white make the perfect pair because it’s neutral and timeless. You can work wood and white into your home by incorporating a nook into your living room, embracing a historical fireplace, or building a wooden ceiling (House and Home).

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Make Art The Focal Point

If you have a designer, colorful, abstract piece of art in your living room, it can serve as the focal point, especially if it hangs above a table or fireplace. If you don’t want to go out and buy a designer piece, you can make one wall in your living room a different color than the other walls. Then, you can hang smaller art pieces on it. If you have an awkward wall and aren’t sure what to do with you, you can hang a gold mirror on the largest wall, and then decorate the room with smaller golden pieces like lamps and vases for asymmetry. Or, you can use art in a gallery wall to make it the focal point on your largest wall (The Spruce).

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Add More Seating

If you have a small living room but want to make it seem more spacious than it is, you can add more seating. Yes, there’s enough space! You can add multifunctional furniture, like an ottoman that doubles as a table. Designer Catherine Staples said, “We love incorporating multifunctional furniture in a small space for extra seating. For example, in one of our projects, a cozy log chalet, our client wanted to max out seating in their small living room. Our solution was to place two swivel stools in front of the fireplace for extra seating. When they weren’t in use as seating, these stools could be used as footrests for nearby sofas and chairs.” You can also incorporate benches, or make the most of an alcove (Homes and Gardens).

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Use Pink Accent Chairs

Not only is adding more seating a good idea, but using pink accent chairs adds an entirely new element. If you want a more feminine, cozier touch in your space, then a pop of pink is your answer. You can choose tons of different fabrics, including polyester and velvet. You can also add a multi-colored area rug under your pink chairs, with a touch of pink accents to match (Curated Interior).

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Add More Symmetry

To make your living room look balanced, it’s a good idea to do a bit of rearranging. Try placing the sofas and chairs on opposite sides of the room to add symmetry and a more balanced look. By doing this, you’ll incorporate a sense of order into your space. This is especially handy if your living room is already asymmetrical. Everything is fixable, and a bit of symmetry can save your room (Houzz).

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Mix And Match Bold Patterns

By using dynamic patterns and bold colors in your living room, you’ll create focal points and make your space look like it belongs in a fancy museum. Incorporating graphic wallpaper and floral chairs are a couple of ways you can start. This goes beyond painting your walls and adding a nice rug, you can make your space pop with accented lamps, vases, tables, pillows, a chandelier, and throw rugs. The key to doing this is to use at least three different patterns in your room. Always distribute the patterns evenly throughout the room, otherwise, it will make an undesired focal point (The Spruce).

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Incorporate Mustard Yellow

We told you to make your living room pretty in pink, so it may not come as a surprise to find out you should also incorporate mustard yellow (not together, though!). Adding mustard yellow will give your living room a rustic, dramatic charm that shies away from the norm. It’s a bold statement, but when done correctly, it will look striking in your home. Designer Caitlin Murray suggests using mustard yellow, and said, “[It’s] such a romantic, fearless pop of color when it’s used on a white, neutral canvas.” Bonus points if you’re using it in an earth-toned space to visually warm up your space (My Domaine).

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Use Modern And Vintage Together

Pairing modern and vintage balances each other out, without overdoing it in either direction. An oversized ottoman and vintage bookcase pair well together, for a clean look with a vintage flair. It’s best to use contemporary colors and fabrics, with vintage statement pieces. Less is more, and you mustn’t overdo it (Hommes).

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Incorporate Stripes For Contrast

Nothing screams contrast better than stripes. Better yet, using green and white or gray and white gives your home a modern, chic, even coastal vibe. Pair the green with nautical art, or pair the gray with wood and wicker, and you have an entirely new living room. Designer Roselind Wilson loves using stripes, and says, ‘Stripes bring order and structure to a space and have the ability to redirect the eye. When incorporated into an interior design scheme, they inject a dose of understated elegance and sophistication. I’m drawn to layering when designing an interior scheme, and incorporating stripes into the design provides the perfect structure that can then be contrasted with other designs, patterns, and colors.” This is a playful, flirty, timeless trend with a lot of wriggle room (Homes and Gardens).

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Layer With Red

Use red in your living room to warm it up. You don’t have to use solid red either, you can use rugs and wallpaper with red accents. If it’s incorporated with white, you’ll have more leeway in the patterns and colors of furniture you can use. Red is a loud, bold color, so choose wisely. This will turn your mediocre living room into a bold statement piece. Color expert Iman Stewart said red is “an instant mood booster, to be honest. It will change your mood right away.” With red, you can go bohemian, mid-century modern, or traditional (My Domaine).

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Double Up On Storage

Invest in a coffee table that doubles up as storage. Not only will it look cute in your space, but it’ll declutter your living area. If it has built-in cubbies, you can store things not in use, like party utensils and holiday supplies. There can never be too many places in your home for storage. There’s a reason they say out of sight, out of mind (HGTV).

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Gold Bold With Green

To make a bold statement in your living room, purchase a green couch. If you love the color green, then it’s bonus points for you. It’ll also double as the focal point in your room, and with proper decorations, you can make your space look symmetrical and balanced. Using green makes your space feel playful and cozy. There’s nothing wrong with a bit of natural color, either. If you want to accent it with other decorations, you can use wallpaper, artwork with green accents, and pink furniture to balance it out (The Spruce).

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Decorate With Plates

This is a design trend that’s making a complete comeback. We have a lot to learn from our grandparents, and decorating with plates is one of them. We’re not suggesting you place your plates around your living room. But if you use ceramic plates, they can double as artwork on your wall. The best thing to do is to use a mirror or another piece of art as the centerpiece and decorate it with ceramic plates around it. Ceramic plates bring texture and color, and if you hang plates in an unexpected place, they’ll give the room a bit of character (Living Etc).

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Color Code Your Books

If you’re a bookworm, put it on display! Don’t hide away that collection of novels that have collected dust in your attic. It’s time to use them as decoration. Color code your books and then strategically select accessories to make them your room’s focal point. Art comes in many different forms, and using books is one of them. Design expert Tanya Willock said, “Having books organized by color helps them to stand out and make a statement, and it’s an excellent way to add pops of color to a living room or study. To us, there is something so satisfying about seeing colors nicely placed together.” If you have books in every color, they’ll look even more coherent on display (The Spruce).

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Blend Indoor And Outdoor Living Design

Just because something was made for your backyard, doesn’t mean it’s off-limits in your living room. You can blend your outdoor and indoor living space by converting a sunroom into a second living area. All you need are some chairs, a comfortable ottoman, and bohemian tables to complete the look. You can also use the same materials outside as you do inside, because according to designer Ted Flato, “When you run a material from inside a space to the outside, you’re connecting the outdoor room to the indoors.” And by doing this, you’re still “satisfied while still being inside, and not feeling like you have to immediately go outside.” This is one way to completely expand your space and make your home feel bigger. It’s especially inviting during the summertime (AIA).

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Add Flowers

One of the cheapest and quickest ways to add color to your living room and freshen it up is to add flowers. Designer Emma Berly swears by flower decorations, and says, “A flower arrangement can completely change the feeling of a room. If it’s bright, it can add a pop of cheer, while all-white bouquets can make a space feel serene.” The best part about flowers is you don’t have to stick to one color. If you’re feeling bright and cheery one day, and calmer a few days later, you can cater your flower purchases to your mood. You have the ultimate freedom (Apartment Therapy).

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Add Leather Seating To Your Living Space

A little bit of leather will add a fancy, modern design to your living space. It also creates extra seating without feeling like you’re overdoing it. You don’t have to add leather around your entire space, a couple of pieces of statement furniture is enough to make your room pop. If you use white shades around your living area with a leather sofa, this will draw attention to the sofa and make it seem extra inviting. Leather is also grounding, especially if your space is already light and airy. The warmer colors look fantastic against light-colored walls or other pieces of furniture (The Spruce).

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Add A Rattan Hanging Chair

This is an unexpected addition to your living room that’s inviting, comfortable, and fancy. It’ll draw guests towards that corner of the room, making your space seem bigger than it is. Whether it’s a woven pink enchantment piece or a light lacy chair accented with a bold-colored pillow, it’ll add some character to your space. Your guests will never forget your living room (Plan N Design).

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Decorate With Wooden Beams

Wooden beams and ceilings warm up your living room. It makes the space feel cozier and more inviting and makes a neutral focal point for your space. This is a great idea to balance out your space, especially if you’re using bold colors or patterned wallpaper. It’ll create an irresistible rustic charm. You might find you’re spending more time in your living room than in any other room in your house. In a way, your living room ceiling is your blank canvas to decorate as you please, so why not decorate it with wooden beams? There’s no going wrong. Whether you use simple dark beams or tons of wooden panels, your living room will develop a rustic, modern charm (Soul and Lane).

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Use Warm Whites

We’ve suggested you bring in tons of colors, but what about the simple warm white? There are tons of different shades of white you can use, but the warmer and creamier, the better. It’ll make your space seem more inviting and less like the waiting area of an office. Color expert Andrea Lucena-Orr said, “Warm and cool whites have different undertones and can help set a mood within a room.” But doing this creates room for error, so it’s important to give it a test run before completely redecorating your room in a single shade of white. Founder of The Design Files Lucy Feagins said, “My advice is to always use a sample pot or a brush out; bringing your two to three favorite whites into the space you intend to paint, comparing them in the light at different times of the day.” That way you know exactly what color you’re getting (Homes to Love).

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Black And White Contrast

There’s nothing more timeless than a black-and-white contrast. It sounds simple, but it’s one of the most effective ways to freshen up your living room and add some character. One way of doing this is painting your walls white and your window frames black. Then, use layers of black and white furnishings to finish the look. It’ll also add a bit of luxury. You can use a tiled floor or a black and white rug to match the furnishings. Primary colors also work well with black and white contrast, like yellow, red, or blue. For the above look in particular, NYC interior designer Jamie Nesbitt-Weber said, “The bright primary colors in the art and accessories are a wonderful contrast against the white walls and black slate floor.” You might even want to replicate this design for your home space (Homes and Gardens).

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