Whether your living room is too small, too large, too bland or too congested, you can easily change its look!  You may believe that you have a tiny area and therefore it is destined to appear small and congested.  Alternatively your living area may be spacious – a bit TOO spacious.  Maybe your living room looks cluttered and messy or plain, lacking any interest.  No matter what your biggest problem might be, there are some easy solutions.  This article offers tips and ideas for making your living room one that you love, and one that your family and guests love as well.

Make a Tiny Room Look Bigger

If you have a living room that is small, there are several things you can do to make it appear larger.  First, paint the walls and ceiling a light color.  A light color will make the ceiling appear higher, creating a spacious feeling.  Consider furnishings that include light shades as well, such as pale blue, beige, tan and other light hues.  Shy away from dark colored woods like mahogany, and opt for natural woods or pine finishes.

Wherever possible set furniture against the walls to open up as much floor space as you can.  Remove any clutter, and steer clear of knick-knacks and other small accessories that make a room look congested and cluttered.  To add color to the walls without taking away any visual space, use no more than one large accent per wall, preferably something brightly colored that will help light up the room.  Leave windows bare if you can but if not use light-weight fabrics or sheers.

Cozy up a Large Room

Perhaps you have the opposite problem – your living room is way too big!  This often makes a room appear a bit cold, making it feel as though it is lacking in personality.  To make this room look more intimate and appealing, use rich, dark colors such as burgundy, navy and green.  Browns, gold tones and autumn colors will work as well.  While you don’t have to paint every wall a dark color, consider painting two opposing walls a rich shade as a contrast to the other walls.  If you have a high beamed or cathedral ceiling, consider painting it a darker tone as well.  This will visually bring the ceiling down.

When the room is too spacious, you want to draw it in.  This can be accomplished by moving furnishings away from the wall, and creating smaller, more intimate settings.  Arrange a sofa and chairs around a coffee table, where sitting arrangements will have you facing those who are visiting.  This adds a personal, intimate feel to the room.  Keep furnishings and accessories to scale – you want to use large, bulky furniture, large plants, and other décor that is of substantial size.  Decorate the walls with large prints as well.

Remember, in any room too many accessories and accents can look junky, no matter how small or large the room might be.  For smaller rooms, keep accents bright and sunny.  In larger living rooms, use a variety of patterns and prints such as stripes, geometrics and florals that coordinate with the room’s main color.  They will add dimension and depth to the room, helping to diminish the cold atmosphere.

Combine these ideas with a few of your own creative thoughts and enjoy rooms that are filled with style and personality!

Most people love large living or family rooms, but they tend to have a cold or cavernous appearance, especially when the ceilings are vaulted.  While you love the spaciousness, you may wonder how to make the room feel a little more warm and inviting, or cozy.  You want your home to have an atmosphere that is comfortable and welcoming, an almost intimate appeal that feels alluring.

There are several ways you can break up a large space in order to make it feel a bit more personal.  This article will give you tips on creating a room that offers interest, appeal and, most of all, warmth.

Arrange Several Furniture Groupings

The easiest way to break the room up is to group furnishings in different areas, each for a purpose.  Arrange your sofa, loveseat, recliner and tables in a small grouping around an area rug.  This makes a wonderful conversation area when guests visit.  Furniture should not be placed against the wall; this only makes things look impersonal.  You may want to add another area that is designed for enjoying a good book.  Place a rocking chair or recliner, along with a small table and lamp, in another location in the room – perhaps near a window.

If you have more space, consider placing an additional sofa and television, stereo and game station in an area that will be used solely for entertainment purposes.  Creating areas designed to be used for specific activities is a great way to break the room up into smaller, more intimate spaces.

Use Paint or Wallpaper to Draw the Room In

In smaller spaces, most people avoid using dark colored paint.  When you have high ceilings and a very large room, dark paint is the perfect solution.  Consider painting the ceiling a dark shade as well to bring it down visually.  Boldly patterned wallpaper containing dark shades is an option as well.

Avoid Decorating with Mirrors

Mirrors tend to make rooms look larger, especially when they reflect light from windows or other light sources.  If you feel that you have to use a mirror, hang it where it reflects a favorite piece of décor or accent.

Add Lots of Accessories!

Adding lots of accessories such as baskets, pottery, plants and bookshelves can really scale a room down.  Using small to medium size accents helps reduce the appearance of a large room and balances bigger items like furniture.  Consider placing a potted tree in one corner of the room to match the scale of a high ceiling.

Bulk is Great

For spacious rooms, bulky large furniture is perfect.  Consider using “heavy” looking fabrics such as tapestries, and keep the colors dark.  Dark colored wood is ideal as well; light colors tend to make spaces look larger.  Avoid glass topped tables completely.

There you have it!  Five great ways that you can visually reduce the size of spaces which look cold and uninviting.  No matter how big the living or family room are, you can give them a cozy, warm appearance that everyone will appreciate.

Many homes have living rooms that are small, where it feels like there’s hardly even enough room to walk between the furniture. Unless you like a cluttered look, it’s hard to know what to do with a room no larger than 200 square feet. Fortunately, you have plenty of options.

Use vibrant colors and patterns to dress up a living or family room that feels claustrophobic. It’s a common mistake to try to lighten up the area a little too much. What often results is a boring sea of white, with white walls and furniture, with very little hanging on the walls. The fear of adding to the cluttered look can, in the end, make the room too sterile.

Decades ago, the presiding recommendation was that you “open up” small spaces with super-light colors such as white and linen. But now things have changed. These days, people want a living room that bursts with color and vibrancy. You can not only make the room look airy and spacious, but also extremely inviting. The key is to use colors and patterns that work. Consider the following tips to help you transform your small boring living room into a beautiful room bursting with personality.

1. Paint the room a light shade, but not white. To start, find a swatch of fabric you’re going to use that contains the shade of paint you desire. Consider a celery green or a vibrant peach-two colors that lend a botanical feel to the room. Paint both the ceiling and walls a lighter shade of whatever color you choose. Then you can paint any doors in the room, baseboards, and other trim a darker complementary color.
2. Jazz up any bare, boring walls with botanical prints. You should be able to find some in old books or magazines. Find a shade for the mat that complements the picture as well as the paint color you’ve chosen for the room. You might even group several together on one wall, creating a focal point splashed with color.
3. Use sheer silky curtains to add a light, airy feel to the décor. Place your curtain rod up close to the ceiling, allowing the sheer curtains to touch the floor. Not only will this give an expansive look to the window, but it will make the ceiling appear higher.
4. Find furniture that’s sturdy, but stay away from anything overstuffed or bulky. You want your patterns to include colors that contrast and complement your walls, curtains, and overall décor. You want to use bold, contrasting patterns in this type of a setting. Often bold stripes make the perfect touch to the décor. By creating a lively look, the smallness of the room gets lost in the inviting, vibrant atmosphere.

You might also add a unique and interesting touch to the décor by recovering the seat cushions of a solid-toned couch in a colorful, fun pattern. End tables or oak coffee tables that fold up or a narrow profile oak tv stand also work well in this type of space. This way, when your guest leave you can store them away and open up the floor area.

This is just the beginning of the many ways you can open up those tight spaces in your home. These are just a few suggestions to help get your creativity flowing. Remember to not only use your imagination, but to have fun with it!

When it comes to decorating the family room, people often have trouble with arranging the furniture to maximize the potential of the room. When the furniture is arranged properly, the room will seem stylish, but also natural and comfortable. Here are 5 suggestions for making the most out of your room’s potential when arranging your furnishings.

1. Consider the Location of the Doorways
There is only one doorway in some family rooms, while others may have two. Keep the locations of these doorways in mind when arranging your furniture, as this will ensure that the room has a good flow. For a family room with two doorways, try to place the furniture so that people don’t cross the “conversational area,” as they walk across the room. A major consideration for those rooms with one doorway is to be sure people can easily access the furniture without have to navigate through the whole room in order to sit down.

2. Take into Consideration the Walls
If you have a long wall in the family room, that is a great area to place your big sofa or other major piece of furniture like a mission tv  stand. That wall can also be made into a focal point for the room by placing something like an entertainment center there. The other furniture in the room can then be arranged around this wall.

3. Leave Plenty of Space between the Furniture Pieces
When arranging the family room furniture, you need to make sure that you leave plenty of walking space in between each piece. You want people to have adequate space in which to walk around the room but still have things close enough so the space is intimate. If you’re able to strike a balance, then people will have a comfortable amount of space to walk, but when seated, they won’t be so far away that the space isn’t intimate anymore. No one wants to be bumping into furniture right and left when walking around. But on the other hand, you also don’t want people to have to shout in order to talk to one another.

4. Make Sure the Furniture Balances Properly
One common mistake is to put all the large pieces of furniture on the same side of the room, leaving the space looking completely off balance. For instance, don’t place a large sofa next to a large recliner, and then put a small chair and oak end table across the room. Try your best to achieve both horizontal and vertical balance in the room by mixing up your larger and smaller pieces.

5. The Furniture Arrangement Should Be Functional
When arranging the furniture in the family room, you need to be sure to keep it functional. You want to make sure the family room serves its purpose as a more casual, sort of hangout room. Thus, if you’ve designated this space as a place for your family to watch movies together, then you need to be sure that enough of the seating faces the television screen so that everyone is comfortable. It doesn’t matter how stylish the family room is. If it’s not functional, the space will be completely wasted.

Arranging the family room furnishing should go much more smoothly when you follow these simple tips. What will result is a family room that’s stylish, yet also comfortable and functional.

The living room is one of the most used spaces in most homes. This tends to be a favorite room for relaxing, entertaining, and spending time with the family. The more time you spend in that room, the more you may feel you need to change the look. Fortunately, if you want to change the look of your living room, you don’t necessarily have to spend a fortune. If you’re looking to renovate your room and make it exciting again, here are a few suggestions.

Rearrange the Furniture
You can get a whole new look without spending any money by rearranging the furniture. The best place to start is to find a different focal point for the room and then rearrange things to focus on that new area. Not only is this simple to do, but you can give the room a completely new look and flow. Rearranging doesn’t require any new furniture, but if you’re really looking to mix things up, try adding an inexpensive piece like an end table.

Change the Paint Color on the Walls
Paint is great, as it is fairly inexpensive but can change the look of a room dramatically. Your best bet is to choose a color that’s already in the room’s color scheme. You can develop a whole new feel for the room by choosing a matching or complementary color. If you don’t have the time or money to paint the entire room, you can simply choose one wall and make it an accent wall. By painting it an accent color, you can give the room some more interest.

Add Inexpensive Accessories to the Furniture
It’s not necessary to spend a fortune on furniture accessories to change the style of a living room. If you have any inexpensive decorative pillows, throws, flower arrangements, vases, baskets, candles, or lamps in other areas of your home, perhaps you can bring them into the living room to add to the décor. The simple placement of new decorative pillows on a couch can create a totally different style. With different pillows you can easily transform a neutral couch from a country to a contemporary style. If you have wood end tables and oak bookshelves in the room, you can add candles and baskets to mix up the décor.

Change the Window Treatments
You can completely change the look with different window treatments, which may allow different amounts of light to enter the room. The great things about window treatments is you can change the colors, patterns, and type of material fairly easily. Another option is to add other window treatments to the existing ones. For instance, you could add a fabric valance to a window that already has blinds.

If you don’t have a lot of money to spend but you want to change the look of your living room, with a little resourcefulness and creativity you can come up with a new style. By simply following one or more of these tips, you can create a living room your friends and family may not even recognize.

There are dozens of different design styles that you can choose from when you decorate your living room. It’s important to remember when decorating your living room that you want to like the style and be comfortable in the room, since you’ll most likely be spending a lot of time there. Here are some different living room design styles for you to consider.

Mission Design Style
Built using the traditional materials like oak and cherry wood this style adds a bold and and elegant look to any living room. Started at the turn of the last century, the Mission or Arts & Crafts style has endured for decades due to its simple designs that were a direct response to opulent Victorian area furniture that was popular at the time. Inspired by minimalistic designs of the Japanese, the British and American influences made this style unique blend of East and West. Whether you’re decorating an entire living room or simple a getting a view accent pieces like a Morris chair or an oak coffee table this style is perfect for every home.

Contemporary Design Style
Typically, a contemporary living room will have very neutral colors and elements with just a few pops of color and design here and there. For instance, you might have a dark gray sleek couch in the room with two purple throw pillows added to it. The lines of the room should be kept soft and rounded. You want the room to look very minimalistic. Another approach to a contemporary living room is to keep the colors monochromatic and then add a splash of white here and there to break up the color.

Cottage Design Style
When you use a cottage design style, you want to aim for plenty of color with graceful patterns and lines. Cottage style usually brings floral patterns and pastel plaids to mind. A living room decorated in cottage style should look both comfortable and inviting. Comfortable and plush furniture with puffy pillows work great with this decorating style. Great colors for this design style include: cream, pink, light green, and light blue.

Romantic Design Style
A romantic design style is a great way to create a formal look for your living room. A living room decorated in a romantic design style will use light and airy fabrics. Expect to see a lot a white, cream, silver, and other pastel colors in this décor. You can add a twist to things with some touches of floral. You can also add some interest with a lightly colored area rug or a few decorative pillows. You want the furniture to be delicate and light, and not overbearing in any way.

Eclectic Design Style
If you are having a difficult time settling on just one design style for your living room, consider choosing a few different ones that are your favorites. With an eclectic style, you can incorporate several different design styles into one room. For instance, your walls can appear modern, while your furniture might look like it can from a cottage style room. However, there are certain ways that you should pull the look together. Make the room appear more cohesive by using common colors, textures, or patterns in the décor.

Once you figure out what you want from your living room, you will be able to figure out what design style might be appropriate. For instance, if you want a more formal room, then you might go with something like a romantic design style. On the other hand, if you want a more casual space, then a cottage-styled room might be a better fit. Just remember to find a style you can live with and won’t want to change in just a couple of months.