THE IMPORTANCE OF THE LIVING ROOM

Like the name suggests, living rooms are where we tend to spend most of our time in our homes. For this reason, it’s no surprise that many think of the living room first when we’re considering switching up our decor. The majority of us also place greatest emphasis on living room design when looking to buy a new home, according to House Simple.

However, the living room also has a lot of hats to wear. For some, living rooms are formal spaces intended for entertaining guests, while for others they’re casual areas for spending time relaxing with the family. More often, the living room has to suit both purposes, so the need for versatile design has grown.

BASIC DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR YOUR LIVING ROOM

Your living room should be an extension of your values and personality. However, any space in the home can accommodate your own tastes while also appealing to guests and potential buyers by following these basic design principles:

• Scale: The size of different elements in your living room can be played with to create visual interest – consider how the eye is naturally drawn to larger objects.
• Proportion: Linked to scale, proportion is about creating emphasis or space in the interplay between the size of the room and the decor elements.
• Balance: A balanced design creates equality and symmetry by evenly distributing design elements of similar visual weight.
• Rhythm: You can create a sense of organic movement by playing with repetition, alternation or progression of sizes, colours or textures.
• Harmony: When every element in your living room complements one another, it establishes calm and comfort.

HOW TO DESIGN YOUR PERFECT LIVING ROOM

With these basic design principles in mind, decorating your own living room is easy. Follow these simple steps to create your dream living room:

1. Find inspiration: Save living room design photos from your favourite magazines or websites to create a mood board.
2. Refine your vision: Draw your favourite elements from each of your saved photos and try to match them together, creating a cohesive living room design concept.
3. Choose a rug: Any designer will tell you that living room design starts with a rug. The right rug should reflect your personality, anchor your living room and provide a colour palette for the rest of your design. For more guidance choosing the best rug for your living room, check out the Carpet Call rug buying guide.

4. Define an area: Using your rug, establish the main functional area in your living room. Place seating around or on your rug, with the aim to seat at least six people. Your living room rug defines the space, using scale and proportion to demonstrate purpose and create some cosiness.
5. Draw on accents: Pick out accent colours for your rug and use these to choose complementary decor elements or window treatments. They don’t all need to be the same colour, but being within the right realm helps to build harmony.
6. Scatter and de-clutter: Finally, distribute your decor throughout the room thoughtfully. You can embrace some disorder to establish an organic rhythm, but should avoid overdoing it and throwing out the balance of the room. Removing one or two decor elements from a room once it’s complete can prevent accidental clutter.

A living room can make or break a home. If you’re looking to turn your living room into something special, start by browsing the range of rugs right here on the Carpet Call website. For more information or to speak to an expert, drop in to your nearest Carpet Call today.