Living in a small apartment is not easy feat. Sometimes, the space is so small that it looks more like a garage sale than a house. Many readers ask us how to decorate a small living room, and turn it into a cozy space. Today we will focus on small living room ideas, because the living room is the epicenter of your house. It’s there where you invite guests to join you for pleasurable company. It’s there where the whole family plays, watches TV, has dinner, or rests. Read on to find some great small living room design ideas to inspire you during your renovation!
1. Do you really need that door?
If your rooms are separated by walls and doors, ask yourself: do you really use that door? How about removing it completely or replacing it with a modern, light sliding door? You can find quite sturdy and well-crafted sliding doors and panels for small living rooms. Thus, you can open up the space in this manner with little effort. Some people go a bit further and remove portions of the wall together with the obsolete door, creating an open space feel.
2. Small living room furniture
One of the best small living room design ideas coming from experts is to use furniture in light colors. The furniture’s design should not be boxy, heavy, compact, but more aerated. Good small living room furniture includes four-leg chairs, coffee tables and glass table tops with metal legs. If you want to go even further, there is some transparent furniture out there that looks amazing as well. Visually light furniture lets the eye roam around the room without being blocked by chunks of heavy objects, thus enlarging the perspective. Metal and glass do wonders to a small living room decor, making it look significantly larger.
3. Modular furniture for small living room
The last thing a small living room needs is tall, heavy, imposing furniture. The specialists’ advice is to get low furniture (low in height not low in price, mind you), from sofas to cabinets and storage boxes. A minimalist look with low, modular furniture can give the space a larger feel. Another great small living room design idea is to paint the walls in a vivid, contrasting color. If you are looking for small sofas for small living rooms, choosing a modular one is a smart pick. The smaller the room is, the harder is to cram up a sofa, an armchair, some pillows and even a chair or two. Use only the most necessary, useful, modular, low pieces of furniture that match the overall design.
4. Small living room storage ideas
Use every inch available, and create storage space where it didn’t exist before! Some small living room ideas are: shelves and bookcases going around and above windows, decorative boxes that sit on the floor and act as lamp support or coffee table, under-the-sofa storage options and a lot of hanging options for walls and the back of doors. These storage ideas look incredibly cute without cramping the space. If you have alcoves, the better, as you can use them as book storage spaces, wardrobes or cupboards.
5. Small living room ideas – Mirrors
This may be the oldest trick in the book when it comes to small living room ideas. Strategically placing a mirror to suggest the feeling of more space is something many people do. While some choose to place the mirror above the couch, others try to place it on the opposite the windows. You can pick the mirrors according to the overall style of the living room, in modern, straight lines and narrow metal frames or in oversize vintage style.
6. Give the ceiling the credit it deserves
We have talked about some great ceiling painting ideas and decorations recently. The ceiling can change dramatically a small living room decor. A light pale blue ceiling can open up the space, giving you the feeling you have the summer sky right above your head. A crown mold can visually trick people into thinking the ceiling is taller and the room is larger.
7. Paint colors for small living rooms
We are not talking about painting just the walls and the ceiling in the same color, but about choosing a color palette that is light, and uniform. Matching furniture and accessories in similar nuances is among favorite small living room design ideas embraced by architects. A splash of vivid color to focus the attention on a certain part or object in the room is crucial to give the room personality and unity. Going all white can be dangerous, but adding a hot spot or combining the whites with natural light and glass furniture elements will turn a small living room into a crystal palace you see in movies. In order to eliminate the coldness of the white, don’t forget to have colored flowers all the time.
8. Small living room ideas: minimalist standards
Among the best small living room ideas, the minimalist trend that addresses the issue of furniture is perhaps the most popular. Keeping all things to a minimum while respecting proportions and not crowding the space with unnecessary details is also one of the easiest small living room design. But don’t think that a small couch is not comfortable. If you take your time, you will find small sofas, tulip chairs, armless chairs, and small coffee tables that fit the room’s scale and create a cozy interior, even if it is small.
9. Small living room design ideas: accessories
This is another old trick on the list of small living room ideas. In order to offer space to a room, you can define and delimit spaces with the help of a combination of accessories and colors. Pick a color scheme, as simple as possible. Use the scheme to delimit the eating area of the living room with the help of a carpet under the table. Pick soft, transparent curtains in the same color scheme, and matching accessories, such as flower pots or sofa cushions. Thus, you will create a visual illusion of space and tidiness.
10. Small living room design ideas: light up the space
Soft, enveloping colors or choosing all whites for brightening up the space are the simplest small living room ideas. But it’s time to take things up a notch and light up the living room by all means possible. This means getting rid of heavy, thick curtains or window treatments. Let as much natural light possible fill in the room. Next, you can place some lamps strategically, in order to light up the corners. Don’t forget that mirrors are a handy solution that enters gracefully this combination.
Conclusion
You can implement these small living room design ideas without much effort, and even if you are on a budget! With a bit of imagination, you can turn your small living room into a magazine cover poster. Do you have other small living room ideas that you want to share with us? What worked for your tiny living room? Leave your comments below!
If you’re interested in living room decorating ideas in general, we recommend our Incredible & Diverse Urban Living Room Decorating Ideas article.