9. Crafty Color
Rockledge Design + Architecture revived this sitting room in a 1930 American Foursquare home in Pittsburgh by adding Craftsman-inspired wallpaper and a mix of vintage, antique and new furnishings to original elements such as stained-glass windows. The firm also turned the old fireplace into a focal point by retrofitting it with an electric insert, adding an antique mantel and tile surround, flanking it with cane-front cabinets and floating shelves, and painting the trim in Farrow & Ball’s peppy Yeabridge Green.
8. Snug in London
Dark blue-green walls, a plush, antique-style pink couch and sandy-toned wood and upholstery echo the colorful seascape painting hanging in this inviting London living room by Foxglove House. Architectural details, including a beautiful bay window with a curved seat and built-in bookcases accessed via a rolling library ladder, add to the room’s coziness and charm.
7. Rich and Regal
In a Seattle home by architect Andrew Russin and Darren Patt Construction, NB Design Group filled the living room with midcentury modern style spiked with Hollywood Regency glamour. A craggy split-face limestone fireplace anchors the space, which is open to the dining room and kitchen. A custom mohair sofa, burl coffee table, boldly patterned throw pillows and modern metal sculpture add yet more texture and drama.
6. Coastal Calm
Stephanie McLean Geyer Interior Design washed this cathedral-like Palmetto Bluff, South Carolina, living room with a variety of textures and shades of gray, white and blue. Two butterscotch-colored leather club chairs look like spots of sunshine warming up the cool, coastal-inspired color scheme.
5. French Country Feels
Radhika Vydianathan of Kalaa Chakra Interiors designed this basement living room in Milton, Georgia, to be a casual hangout space for friends and family. To that end, a sectional sofa and two swivel chairs seat at least eight people and are oriented toward a TV above the fireplace. Style-wise, Vydianathan added modern touches to the client’s preferred French country aesthetic, pairing elements like a European-inspired armoire with a fireplace surround clad in cool gray linear tile.
4. Top Attraction
A black candelabra-style chandelier hangs from the vaulted and beamed ceiling in this San Diego living room by Parker Rose Design — a crowning touch to the room’s rustic yet elegant look. The abstract patterns in the artwork, rug and stone fireplace loosen up the near-perfect symmetry of the two halves of the room.
3. Stony Ground
A rugged stone fireplace surround, ceiling beams and layers of texture add complexity and depth to the earthy palette in this Washington, D.C.-area living room by Manlove and Co. Interiors. Part of an open-plan space within a modern-farmhouse-style home, the room has a generous corner sofa and a large tufted leather ottoman that look made for lounging.
2. A Fresh Angle
Like a big hug, an angled sofa encloses the seating group in this Seabrook, Washington, living area by Baylis Architects and Amy Baker Interior Design. The arrangement creates an intimate space for conversation within the open-plan room and also improves the viewing angle for those watching the TV, which hangs on a Venetian plastered wall above the fireplace.
1. Subtle Symmetry
This Dallas-area living area — the most-saved living room of 2023 — is in a newly built house by Spruill Custom Homes. The room’s clean transitional style, pleasing symmetry, custom white oak cabinetry and warm neutral color palette give it wide appeal, while details like the slim mantel lined up with the open shelving and the elegant bevel surrounding the firebox make it unique.
There are many things to consider when designing a living room. Paint and fabric colors, furniture pieces and arrangement, decor, lighting, views, architectural details and overall atmosphere inevitably play key roles. You’ll find ideas for almost everything in this countdown of the most adored living rooms. (cited)
10. Dual Focus
In this airy, light-filled Dallas living room, Baker Design Group placed the TV next to the fireplace above a media console. That configuration lets people sitting on the plush couches or in the caramel-toned leather chairs alternate their gazes between the crackling fire and the television without craning their necks. It also frees up the space above the fireplace mantel for a soft landscape painting that picks up the decor’s beige, gray and gray-blue tones.