Chic Living Room Furniture: Now You Can Decorate Like A Pro


by Tom Hardin - Date: 2010-08-14 - Word Count: 802 Share This!

Are you a big fan of Home and Garden Television? Do you watch Martha Stewart and peruse the aisles of Macy's home section wondering how it is that the professionals manage to put it all together so easily? Fret no longer! Here is an easy guide to decorating like a pro in your very own living room.

Search for Inspiration

To get started on your search for chic living room furniture, create a physical or online folder full of inspirational images. These might be magazine clippings, they might be family photographs of a trip to the beach, swatches of your favorite fabric, or images you've found online.

It doesn't matter what you have in your inspiration folder (or box!) - collect a series of things that inspire you, and things that make you feel serene, calm, and happy. One of the first tricks to creating a great living room is figuring out what it is that you want, and an easy way to figure out what you want is to highlight what speaks to you.

Consider Choosing a Theme

Are you into the classics? Do you tend toward crown molding, oak cabinets and lightly stained hardwood floors? Do you like earthy tones? Things that speak of nature or a day at the beach? Perhaps you like things shabby chic, with a hint of French flair.

Your inspiration folder will help you decide what kind of theme you're into. If you tend to like things minimal, clean-cut and simple, your style is probably modern. If you love to decorate with wicker, sea shells and bright fun colors that remind you of the ocean, a beach theme would work well for you. If you dream of living in a fairy tale princess land of a room, shabby chic will make you feel like a queen. Deciding on a theme helps you to narrow things down when you go for a decorating shopping trip.

Coordinate Your Colors

Next, consider your colors. Your inspiration folder and your theme will have helped you narrow down what you like; now, decide what kind of color scheme you are going for. Do you want things to be bright and energetic? Consider a turquoise accent wall or some pops of color on the couch. Want things to be serene? Consider an ivory with just a hint of blue or pink. Wishing for something cool and modern? Gray is the new neutral, and works with just about anything, giving off an air of utter sophistication.

Go Shopping!

Now that you've found your inspiration, chosen a theme and picked out your colors, it's time to go shopping! Remember that discount stores are where the deals are, so head to online discount retailers or big box stores like Costco, TJ Maxx and Homegoods, where can find great pieces for a steal.

Now, let's put together a room. Let's pretend that our inspiration folder is a mixture of clean modern lines and French influence with a touch of pizzazz. We've decided that we want things to be modern, but livable; classic but still funky. We're going to go with neutrals in shades of tan and brown, and spice things up with a few pops of color in the form of accessories in turquoise, our favorite color.

For the sofa, we'll go with a large charcoal sectional. Outfitted in a brushed suede, the fabric is durable and hence, perfect for families, and the large chaise on one side is perfect for lounging on a rainy day.
Opposite the sofa, we'll create a small conversation area with two zebra print oval backed chairs. The colors are still in our netural palate, but the zebra print is fun and the shape of the chair brings in the French flavor we've been looking for.

We'll also bring in a large dark brown leather Franklin club chair, featuring tufted leather and a classic look. This sort of chair just gets better with age, and is perfect for dad or grandpa.

The television will sit on an espresso wood console cabinet that compliments the dark wood of our chairs. We'll bring in a bit of glitz with mirrored modern side tables and a hint of modernity in an acrylic clear coffee table. Additional storage will come in the form of espresso brown leaning ladder bookshelves, perfect for highlighting both books and family mementos and photographs.

An oriental area rug in neutral tones will anchor the television and seating areas, and pops of color will come in the form of turquoise bookends, fun turquoise and ivory throw pillows for the couch, and turquoise blown glass vases that echo the French feel we've been going for while keeping with the modern fun sentiment with the bright color.

As you can see, decorating like a pro isn't all that hard! All you need is a good plan, and the time to execute it.

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