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FurnitureLiving RoomsDesign Dilemma
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help with my living room

5 months ago

Hi all, I’ve posted before (sorry serial poster)
I’m really depressed about my living room! Since I moved in a few months ago I just don’t know what to do with it. I’ve tried 2 sofas and now settled on a sofa and chair as it has an awquard shape to it. Whatever I do it doesn’t feel cosy or like a living room. What can I do? I don’t have a lot of budget but willing to purchase different furniture if I can find the ideal layout. My problem is it’s not the biggest room, had 2 doors and fireplace alcoves and bay window and very little straight wall space to put furniture. I tried the sofa facing the fireplace as this is how it felt natural but it didn’t feel right due to the door behind it!!!

Comments (20)

  • 5 months ago

    I would start with the bigger rug. It doesn’t feel cosy atm (imo) as it’s missing lighting, texture, pattern, plants , a table of sorts etc.

    Ignore the actual art pictured but i would then get a piece of art for over the sideboard, it needs to hang much lower than your existing photos etc so it connects with the furniture

    Then I’d add a plant, vase of stems etc. There are lots of nice cheap vases around atm

    Does your floor lamp fit behind the sofa as I’d add a table lamp on the sideboard?

    I’m not keen on the blue fireplace wall if I’m honest unless you introduce a fireplace (which you could fake so as to do cheaply).

    You have a really good base for a lovely room, Dunelm has some good things at reasonable prices






  • 5 months ago

    I think the best layout is the last pic - it looks cosy and well considered - the others look busy.

    Is the blue there now? I’m biased as I don’t like grey, so I find the walls cold and there’s a lot of grey elsewhere in the room. The blue on the other hand, is stunning so you can lift the room with that. Paint more of the walls blue, accessories with cushions etc

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    I think you could put the tv in the opposite corner on the other side of the window, then put the two chairs (if they'll fit) side by side on that wall (with the door) with the table in between. If these are a bit too snug, you could always angle them into the centre of the room. Then the sofa could go opposite the window at right angles to the door, but a little over towards the fireplace wall. This will give you clearly defined "square" sitting room area, which you can further delineate with a rug in your chosen accent colour and then add coordinating or matching cushions and throws. I would then move what I think is a glass cabinet (in the corner of the dining part of the room) to the left hand side of the radiator cabinet. I would then try to move the dining table more towards the kitchen and the now empty corner. For the dining table I would look at getting something like a table runner or a big bowl/vase/ornament with reflects your chosen accent colour which will visually join up the two areas. I would also be tempted to replace one of the pictures with a large mirror. And also perhaps think about getting different wall art.
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  • 5 months ago

    I have a similarly frustrating room except our two doors are either end so it felt like a corridor. I tried to zone it and used a big rug across the whole sitting / tv area with an arm chair in opposite corner of rug to the sofa area opposite the tv (will be a corner sofa when we can afford it - currently a sofa and an armchair from old place) and made the other end a piano space and a toy space.
    My parents have a sofa in front of a bay - it works ok.

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  • 5 months ago

    Yellow - sofa, green - armchair, red - toys.
    Big rug under the whole sitting area
    Ignore the fireplace wall
    Paint the whole thing one colour (or have the whole sitting area blue
    Art
    Lamps

    Would that work?

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  • 5 months ago

    Thanks all theres some amazing ideas to try there. Confusion with my name am using my maiden name as deleted my old account after I couldn’t figure out how to delete the post.
    Anyway, Charlotte I wish the sofa could go there but it’s too wide and then blocks the doorway coming in, and when I tried it floating forwards a bit more it didn’t seem to look right. Also felt wierd with a door right behind the sofa, but annoying as thats how it feels the room should flow. Is that floor plan how yours is configured at the moment? I am wondering whether to get a corner sofa and put it under the window or whether that would just take up too much space.
    I think I agree on ditching the blue wall, I was trying to add colour but haven’t really liked it since it was done. That’s an easy fix. And there are some lovely ideas with the canvasses etc.

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  • 5 months ago

    Sorry I should have said, the blue is nice but (imo) it doesn’t work as a feature wall as there is no feature or alternatively a dark colour is often used to disguise a tv. Rather than a working fire you could do something like this. Surrounds can be picked up cheaply if that’s within your dad’s diy skills?

    I may well be wrong but i think a corner sofa could be more trouble with the doors or alcoves but try it with masking tape on the floor



  • 5 months ago

    Thanks Minnie, I really like this look, the only thing being is whether it would work as I couldn’t have 2 sofas directly opposite due to the alcove and bay window not being in line with each other but I did wonder if I got a snuggle chair if that would look better even if they weren’t directly opposite if that makes any sense. I did paint the wall back grey last night and it does look better. I’ve been wondering what to do with the fireplace wall as well as I don’t like a mirror up ( hate seeing myself everytime I walk in the room) so maybe a fire place would be the way to go with a picture above it. Thanks, you’ve given me some lovely suggestions x

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  • 4 months ago

    I see n your previous post you had a layout with the sofa in the bay, a chair at the end and a chair opposite with a lamp with the photo taken looking at the fireplace wall. You commented that you felt like you were looking out the door all the time. I was wondering if you had tried the sofa in front of the window, but further down and without the chair at the far end. Lamp behind the rear corner of the sofa. Chair opposite and TV next in the corner of the wall. Bring the chair up to where the doors are located. Would this alleviate the part where you were looking out the door?

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  • 4 months ago

    If this is more understandable!

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  • 4 months ago

    A fire place would make it look more homely , you could buy a cheap surround and buy an electric log fire you could buy a piece off slate and place the fire on top .Pictures , mirrors and maybe a carpet to get that cosy feel. Some shelves but not to clutter them the odd ornament , candles and family photo. Maybe paint the chimney a different colour to the walls of the rest off the living room and paint the living room walls white to open the space. Some curtains would finish the space off .
    I have the same space in my living room il send you a pic how I have done it .hope iv helped .

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  • 4 months ago

    Thanks kazzh and Mandy for your comments. I hadn’t actually tried the sofa not directly under the bay as asthetically I thought it should go central in the bay, but I could give it a go, I have only got the 1 chair now as the other one was taking up too much space.
    Mandy if you could send a photo that would be amazing as if you have the same layout it would be nice to see how you’ve done it. I did paint the fireplace wall but decided to paint it back as like others had said there was no feature for it to look right. I think over time I will get a fireplace as it will probably make it look more complete like you have said. I hate seeing myself in the mirror all the time when I put one above the fireplace so I was hoping to get a smaller round one that wasn’t so in your face as I think the one I hung before was too big.
    I’m waiting for my dad to be able to hang curtains as i hate not having them I think it makes the room look bare, due to the shape of the bay window they need special ones which is costly and above my expertise! X

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  • 4 months ago

    Hi,Kayleigh thinking about it my living room looks smaller than yours. This is just an idea how I have done the fire place it just looks
    More cosier because I have a feature to look at instead of a plain wall,you can get cheap and nice curtains from eBay cheap and cheerful ha!.anything else you want advice for ask away x

  • 4 months ago

    Thank you Mandy, your home does look cosy I must say. I did try my sofa that way round but the issue being I have a door behind and it didn’t seem to look right floating in the room as I couldn’t push it against the wall due to the door opening into it and the sofa is too wide not to be in the doorway If that makes sense. It is annoying as that’s how it feels the room should flow! Or do you think that’s okay? As other people I asked said it didn’t look right? I hope that I can maybe get a sliding door in the future so at least the door doesn’t have to open into the room, another job for my dad. X

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  • 4 months ago

    Hi, I had that problem and I had to have the door going out the other way so we had room.If your dad could do that for you you would have so much more space. Under your window I would put a nice pouffe keep the tele where it is just more of an angle and a corner suite you can get small ones for small rooms . You could go on Pinterest for ideas as well but to be honest you having blue over your alcove is to dark and it makes the room look smaller, lighting is key to having a nice spacious room. On my photo it looks quite cramped but it isint in person I just can’t get a good angle ha!.
    Please let us see the new living room when done I bet itl look amazing when finished x

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  • 4 months ago

    Oh wow piur and co that looks amazing!!!! And I wouldn’t have to change too much with the doors etc. thank you so very much I can definitely achieve that look. I am more than happy to give you a review, I’m unsure how to do it, I will have a good look later. ❤️

  • 4 months ago

    Would you be able to tell me what colour that is on the walls? It’s beautiful x

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  • 4 months ago

    Thank you ever so much honestly you’ve made me feel completely different about my house knowing I can make it look so cosy. I will have to wait to do the papering as it already has paper up and when I tried to remove some it was a mess under there so will probably have to get it done professionally. It looks like a kind of beige colour so I can always paint for now and see how it looks 😊

  • 4 months ago

    If you are going to test paint….. get a large pad of A3 paper and paint the paper. Then temporarily place in with… will save you from paint splodges all over the place.

  • 4 months ago

    Thank you so much I will have a look soon at paints and give some a test, thanks khazz as well for your advice of trying it on the paper. Excited to make some changes when I get time. Thanks all, I appreciate all the help as I honestly had no clue before any of the suggestions 😊

  • 4 months ago

    Piur and co- do you think there is any way in my living room I could have a corner sofa? Although your design is beautiful and is how I am going to try and do it, I would absolutely love to have a corner sofa as they are so much more comfortable. I can’t visualise how or where I could or if it’s even possible due to the shape. I have moved the sofa and chair to the way you have laid it out in the pictures and it does look better, I just thought I’d ask you the question x

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