The living room is truly the backbone of the average American household. It’s where your family gathers to spend time together and where many happy memories are made. Therefore, it’s important for that time to be spent in comfort.
One of the best ways to create a comfortable atmosphere is to have a theme for the space. For anybody with a European design preference, there are a multitude of unique design options for creating your ideal modern room. Here are some ways to achieve a more modern look in your living room.
Take in the View
Throughout this great nation of ours are many sweeping vistas, majestic mountains, breathtaking skylines, and sand-swept beaches. But whatever the scene out of your window is, the modern design calls for you to have a much better view. If you have an eye-catching view right outside your window, why not expand how much of it you see?
A panoramic view helps you get more in touch with what’s going on right in your own backyard, both metaphorically and literally. It also offers a unique alternative to the flat screens found in most living rooms today. A panoramic view also offers your guests a unique experience while providing a fresh topic of conversation.
Play with Size
The size of the room always presents specific complications that require a deft eye to arrive at an elegant solution. For example, in smaller rooms, your decorating decisions can focus on ways to make the room appear larger, or they could attempt to make everyone feel snug and secure. In larger rooms, adjusting the furniture can create a room that serves multiple purposes at once.
Another way to utilize size is in the selection of your furniture and decorations. An oversized painting or chair helps break up the space, so styling continues to stand out. When done in moderation, this is a great method to use pieces that otherwise would clash.
Monochromatic
One of the biggest trends in modern home design is using a monochromatic color scheme to decorate. These schemes rely on taking a base color and using its various tints and shades for most color decisions. Common colors for this include grays, greens, creams, whites, and blues.
A big perk of monochromatic color schemes is how simple it makes selecting your furniture, decorations, and paint scheme. Once you set the color you want, it’s all about finding creative ways to incorporate it as much as possible. The more diverse and varying the shades and tints, the better you will be able to coordinate the space.
Color Pops
One huge perk of choosing a monochromatic theme is it allows the pops of color commonly found in modern home design to really stand out. Best used to make a major statement, color pops ideally form a comforting contrast from what has been established. Pops of color usually work best when set against complementary, analogous, and triadic colors. Looking at a color wheel, complementary colors are directly across from each other, analogous are immediately next to each other, and triadic colors are part of a set of three equally spaced from each other.
There are many ways for you to incorporate pops of color throughout the living room. One way would be a matching set of chairs to contrast the scheme color. Another way could be through accent pillows on the sofa. Bright, colorful artwork creates a beautiful contrast from the conventional planeness found in white-focused rooms.
Functionality
Gone are the days when families would have a separate living room for formal occasions. A room where the furniture was higher quality than what was used every other day and children were strictly forbidden from entering. Now, the living room is about functionality and everyday use.
One way to increase room functionality is by arranging furniture to divide the space by purpose. Within the same living room, it’s possible to have a space for the children to play, a place for families to watch television, and a reading nook by simply adjusting the arrangement of the furniture. These designated spaces allow families to spend time with each other while pursuing their own interests.
Smart Connectivity
Today, everything is about interconnectivity—and your living room is no exception. There’s a good chance that you’re reading this on your cell phone or tablet while lounging on a couch with your smart television streaming in the background. The number of ways that our lives have improved courtesy of the internet is truly astonishing.
Beyond the entertainment devices, there are many additional smart connections available for the living room. Thermostats are adjustable for when you are home and away on your phone. Same with smart lights that can be dimmed or brightened with a simple voice command to Alexa, Siri, Google, or whatever other program controls your devices. These modern essentials improve your life and provide an elegance to otherwise dull, everyday tasks.
Textures
Textures are all the rage these days, especially with the increase in popularity of monochromatic color schemes. Textures offer another way to differentiate between colors, even if they’re exactly the same except for the material. These additional piles also encourage visual interest in the area, putting it into focus.
Another example of how to use textures as a way to achieve a more modern look in your living room is using different patterns in your wall decorations. Breaking up the monotony is one of the big challenges to pull monochromatic off successfully, so visual distinctions work as an easy way to achieve this. Even putting up wallpaper with a simple pattern can help separate things in your view and add an extra layer of depth.
When you’re ready to upgrade your living room and add a twist of modern, visit the home furniture experts at The Great American Home Store. Stop into any one of our five locations or our web store for the best deal on living room furniture in Memphis, TN. We have everything you need to comfortably seat the whole family.
