Yolo CabinArmsden ArchitectsCounty CabinYolo CountyModern CabinsSmall CabinsModern Cabin InteriorMini CabinsModern CottageForwardThe neat loft tucked away in the living area functions as a sleeping area for overnight guests. The interior is clad in vertical grain Douglas fir.Fear is a feeling, not a fact.Many small living room ideas revolve around tricking the eye into making the area appear more spacious. Such strategies can transform an area that feels cramped and claustrophobic into one that feels cozy and aesthetically pleasing. Decorate in a way that maximizes light and space, and pay attention to how you use color, scale and weight. It can make quite a difference.It’s interesting to try new things. Sometimes traditional ideas about living room decor aren’t the best solution for a small space. Instead of using blinds for window treatments, use long, flowing drapes because they draw attention to vertical space, thus expanding the area of the room.Your living room, regardless of size, should be able to function as a space for relaxation and entertaining.

Here are some of our favorite ways to make it feel more spacious.Designers often place mirrors strategically in small places in order to make them feel larger. One of the most common small living room ideas is to hang a large mirror in a central location to create a focal point. home decorating magazines pdfTo reflect light and add a nice ambiance, put it behind a light source such as a candle or pendant lamp. cheap simple bedroom decorating ideasIf possible, position a mirror across from your window so it will reflect the view and give the illusion of another window.living room decorating ideas bright colorsA room has a vertical dimension as well as a horizontal one. bedroom decor for boy and girl

If your living room has a high ceiling, make the most of the extra space by decorating it in a manner that draws the eye upward. Floor-to-ceiling drapes are a stylish way to accomplish this goal.Another idea is to fill the vertical space with a menagerie of small to midsize artwork. exterior paint colors for homes with black roofThis technique will make the room feel larger than it actually is, because it invites the eye to roam beyond the eye-level horizontal space that may feel confined.exterior stone designsOne of the most popular small living room ideas is the use of neutral colors on walls, floor, ceiling and furniture upholstery. A palette of off-whites or beiges will expand the space by appearing to push back the walls. Soft hues also tend to illuminate a room by reflecting light.

In addition to enlarging an area, a neutral palette imparts instant sophistication and creates a calming environment.When you shop for furniture, consider its visual weight. This concept refers to the perceived heaviness of an object based on size, color and design. Pick out pieces that have a lightweight appearance, as heavier ones will seem to constrict a space.Opt for pale colors over darker ones, and select pieces that have legs while avoiding those that are boxy. Glass coffee or end tables will take up less visual space than wooden ones because you can see through them. Any furnishings that don’t obstruct views will make an area seem more open.A list of small living room ideas would not be complete without the recommendation to select furniture that won’t overpower the room or appear to dominate the space. A sofa with thin arms and a tightly upholstered back is preferable to one with substantial arms and a multi-cushion back.If space is tight, you could do without a couch completely, either choosing a loveseat or opting to position four chairs around a coffee table.

When picking out chairs, consider armless ones because they will take up less space than a model with arms.What are your favorite ideas for making your small living room look larger?Have you ever been in a house without a couch? I don’t think I have. I’ve thought about my friends’ houses, my relatives’ houses, and my neighbors’ houses. I’ve thought about all the places in which I’ve lived, from childhood until now. I’ve thought about the homes I’ve seen on TV, in movies, and in magazines. From modest studios to million-dollar McMansions, from inner cities to suburbs to out-in-the-sticks, you’d be hard-pressed to find a living room without a couch. In considering the subject, I realized that our sofa has always been the key piece of our décor. When we looked for houses or apartments, we’d wonder how the layout would accommodate it. After we moved in, we’d spend time experimenting with its optimum orientation (against the wall? at an angle? facing the window or TV?)

In some cases, we even bought a new one because the old one didn’t suit the style or size of our new digs. So naturally, after we found a flat in the UK, one of the first issues to arise was that of a couch. We’d lived without a single piece of furniture for two weeks (minimalist heaven!), but our backsides were growing a bit numb from sitting on the wood floors. Personally, I would have purchased a couple of floor cushions and called it a day. No matter how comfortably a room is furnished, I usually end up on the floor anyway. I simply feel more relaxed on the ground—and whether I’m eating, reading, or surfing the net, that’s where you’ll usually find me. It seemed unfair, however, to deny my husband (and potential guests) more proper seating—and so our hunt for a couch began. We spent a weekend searching online, and visiting furniture stores, to find the perfect sofa for our new flat. We looked at every type imaginable—from futons to loveseats to sectionals—and tried to imagine how they’d look in our open-plan living room.

We had just about settled on one with a mid-century modern design, when my husband suddenly asked, “Do we really need a couch?” Is it any wonder I love him so?) Do we really need a couch? We took a break from shopping, and talked it over. We didn’t have a TV, so we weren’t sure what our couch would face. Furthermore, we’d always have to sit side-by-side, instead of face-to-face—unless, of course, we bought some additional chairs. The more we thought about it, the less appealing a couch seemed to be. Not to mention that it would likely require more pieces of furniture to balance it out. We concluded that not only didn’t we need a couch; we didn’t even want one. But would that be weird? We wondered what our landlord, guests, or family would think when they came to visit, and found an empty space where the sofa should be. But then we reasoned: we were already considered somewhat eccentric for quitting good jobs, getting rid of everything we owned, and moving to a foreign country.

Why not go for broke and confirm our (already-suspected) quirkiness? Why not live in a house without a couch? So instead of arranging delivery on a heavy, expensive sofa (the resale of which we would someday have to orchestrate), we decided on a more lightweight, mobile, and versatile option: we threw two Ikea Poang chairs and a coffee table into our Mini, and were on our way. And thus we completed the task of furnishing our flat. I’m certainly not suggesting that minimalists can’t have couches. My point, rather, is that we should think about why we own what we do. We should make our possessions fit our lifestyle, instead of the other way around. We shouldn’t feel pressured to own things just because it’s expected, or because everyone else has one. We should feel free to own only those things that meet our needs (no matter how strange that may seem to anyone else!). In our case, a sofa doesn’t meet our needs at this particular place, and at this particular time, so we’ve simply decided not to own one.