I'm a visitor, I need help with my living room.

[bina]

My living room has fireplace in the center, and its a very long room and i have no idea how to style it or what to put on my walls. I"m pretty open, but for my living room i was planning on going for a navy, aqua and grey color scheme. I was thinking i'll paint our tv stand a very light grey and get a white leaning book shelf for the other side of the fire place. I'm willing to get new furniture though that will take some time because i'll have to work it in the budget.  Any thoughts? 

Here are some pictures. 










Thanks in advance for your ideas, i'm kind of at a loss. 

[dr.girlfriend]

Can you take any pics that show the whole room better, maybe from inside the archway of the adjoining room? I'm having trouble getting a sense of the layout.

Are you guys big t.v. watchers? Do you use the fireplace often? Do you want this to be mostly play space for the adorable little guy in the pic, or is this your main living/hangout space?


If possible, and if the room is long in the fireplace direction, I would be very tempted to have two groupings...a couch oriented to the wall with t.v. opposite the fireplace, and then a small table-chairs conversational grouping near the fireplace. That fireplace is so pretty I wouldn't want to overshadow it, and watching a t.v. shoved in the corner is always so awkward if you're big t.v. watchers like we are.  What are the actual room dimensions?  What furniture do you have so far...I see the side-chair and the loveseat, but is that a couch or loveseat perpendicular to it?

[magdala]

It's the current paint color. That shade of beige is draining all the life from the furniture. The couch and chairs look comfortable and to be in good shape. The blue morrocan trellis rug is pretty. I would look through your artwork to find a piece that you love and use that as the inspiration. Put the artwork above the fireplace, Select a paint color from the artwork and build from there.

[bina]

Ok, i'm going to go clean up, and take some better pictures. I'll be back

[bina]

Okay here we go


@dr.girlfriend We are big tv watchers, we dont use the fire place because its gas and we'd have to install the tank ourselves. Its just not in the budget, so thats just for decoration for now. Theres a play room adjoining the living room that we use as his play room, i'd like to eventually make the curtains match our living room so it flows, but he still has his own play space. I have a couch, love seat, coffee table and tv stand. The room is long in the direction of the windows, not the fire place.
magdala i do hate this paint color, its so blah. I have no artwork, none. If you know of some i'd love links, i keep trying to look through etsy and i just get so overwhelmed.

We were thinking a good color scheme was navy, aqua, gray and pops or red or coral.

ETA i took that picture standing in the play room, the kitchen  is to the right of that

[TBM]

Your TV seems so far away from your seating. Could you bring it closer to the fireplace?

What color were you thinking of painting the walls? If you were going to paint the walls gray, I think a charcoal color on the TV stand would look nice. Red or coral would be really fun for the tv stand too, and would make it more of a focal point than the non functional fireplace. I think it would depend on the wall color, but to me, it seems like it could easily look kind of kitchen cabinet-ish if it was too light.

[downtoearth]

Do you watch this TV much? It seems like if the adults don't watch this TV and instead have another TV room, then maybe it's better in the playroom area and then this room can be more of an adult living room?

[bina]

@downtoeath, we do watch this tv, we only have the one. We do have an empty formal dining room i could make a tv room, but i think that may be weird. Next year we are planning on getting a bigger tv.
TBM, would it look weird to just scoot it over closer to the fire place?
Maybe i should hire an interior decorator. It just seems so challenging.

[magdala]

Navy, aqua, beige, red and coral would be great. Trust your instincts, there are good. Ooh, coral on the walls would be fantastic for making the navy and aqua stand out. I would skip the grey because the big pieces of furniture are beige (at least on my antique monitor). Paint the walls coral and the tv stand the aqua from your pretty pillows. Add a throw in navy to bring the navy color up from the floor. Definitely move the tv stand next to the fireplace. Restyle the fireplace mantle to have pieces in navy, coral, aqua and red. Candles and pottery are good for bringing color to a mantle. Photograph your children while wearing one (or more) of those colors, mat in white and then add a frame in another color.

Art work is so personal that it is hard to know what another person would like. Here are some that I like:

www.art.com/products/p22162414468-sa-i7752798/aimee-wilson-ikat-florals-ii.htm?sOrig=CAT&sOrigID=193288&dimVals=193288-207232&ui=BF6F7A59202D49F3BB890EFD90A63409

www.art.com/products/p22097728881-sa-i7479771/jill-martin-jounce.htm?sOrig=CAT&sOrigID=193288&dimVals=193288-207232&ui=BF6F7A59202D49F3BB890EFD90A63409

www.art.com/products/p10008351-sb-i665672/pablo-picasso-dove-of-peace.htm?sOrig=CAT&sOrigID=0&dimVals=5000016&ui=BF6F7A59202D49F3BB890EFD90A63409

www.art.com/products/p11785934-sa-i1422945/fritz-thaulow-a-venetian-backwater.htm?sOrig=CAT&sOrigID=0&dimVals=0&ui=BF6F7A59202D49F3BB890EFD90A63409&searchstring=boat&SSK=boat

[memenee]

My quick reaction is that everything is too far away from everything else.

Is it possible to bring the love seat closer to the sofa to make a nice seating/conversation area? (While leaving enough room to maneuver around? Hard to tell in pics by it may be tight)

Can you put the tv stand closer to the fireplace? Maybe where that chair is now?

I'd love to see Sea Salt on your walls with the tv stand painted coral as someone else suggested.

Art can be as simple as some great pics of your son and your family blown up and put in those ikea white gallery frames and do a gallery wall.

Good luck and stick around until you are happy with your space!

[lightbulbsun]

Is there enough space for you to rotate the sofa 90* and then move the TV next to the stairs, across from the fireplace?   Then you can move the love seat away from the wall a little bit. I would put a console table behind the sofa, or a cabinet like in the first photo.   I can't tell if there's enough walking space for that from your photos.

If that layout doesn't work, putting a built-in next to the fireplace for the TV might be a nice option. 

[TBM]

Apr 9, 2015 18:40:49 GMT -5 bina said:

@downtoeath, we do watch this tv, we only have the one. We do have an empty formal dining room i could make a tv room, but i think that may be weird. Next year we are planning on getting a bigger tv.
TBM, would it look weird to just scoot it over closer to the fire place?
Maybe i should hire an interior decorator. It just seems so challenging.

I don't think it would look any weirder than it does so far away from the seating.   It would look intentional and purposeful if you balanced it by placing something of similar visual weight on the other side of the fireplace.   It could be another cabinet of some sort, a console table with/without a lamp, some kind of shelving.  Whatever suits your needs.  It doesn't need to be the same color as the TV stand either.....it can be more interesting to have different tones of wood and different colors.

[auntie]

I kinda, sorta have that LR. Long (28') and relatively narrow with a focal point fireplace centered in the middle of the exterior wall. I have a pair of windows in the front and a set of French doors to the back. My house has this as a great room, so no separate FR in which to have a TV.

The room was a challenge, so I did work with a designer when choosing furniture for the space. She gave me a few options, but said it was a difficult space. I have a pair of comfy chairs with ottomans and side tables flanking the fireplace and a sofa/side table across. My TV is on a stand set diagonally on the corner for viewing from the chairs. With the ottomans, the room is too narrow for the size of coffee table appropriate to the safa and room, so we skipped that.

I have a collection of stuff hung over the sofa- an old wooden advertising sign, an oil and a pencil drawing from DH's favorite artist. I have a large print of his over the mantle. Between the windows, I have a piece of framed sheet music. (LOL, I had to check. I usually have an impressionist style painting from a local artist I like. I move stuff around on the walls all the time. I have a framed poster over the TV and an antique breakfront my grandfather made behind my chair.On the mantle I have two case clocks and a collection of random brass candlesticks from my favorite aunt's house.

Working with what you have, I might move the love seat away from the wall (within the brown tiles and on the area rug) to create a smaller seating area. I might add a small shared side table. Maybe put a small bookcase near the fireplace and a large plant to add some life to the corner. I'd probably move the TV closer to the fireplace- centered on the wal or place it catty corner so it could be watched more easily from the sofa and loveseat.

[dr.girlfriend]

I DK, the hubs and I are big t.v. watchers, so we'd do a lot to have a nice big t.v. front and center. I'd be tempted to put a t.v. on the wall opposite the fireplace, with maybe two chairs with an end table between them on the fireplace side and then smaller loveseats on both sides. It's kind of working against the dimensions of the room, but it'll make a nice intimate space, and you can use the other "ends" of the room for something else if needed.  Sorta like this, but the fireplace would be on the side the photo was taken from:

[dr.girlfriend]

At worst, if you never use the fireplace I guess you could just treat that almost like a wall, like this, but it seems a shame.

[bina]

Ladies, sorry i haven't gotten back to this, yesterday and today are super busy for me. I may try and fit in some shopping though.

[bina]

So, sorry about that, busy weekend over here. I moved some of the furniture around, I decided i didn't want the TV opposite the fireplace because it made the space feel very cramped. I also measured and our living room is 22.5 ft long and 12.5ft wide. So i'm thinking i'd like to paint our tv stand, either coral or aqua and then get 2 leaning white book cases, on either side of the tv and fire place. So it'd be bookcase, tv stand, fire place, book case, then in the back corner i was thinking i'd get a reading chair and lamp and little side table. I'm also thinking about getting rid of the love seat, but i just hate to loose that seating. Its definitely not in the budget to get a new couch/ love seat set. For over the fire place i was going to get a canvas of one of our favorite family photos.
updated pictures.

[bina]

Sorry, the slip covers in the wash because DS colored on it...

[memenee]

bina you're getting there. I like the love seat pulled in closer like that - makes a much cozier seating area. Since you mention you plan to buy leaning bookcases and because your tv is not crazy big, why don't you look into eliminating your current tv stand altogether and get a regular white (or wood) leaning bookcase for the right of the fireplace and something similar to this as a leaning bookcase for the left of the fireplace. m.ebay.com/itm/141087859305

[dr.girlfriend]

I like the changes so far! I agree with making one of the leaning bookcases your t.v. stand...I think you want the t.v. as close to the fireplace as possible so you can comfortably watch it from the couch.

[bina]

I think i've decided to have a couple bookshelves built, custom so one can house the tv. Something kind of like ..


The one on the left, we'll leave a space big enough to house our tv. My H was really against mounting the tv above the fire place, so i'm thinking a large mirror or artwork there.

[heygrey]

that looks like a great idea!

your sketch up with the tv lady yelling "no!" is cracking me up

[magdala]

My parents have a set up similar to your drawing. It works great and they love the storage around the tv. Closed cabinets at the bottom is a fantastic idea for storing the things that you don't want to display.

[auroraloo]

I love your sketch, or the idea of the leaning tv stand memenee posted with a regular leaning one on the other side. Actually, I think I like the two leaners best. In the pic you posted, the two shelves look random to me, unless you made the whole wall built ins, which would be a LOT of built ins.

[bina]

Apr 20, 2015 9:35:52 GMT -5 @bluesky said:

I think you need a TV above the fireplace too. I'm not usually a fan but that seems like a perfect solution to your space. I'm not liking what is on the mantel right now at all. I'm also not liking a TV stand on the side of the fireplace - it's awkward. Everything else seems great if you just move a TV above the fireplace.

We looked into that and the mantel doesn't look like it would support one and my H doesn't want to damage the wall with hanging one. So I think that's something I'll have to compromise. I agree I don't like what's there now at all.