The allusive living room. It often ends up being an unused space that our clients feel puzzled by. They know that it’s usable space, but they don’t often use it as a sitting area, so they aren’t sure what to do with it. We have brainstormed ideas for this space so many times, that we now have a few well-loved tried and true ideas that we often use, depending on the client and their needs. Here are a few of those popular ideas that might inspire you if you are looking for other ways to use your living room!
Office
A stylish desk, an accessorized storage unit, and a few comfy accent chairs is enough to make an office space worthy of being in a main living area, and it is more functional than the traditional living room, especially with so many people working from home these days! Possible drawbacks of this include a work situation where you take a lot of phone or Zoom calls and have other family members who need to use adjacent living spaces. If that isn’t you though, this is a great option.
Library
If you have a book collection, why not create a library in your living room? Either add built-in bookcases or furniture pieces to create book-filled walls. Add a couple of plush seats and you have your very own library room! This has a large style impact and is useful.
Games Room
If your family loves playing games, make a game room out of your unused living room! Create a stylish pool room, perfect for entertaining. Or if board games are more your speed, just add a table with chairs for board game play or making puzzles, and add a storage piece in the room to hold all the games. Either approach to a games room will be well loved by the whole family!
Music Room
If you or someone in your family is a music lover or an instrument player, make the living room a designated music room! If you have a piano or other instrument, display it and add a seat or two for listeners. Maybe you have a large record collection and want a listening room for that? There you go!
Dining Room
We have found that sometimes, swapping the functions of different living spaces is all that needs to be done to make a space more functional. Depending on the floorplan of your home, turning your living room into a dining room for Holidays or family dinners could make a ton of sense and free up space in other rooms!
Of course, the other option is redoing your living room so it is a space you love and want to spend time in! If adding new seating or a focal point fireplace will make you want to spend time in your living room, maybe that is the change you need to make. Remember that if you have larger sofas in your family room for TV watching, you can change it up by having a four-chair seating arrangement in your living room.
We hope you find this helpful! Leave a comment letting us know if you will be changing your living room to any of these ideas. If you need help bringing any of these ideas to life, give us a call to learn more about our consultation options.
XOXO,
