Skip to content

Top Navigation

Better Homes & Gardens
  • Holidays
  • Gardening
  • Recipes and Cooking
  • Decorating
  • Home Improvement Ideas
  • Cleaning and Organizing
  • Shop
  • Rooms
  • News
  • Beauty & Style
  • Health & Family
  • Pets
  • Local Services

Profile Menu

My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletter
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • BH&G Insider
  • BH&G Magazine Archive
Login
Subscribe
Pin

Explore Better Homes & Gardens

Better Homes & Gardens
  • Explore

    Explore

    • 19 Vintage Christmas Decor Ideas That Are Giving Us Major Holiday Nostalgia

      Read More Next
    • 23 of Our Test Kitchen's Best Cookie Recipes of All Time

      We reach for them after school and after dinner. They're essential to holidays and casual gatherings. Homemade cookies are always a welcome treat. Whether it's a tried-and-true 1940s BH&G cookie recipe or a unique twist on sugar cookies, our Test Kitchen's compiled a lot of favorite cookie recipes over the years. Grab a glass of milk because we're about to dunk peanut butter cookies, oatmeal-raisin cookies, snickerdoodle cookies, and many more of our all-time favorite cookie recipes. Read More Next
    • Conquer Holiday Cooking with This Meat Roasting Guide

      All the times and temperatures you need to know to roast turkey, chicken, beef, and pork for your feast. Read More Next
  • Holidays

    Holidays

    See all Holidays

    The CDC Just Updated Its Thanksgiving Safety Guidelines—Here's What You Need To Know

    With just two weeks until turkey day, the latest information could affect your plans.
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
    • Hanukkah
    • New Year's
    • Halloween
    • Valentine's Day
    • Easter
    • Mother's Day
    • Father's Day
  • Gardening

    Gardening

    See all Gardening

    5 Simple Ways to Prepare Your Garden for Winter

    Depending on what's growing in your garden, there's a lot you can do to get your ornamental plants ready for the colder months. We've got the low-down on how to make sure everything from your perennials to your roses are ready when the snow flies.
    • Flowers
    • Houseplants
    • Plant Encyclopedia
    • Garden Pests
    • Trees, Shrubs & Vines
    • Caring for Your Yard
    • Edible Gardening
    • Garden Design
    • Gardening By Region
    • Landscaping
  • Recipes and Cooking

    Recipes and Cooking

    See all Recipes and Cooking

    21 Essential Baking Tools Every Home Cook Needs (Plus 16 That Are Nice to Have)

    If you’re a beginner baker who’s just starting out (or a master chef looking to declutter), start with this list of baking tool must-haves. We’ll help you set up a baking kit for beginners with 21 essential tools. For those who already own these tools, this list may finally provide the motivation you need to toss that never-been-used soufflĆ© dish. Building your essential baking toolbox starts here!
    • How to Cook
    • Chicken Recipes
    • Desserts & Baking
    • Fish Recipes
    • Beef Recipes
    • Healthy Recipes
    • Breakfast and Brunch Recipes
    • Lunch
    • Dinner Recipes & Meal Ideas
    • Ethnic Food
  • Decorating

    Decorating

    See all Decorating

    9 Ways to Decorate Your Front Door for the Holidays

    This winter front door display is layered with holiday cheer. See how you can personalize your home's entrance with holiday front door decorations, including evergreen wreaths, garlands, pinecones, and pops of plaid.
    • Choosing Color
    • Expert Decorating Advice
    • Fireplace Design Ideas
    • Do It Yourself Magazine
    • Window Treatments
    • Styles & Decor
    • Interior Painting
    • Home Makeovers
    • Small-Space Decorating
    • Traditional Home
  • Home Improvement Ideas

    Home Improvement Ideas

    See all Home Improvement Ideas

    What Style Is Your House? The 10 Most Popular House Styles Explained

    With so many types of house styles, narrowing the list down to your favorite can be overwhelming. We'll show you the top 10 most popular house styles, including Cape Cod, country French, Colonial, Victorian, Tudor, Craftsman, cottage, Mediterranean, ranch, and contemporary. Here's how to tell the differences between each architectural style.
    • Home Exteriors
    • DIY Home Electrical Tips & Guides
    • Outdoor Structures
    • Home Remodeling
    • Plumbing Installations & Repairs
    • Remodeling Advice & Planning
    • Flooring
    • Lighting
    • Decks
    • Porches
  • Cleaning and Organizing

    Cleaning and Organizing

    See all Cleaning and Organizing

    A Whole-House Cleaning Schedule You'll Actually Stick To

    Cleaning your home doesn't have to be a daunting, time-consuming chore. The key to managing household duties quickly and efficiently is to design an easy-to-follow routine that includes all the most important tasks. Follow these step-by-step instructions for creating a customized whole-home cleaning schedule.
    • House Cleaning
    • Laundry & Linens
    • Cleaning Tips
    • Closet Organization
    • Organization Tips
    • Kitchen Storage Organization
  • Shop
  • Rooms

    Rooms

    See all Rooms

    Living Room Furniture Arrangement Ideas

    Get tips for arranging living room furniture in a way that creates a comfortable and welcoming environment and makes the most of your space.
    • Bedroom Decorating and Design Ideas
    • Bathroom Decorating and Design Ideas
    • Kitchen Decorating and Design Ideas
    • Living Room Decorating and Design
    • Dining Room
    • Home Office
    • Kid's Rooms
    • Baby Nursery
  • News
  • Beauty & Style

    Beauty & Style

    See all Beauty & Style

    Call Your Stylist: These Hair Colors Will Be Everywhere This Spring

    Deep brunettes, sandy blondes, and bold reds are in this year.
    • Anti-Aging
    • Hair
    • Skin Care
    • Makeup
    • Style
    • Nails
  • Health & Family

    Health & Family

    See all Health & Family

    7 Small But Impactful Ways to Fit Self-Care Into Your Day Right Now

    Staying atop of your wellbeing is a must, especially during uncertain, stressful times. These tips will help you make time for self-care for a mental health boost every day.
    • Family Activities
    • Reunions
    • Conditions
    • Parenting Skills
  • Pets

    Pets

    See all Pets

    Luna Is the Most Popular Female Cat Name for the Second Year in a Row

    Plus, check out the other top options that owners are calling their pandemic pets.
    • Dogs and Puppies
    • Cats
    • Caring for Your Pet
  • Local Services

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletter
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • BH&G Insider
  • BH&G Magazine Archive
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow us

  1. BHG.com
  2. Rooms
  3. Living Room Decorating and Design
  4. Living Room Makeovers
  5. Room Makeover: Refreshed and Improved Living Room

Room Makeover: Refreshed and Improved Living Room

February 19, 2016
Skip gallery slides
Save Pin FB
This living room says "so long" to scattered and dated decor. With a fresh color palette, a better furniture arrangement, and a design that accentuates the room's unique architecture, the space is now welcoming, vibrant, and super stylish.
Start Slideshow

1 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Personality Potential

This living room has all the fixings to be a great space -- the wall full of windows, the unique architecture in the angled walls and alcove, and even the furniture. But the dated color scheme and lack of cohesive personality make the room somewhat unsettling. Adding a brighter color palette, repositioning the furniture, and emphasizing the room's best qualities turn this drab room into a cheery, welcoming space.

1 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Tucked-Away Space

Shifting the furniture back so the sofa is against the wall, and positioning the chairs so they're across from it make the room seem bigger and open up space for passing from one room to another. A colorful rug and light celadon walls balance a sense of calm with splashes of color and give the room a cozy, cheery feel. Throughout the room, zingy raspberry and yellow warm up the celadon walls and teal upholstery. Ivory, brass, and chocolate brown keep the candy colors sophisticated.

2 of 12

3 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Finding the Right Color

The light yellow shade of this room is pretty uninteresting, and although the pickle-green accent wall behind the couch (shown on Slide 1) added contrast, the color scheme still fell flat. "Extra credit for the accent wall behind the sofa," says Elaine Griffin, the designer behind the room's makeover, "But pickle green is not a cozy color." The dark color of the couch, the rug beneath it, and the murky color from the wall cancel out the natural light from the windows and give the room a dreary feel.

3 of 12

Advertisement

4 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Bright Spot

With the seating area pushed back against the wall, the free space in the bay window was put to good use as a desk area, flooded with natural light. The raspberry-color spray-painted console table matches the colors in the rug (not shown) and chair, making the colors cohesive. Simple Roman shades trimmed with green ribbon, a comfy wooden chair, and a white lamp and desk accessories keep the area from looking too busy or overdone. "Just like makeup," Griffin says, "you can have bold lips or eyes, not both."

4 of 12

5 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Traffic Barrier

Positioned across from the bay window, the fireplace and large doorways on both sides make this room a pass-through space. Its plain decor and dull color did nothing to catch the eye. Even the placement of the furniture creates an awkward walkway with the coffee table positioned right in the middle of traffic. Reorganizing the furniture and opening up the room makes it more inviting and more of a destination rather than a pass-through space.

5 of 12

6 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Open Access

Repositioning the furniture creates a spacious front section of the living room, giving free range to add transitional furniture like this bench. The bench blocks the black space of the firebox and provides extra party seating that fits right in with the rest of the furniture. Colorful artwork above the fireplace highlights the simple beauty of the fireplace mantel. The arrangement of this section of the room makes the room seem less crowded and more conducive to smooth traffic flow.

6 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Set the Mood

Small mercury-glass lamps add warmth and ambience and eliminate the need for wall sconces. Half shades make it easy to position the lamps close to the wall to ensure that they fit on the shallow mantel. The elegant and almost vintage finish of the lamps adds character and a bit of texture to the room.

7 of 12

8 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Hidden Features

Prior to the redesign, a long window covering hid this charming window seat, and the awkward placement of the furniture left the built-in bookshelf somewhat inaccessible. Repositioning the furniture and partially uncovering the window allows the seat to be integrated into the room's furniture arrangement. The shelves were painted a few shades darker than the walls to call out the character of the built-in without being overbearing, achieving Griffin's design goal to "call them out without screaming."

8 of 12

9 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Useful Cubes

Both cute and functional, these cubes in the built-in bookshelf offer a unique focal point in the room and serve both as storage and decorating space. The room's palette colors the accessories for a cohesive look.

 

Designer tip: "There is such a thing as too many colors," Griffin says. "If your eye has nowhere to rest, you have too many colors and you need to edit."

 

9 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Switching the Sofa

The dark brown leather sofa was too nice of a piece of furniture to get rid of and the scale was right for the room, but its deep tone gave a dark look to the room as a whole. To brighten up the room but keep the same furniture, the original three seat cushions were swapped for a single lighter-color one. The antique look and the comfort that the couch provided are still present, just in a lighter way that accentuates the other new, bright features of the room.

Designer tip: "Contrast is the way we decorate today," Griffin says. "A mix of finishes and style is the recipe for a beautiful space."

10 of 12

11 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

All-Around Polished

A circular coffee table adds a much-needed round shape to a very rectangular room. The antiquelike table was once dull-looking, but a bit of metal polish did the trick to make the brass table shine, and it coordinates with the new tables on both ends of the couch. The zigzagged edge and patterned tabletop are discreet yet pretty details.

11 of 12

12 of 12

Save Pin FB
Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Video: How to Choose Colors

Watch and learn tips from designer Elaine Griffin about choosing colors -- plus more about this makeover.

12 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 12 Personality Potential
2 of 12 Tucked-Away Space
3 of 12 Finding the Right Color
4 of 12 Bright Spot
5 of 12 Traffic Barrier
6 of 12 Open Access
7 of 12 Set the Mood
8 of 12 Hidden Features
9 of 12 Useful Cubes
10 of 12 Switching the Sofa
11 of 12 All-Around Polished
12 of 12 Video: How to Choose Colors

Share options

Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Login

Shop | Better Homes & Gardens

  • Living Room Furniture
  • Sofas And Couches
  • Accent Chairs
  • Tv Stands
  • Coffee Tables
  • Hall Trees
  • Ottomans
  • Bookcases
  • End Tables
  • Sofa And Console Tables
  • Shop More Next

Better Homes & Gardens may receive compensation when you click through and purchase from links contained on this website.

  • Better Homes & Gardens BHG Logo Products at Walmart
  • Better Homes & Gardens BHG Real Estate Real Estate Services
Better Homes & Gardens

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • About Us
  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Books from Better Homes & Gardens
  • Help
  • Media Kit
  • Content Licensing
  • Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
BH&G is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.bhg.com

View image

Room Makeover: Refreshed and Improved Living Room
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.