Karen's Living Room- Finishing off the Space

Hi Christine,
I have a newly painted living room with new couches. I am aware that the current carpet is not a good match and plan to replace it soon. However, I am afraid that it all will all appear too boring! I have arranged the furniture the only way I see possible with such a big piano. And for some reason can't put my finger on what is missing in this room. It just seems to be lacking something, even with the new walls and couches. Any suggestions?

Even though I do not like the current carpet with the new couches, and love this new color with them, I am nervous about creating an uninteresting room.Do you think there is something more I can do? And what do you think of the carpet color with my scheme? Or maybe it is just my wall decor that is lacking??Thank you so much for your expert opinion. I am completely stumped .

Karen

Hi Karen,
You are off to a good start- you are just further from finishing than I think you think you are. ;)

1. 
   Lighting Plan. Where is it? In your living room I see one lamp and one candle- and something on the ceiling- but I can’t tell what it is. You need a plan. A room without light and shadow is unfinished. This is an integral part of a design plan. Check out this post for specifics on how to do that.
2. 
   Texture. You need more textual variety in the room. In my later suggestions- look for items high in texture.
3. 
   Plants. You need some greenery. Real or fake.
4. 
   Fabric at your windows. Because of your built-in you will want to do Roman shades. Anytime you have a very traditional interior – like yours- you are unfinished without a fabric window treatment. To add texture- you could replace your wood blinds with woven roller shades. But the fabric is a must.
5. 
   Coffee table or ottoman. You are not quite done furnishing. It is hard for me to really see- but I would also consider pushing your sofas closer to the piano- leaving room for an end table on one side- and plant on the other. I don’t like them pushed so close to the built-ins.
6. 
   You have too many single items in your wall décor. You need more variety- not only in subject- but also in number. You have four single items and one set of two. The wrought iron piece should be replaced with a larger set of something- like the set of art in this post from Uttermost. Check out this post on variety in wall decor.
7. In your dining room alcove- you need to overlap. The candles and bird cage should come in a little and overlap the picture a bit. This creates one united collection. What you have now are four things with a picture hung above them. See this post on overlapping.

Your carpet selection is very nice- and your paint and sofas look great!

Comments

[Aly sun]

You are so needed in this world. You have the ability to see the "something missing" when the rest of us are stumped. The variety in wall decor is always such a hard one for me. I like the yellow tone of her walls with the red couches. It is going to be a beautiful room.

[Christine]

Thanks Aly sun- just the ego boost I needed to start my day!

[Jennifer F]

I have a suggestion: What about adding a small table and a lamp next to the loan chair. That chair isn't really part of the conversation group, so it needs a purpose. Make it a reading nook.

[Elizabeth]

Such fascinating suggestions. It's going to look beautiful. I need to evaluate my variety of wall decor.