Lifestyle
Five tricks to elevate your living room
Need to give your living room a bit of a zhoosh before the festive season, but don’t know what to do to give it that edge?
![ElanaWagner-08-11-2022-Home-LivingRoom.2](https://images.caxton.co.za/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2022/11/elanawagner-08-11-2022-home-livingroom-2-780x470.jpg)
Make your living room an envy-worthy space with these five fab tricks from Teljoy to help you take the space to the next level and get that styled look – no interior decorator needed.
- Choose furniture that suits the room
What happens in the living room? Do you have a home office nook or a homework corner for the kids? Is it a chill zone or a playroom or both? Whatever functions your living room has, make sure the furniture in the room actually fulfills the needs and uses of the space. If there is any furniture you don’t use or enjoy, remove or replace it. Also, remember that big furniture in a small space can look cluttered and overpowering, while small furnishings in a big space can feel empty and out of place. - Work wisely with colours
Darker colours on the walls tend to make a space feel smaller, so save these for large, spacious living rooms. Lighter colours, on the other hand, help to make a room feel bigger. Be careful when choosing a dark colour, as it can make you feel claustrophobic or uncomfortable. A good option is to create a feature wall with a dark or bright colour instead of painting all the walls. - Colour your mood
Create colour zones, if your living room is a multi-use space. Green helps with concentration and productivity, so this is the ideal colour for an office or homework corner. Blue is said to create a sense of calm and peace. For a sleek, sophisticated look, opt for a monochrome feel of black and white. Or keep the walls neutral and add pops of colour into the room with scatter cushions and accessories. | - Light it up
Lighting can make or break a room, so take your time to choose the right type of lighting in order to create the perfect ambiance. If you want to make the room feel bigger, let the light reflect off a light-coloured wall. Create little comfy nooks and welcoming areas by putting a little reading light on a small coffee table next to an armchair. A floor lamp gives purpose to unused ‘real estate’ in your living room. Light up a dark corner and ‘lift’ the light factor in the room. - Step up your social space
While you want the living room to be warm, friendly and inviting, you don’t want it to look cluttered and messy. Opt for a universal remote to prevent having various remotes lying around. Hide cables with neat trunking or a cable management box. Set a background slide show on your TV screen and enjoy your family photos instead of having an ugly, black screen on display when you’re not watching anything.