Center the rug with the fireplace. Take the bookcase out of the left corner of the room and put that in the space between the kitchen and FR, where the console table now sits. Move the sectional down toward the fireplace, (after centering the rug), add an end table to the outside of the chaise part of the sectional. Someone sitting there wonâÂÂt want to move to get a drink off the coffee table. Be sure there is a lamp there as well, to light that corner of the room. Move the armoire to angle in the corner where the sectional was sitting originally. Use it for storage, perhaps add shelving or even a pull-out shelf for a computer center which can be closed up and put away. The piece is very nice, and gives good height to balance the fireplace and high ceilings. For now, try the console on the wall to the right of the fireplace, and place the new flatscreen on that. Later you may prefer a more substanial cabinet, which can hide other components and store DVDs, etc. If you do that, then try the console table behind the part of the sectional that has its back to the kitchen. Add a comfy upholstered chair in the corner, a bit closer to the fireplace, where the armoire was, along with another small side table and lamp.

I see a few things that aren’t horrible, by any means, but could be changed. Mirror and sideboard, for instance, as mirror is too large for the sideboard and it overwhelms the room, reflecting the t v. Try the art over the sideboard and add a floor lamp where the plant is, as it will do double duty for the sofa and the art. Have you ever thought about adding a floor to ceiling strip of trim to separate the dining area from the living area and painting that wall a color? Something like this with a couple of white shelves on that wall?

https://www.houzz.com/products/query/drum-side-table/nqrwns Here are lots of drum side tables. The rug should be big enough to slip under the front 1/3 - 1/2 of the sectional and extend past the right and left ends of it by a foot or more. Use blue painter's tape on the floor to tape that out, then measure and buy a rug in the closest size to what your taped rug measures.

Is the wall color as gold as it appears in the photos? I can't tell how much is actual color, how much is lighting, and how much is photography, but the whole room seems very yellow/gold. It looks like there is a covered porch or patio outside that limits the natural light, so I would be looking to increase the amount of artificial light, and probably increase the color temperature of the lamps as well (up to 4000 K). Does your sister just want a change or is she specifically looking at what's currently "in" and thinking, "I want that"? If the latter, I'd probably be looking at paint color (grays may or may not be going out, but I don't think golds a poised to come back in for a while. Maybe a greige, or white, or blue). Changing the light fixture would also be a relatively easy update. A new window shade could add some color and pattern. If she's not as concerned about trends, I might focus more on artwork and the arrangement of the plants. I like the plants, but evenly spacing the pots looks a bit uninspired. Decorators like grouping odd numbers of objects (so 3 or 5 rather than 2 or 4). She could change out some of the pots so that they look more cohesive (this would be a way to introduce a new color if she wants).