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Home Decorating Design Dilemma living room

New Living Room Ideas

2 years ago

My wife and I just purchased a beautiful new home and we are trying to come up with a design plan for the living room. There is a gas fireplace in the center of the room, so the first inclination is to mount the flat-screen TV directly above the mantle. However, we are just not crazy about the whole TV above the fireplace look.

One thought is to put the TV on a stand directly across from the fireplace against the wall and then have two matching sofas with a coffee table in between the fireplace and TV - see the diagram below.

Any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated!

Proposed idea:

(This isn't an exact diagram of the room, but you can get an idea of what I'm talking about as far as the TV and sofa placement goes)

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Comments (5)

PRO
User
2 years ago
Beautiful home!

I was going to suggest the very thing you showed in your diagram. Another variation to your diagram would be one couch and two accent chairs (on the side near your stairs) to help the room feel more open. Honestly, either works great.
T J thanked User
stiley
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I like your plan too. Is there space to put a swivel chair on either side of your fireplace, in addition to your pair of sofas? With your layout above, you'll have to lie down on the sofas to have a straight-on view of the TV, or else sit on sofa and turn your head. But if you also have the swivel chair, that's a second seating option and could view the TV or the fireplace. You could also replace one sofa with a pair of swivel chairs, but I love the symmetry created by the two sofas. Also, I would mount the TV to the wall and have a slim console table below to anchor it. No TV on a stand. Congrats on your new home!
T J thanked stiley
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Measure out your space to see how much usable space you will have for the furnishings. A sectional might or might not be a good option for you. As you shop gather dimensions of pieces you like then use tape and place it on the floor so you can see how it will look space wise. As mentioned above pick your focal point. Your fireplace is so nice it seems that you should work around that.
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Some really great advice here. First though, congrats on your charming home purchase. So much potential! I like traditional, but a more eclectic mix. I subscribe to Traditional Home Mag for inspiration. Take a look at their website too. You both may like it. Also, please use your existing furniture and buy what you both like a piece at a time. You don’t have to have it completely furnished right away, take your time and buy what you love Decide on colors for the walls, then rug colors. I like the rugs and couches previously posted, take time to find what style you both like. I tend to pick neutral furniture and accessorize with colorful pillows, artwork and accessories as those are easy to change if you want to switch things up.
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Congratulations! Are you ok with the white or were you looking to change the colors? Personally, I like the style! I would buy a couple of accent chairs to go opposite the sectional. You could use them to add a bright color if you'd like, or you could keep them relatively neutral like a brown or gray. A rug would help pull the space together and you can also use that as an opportunity to add color. A quick and easy change is to switch out the blinds. Something not very obtrusive like shades would look nice. Good luck!
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have you thought about demoing out the raised portion? and just having a step down from the dining room instead, this would then allow you to put a sofa table and maybe a book case back there and just have it as a traffic path.
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Snaggy
2 years ago
I had the same set up as your diagram ..it's ok if you sit longways on the settee ..what about the TV in the corner by the stars have the settee in an L shape ?
T J thanked Snaggy
decoenthusiaste
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I assume those are MLS pix which are a bit stretched for real estate presentation and the blank wall between the windows is centered with the FP. What is the actual size of the room? While two sofas always look nice, their positioning never seems logical if this is the family's only TV room. No one wants a crick in their neck from turning their head to watch TV. How many of you will be watching TV here daily/nightly? Consider a 4-6 chair grouping around a hassock or coffee table so everyone can turn to TV or FP. Another option is the famously flexible 3-seat sofa and two chairs, all around a coffee table that is centered on the FP.
T J thanked decoenthusiaste
T J
Original Author
2 years ago
@decoenthusiaste, yes those are MLS pix. We will be visiting the house this weekend to take another look at the room and get some measurements to see what makes sense.

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