SOS I need help decorating my loft style apartment!!
I recently moved into my dream apartment, but I desperately need help decorating. My apartment is a converted mill building with brick, concrete floors, and wooden beams. The ceilings are high and the windows are 12 ft and north facing with river views, which is literally more than I could ever want. But I’m having such a rough time decorating — I think mainly because of how open it is and how high the ceilings are. Please help!!
Comments (17)
User
last yearIt will be helpful to post floor plans, even a rough sketch.
Your TV looks like it's really far away from the couch. What if you put that TV where your gallery wall currently is (arrange your gallery above the TV). Then flip your seating area around to face it -- so the couch is in the middle of the room.
Once that's done, you might need to furnish the space between the couch and stairs. Perhaps a console table behind the couch, or against the wall. Or a long low bookcase with art above. Don't worry about about that part until you settle your current TV layout.
Art for the wall above the staircase is certainly a challenge! My first instinct would be to seek out one single huge piece of artwork. Or three larger pieces in a horizontal row, keeping white space above. You do not need to fill this area.
It looks like you have modern decor, so an unframed print or wall hanging would work fine. No matter what, finding art for that wall could get really expensive, so take some time to really think about it. If you find something you love, come back to Houzz and we can help Photoshop it for you.... to help you decide if you want to actually buy it or not.
Shayna Osborne
last yearI’m already so impressed with your insight — I definitely feel like I came to the right place!
I can see why the tv looks far away… I think it might be because of my phone and trying to fit the stairs in the photo. The living is actually not that big. I’ll attach the building plans with the living room dimensions. Hopefully that helps!!
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I would like help decorating an 80's and 90's studio loft apartment?
Comments (1)it's a very general question..)) can you be a bit more specific? share some pic? tell us a bit more about your style preferences/needs? otherwise would be like me asking "what should I wear to the dinner tomorrow?"-and no one ever saw me, doesn't know my wardrobe, has no idea what is the restaurant and where, and what's the occasion and what's the weather and who will be there besides me.....See MoreHelp with narrow bedroom in loft style apartment
Comments (3)The best you can do is to center the bed on its wall. I assume the door on the left goes to a walk-through closet to the bath so I would try the dresser there. Use some matching bedside tables that arrive at mattress height and with a lamp, the overall measurement should be 58-64" above the floor. As for the big blank wall, try some Indian shops for a bolt of exotic fabric to compliment your bedding. You can hang it on the wall. If it is cheap and long enough you might buy the whole bolt and actually drape it over the wall to hang in both rooms. You could opt for fabric behind the bed instead, if you find something else to hang on the big wall. Fabric will help with sound issues since you have a lot of hard surfaces. Consider anchoring the bed with an area rug slipped under the bottom 1/3 of it. Its more trouble, but have you considered painting the bed in a color from the spread or in a charcoal or black like the windows/floor? The white is kind of bland with your spread and if you go to more exotic fabrics the bed will need some spice to hold its own....See MoreSmall NYC apartment - Need Decor Help
Comments (23)I agree with Flo. NYC apartments are usually space challenged, and yours seems true to form. I’m trying to figure out the relationship between couch and desk and hall. Your art over the sofa should cover 2/3 - 3/4 the sofa width and hang 5 - 8 inches above. I’d do a square or portrait format canvas or print over the desk. If you want a bit of bling there, try Great Big Canvas’s metallic art: https://www.greatbigcanvas.com/category/art-by-color/metallic-wall-art/gold/?pagesize=90...See MoreI need help in my loft space.
Comments (26)Hello Nicole, You have so many wonderful suggestions to choose from. The IKEA one is right on. They are Scandinavian indeed. A blank canvas can be daunting but also a lot of fun because you can do anything you like. Here are our questions: How many people will be using the room daily? How many guests will you want to accommodate? Can you give us measurements of the room? You can just draw them out on a piece of paper and post it. That usually works. Can we have pictures of the room with you back to the fake fireplace? Can the fake fireplace be moved to the wall across from the windows? Best Wishes, MAE Day Designs...See More
Denise Marchand
last yearUser
last yearlast modified: last yearBTW, I forgot to mention that this is such a gorgeous space. Congratulations!
I see that you do need to keep the TV on that wall. I'd move the tall plant to the right, and hang a single large piece. It doesn't need to fill the whole wall. As I mentioned before, don't be afraid of white space. I think a portrait orientation (not landscape) will work best -- to help fill vertical space while not running into that control panel to the right. (What is that red rectangle? can it be covered up?)
This site has huge posters for a reasonable price. If anything, it could help tide you over until you find just the right thing later. If you loved the poster but decided it looked a little too casual, you could have it framed, or (if budget is a consideration) "frame" it with thin moulding attached directly to the wall.
Their giant posters are 48" wide, not sure if that will actually be wide enough. What is the approximate measurement shown below? I think a good size will be wider than your TV, but less wide than your TV stand.
One other idea -- are you crafty? And/or do you have a creative friend who can help you out with an abstract mural? You could really fill this space. I'd suggest simple shapes and subtle colors so it doesn't feel overwhelming.This idea is bonkers and would need a ton of planning. And scaffolding. But it would be amazing.
Shayna Osborne thanked UserDenise Marchand
last yearThe best thing about a loft is that you can arrange the furniture layout outside-the-box.
Consider the seating on a slight angle in the far left corner and the TV on the long wall. See the inspiration pics.
Elaborate on the TV cabinet by using paint and art as you will see on the TV pic. The painted black stripe should go from the ceiling to floor.
Any window curtains should also be ceiling to floor and a open weave fabric would add texture.
Consider painting the stair wall a color. It will visually open the room so that your focus is taken off the stair. I have seen this done extremely successful in rooms much narrower than yours. See pics. (We're going for the cover of a magazine here!)
I know lots of people on here don't care for banquettes, but I love them. You benefit having additional seating and can create a MCM vignette across from the kitchen. Also cabinet/bookcase storage on either side of the bench.
The last suggestion is a 36"wide bench with art or a mirror above at the entrance.
Shayna Osborne thanked Denise MarchandA Maj
last yearUser
last yearMy tv stand is only 60", so 48" would be okay?
Yes, I believe 48" wide would work great! To give you a better idea, choose poster you think you might want to buy, and then mock up that size with some newspaper and tape. Hang it up and see if you like that size.
Do you have any advice on how to divide the space between my living room and my entry table? It feels awkward and bare :(
Can you give us a better photo of that whole area? One idea off the bat -- get rid of the entry table and replace it with a "hall tree"-- tucked closer to your door. For the space between the entry and living room, that can be designated as the dining area.
Or if a hall tree clutters that spot too much, hang some wall hooks and a shallow shelf above for keys and stuff. (you could use a "picture ledge" which won't stick out far.)Or use a low profile cabinet to help organize. These cabinets can hold shoes, hats, etc.
Ikea:
Also Ikea (this person swapped out the knobs). Or google "narrow shoe cabinet" for tons of other brands/styles.
If your hall is long enough, you can install two side-by side and "join" them together with one long plank of wood:
Denise Marchand
last yearShayna, this is a desk area done for a client under a stair similar to yours. If you don't need a desk, what is your passion? Mine is bar/drinking/entertaining, os a fitted bart would be my jam.
It was important to have the bookcase/storage to be a color so that it's not a dark hole. A unique little desk, like a small vintage dressing table (craigslist) or some small round table. The storage and drawers will be in the bookcase. Note the mirrored back in the bookcase to open the space.
Denise Marchand
last yearDenise Marchand
last yearDenise Marchand
last yearShayna Osborne
last yearThank you all, I’m going to upload more accurate plans and some more photos of the space here.
Shayna Osborne
last year
Shayna OsborneOriginal Author