Hmmm. Not a question that is really answerable in a nutshell, but I’ll nibble.

I assume that’s your wood flooring in boxes.

Draw your room with all the windows, doors etc & how it relates to other rooms and traffic patterns.

List the functions of the room which will drive seating, lighting, storage, need for multiple areas.

Identify where TV goes & hence some idea of location of TV - viewing furniture.
But presumably you designed the room with all that in mind. Plus dog bed?

Do you already have furniture ? Because $15k would get eaten up by that.
Or look into consignment stores furniture for some of the pieces.
With dog and cats, you may not want a rug, or not a big room sized one.

If you have upholstered pieces you plan to use, draw or use cutouts on your floorplan to see how they’d fit & what else you might want.

Do you have a lighting plan? That must be interwoven with the seating arrangements , TV zone, reading corner and such. So that could be a chunk of $$ ( for me, not being DIY).

Color scheme should be what YOU like. If that’s your flooring there, it will certainly drive your colors.
So, if you have furniture already and flooring, you can play with paint samples/Samplize.
If you need to buy major seating pieces for 7 people, then it’s your choice within your room dimensions re: a sectional or 2 sofas plus chairs and so on.
If you’re buy ready- made, your color choices are limited once you get focused on actual pieces, but I’d first be thinking “ warm vs cool”, also baed on flooring and my preferences. If you buy pieces from stores that offer custom upholstery choices, you have more options.

So ideally your wall paint is last, since choice is extensive, including whites. Or if it’s already painted white, then see what kind of white re: other colors.

Of course ther are drapes, end tables, coffe table/ ottoman and so on but these are available in lots of styles and high- end vs inventive/ make- do/ thrift store so less likely to be your big- ticket function/ comfort items.

There’s also possible storage for games and books but no information on tgat.

Thanks for the in depth answer:)

I like Studio McGee design

I would start with a rug i loved and go from there - Facebook marketplace can be great for furniture if you’re patient

I would first get a sitting furniture, the décor around it. May be sectional or even couple ones would work better than sofas and chairs.

Some visual

A scaled drawing of the space comes first, ( every wall, window doorway etc. in feet, inches. The first thing considered on that plan is the best configuration of seating. Cats ? Not the issue except for hair and scratching.

You do not buy without a plan, you do not buy all at once. The goal is not to cram as much stuff into 15k as possible.

The goal is to make a comfortable room in your style, which YOU must determine by looking at rooms that appeal to you!

As it stands? Your question is a buggy in front of a horse : )

Do the drawing and the measuring..NEATLY and post in a jpeg. Include all openings, passages and where they lead.

It's not all up for grabs. What is that flooring that is obviously already chosen? Much could depend on it. Don't ask us to help design a room when the #1 thing EVERYONE says is no TV over fireplace... As far a seating goes 7 ok but what sort of 7? Do you all enjoy piling on a sectional all cozy and on top of each other or do you need your own space and would prefer a passel of individual chairs??????

(Love the photo bomb by your dog! S/he seems to be pondering the style of your room, too!)

Thank you, everyone for your help! I will do a rendering with measurements and re-post. I know I need it to be my own style. I love to pick out individual things, but I’m not as good at putting them together. People on here seem to enjoy doing that. Posting and responding is completely optional and I appreciate everyone’s input.

A click on your profile, " Designer and decorator"

What do you do for your CLIENT when faced with an empty room?

No photos, no projects. Just started out? Then SAY that: ) and make yours a project you can post in a year.

How many pieces of furniture are you hoping to buy for that money?

If this was my main living space I would use my old furniture for a while, till I could save up for quality upholstered pieces, because unfortunately that $15K won't go far these days if you want truly durable pieces.

We bought a large sectional from Century 13 years ago and it was $10K back then. We got rid of it recently because the size didn't work in our new house, but it had been used daily for 12 years, with kids and dogs on it and the seat and back cushions were still in excellent condition.

You need to take into account price, quality/durability and value when selecting furniture that will be used daily by a family. For a family I would also want the upholstery to be rated Performance or Indoor/Outdoor.

I would do a dark coloured fireplace section so tie tv is less visible and blends a bit more. We also have a tv over fireplace and love it. I think it is something you can absolutely design with this in mind and of course get help here for that. Knowing the size of your family I would say you need to really think about seating and comfort of your family when watching tv and relaxing. For us we have a sectional with chaise and two chairs. This seats us in plus more as a family of five. However if I were to have 7 every day I would want more seating. This is our inspiration pic.

Like this 😂

@janmoyer. The pro thing was just some promotion I added on. I’m not a designer. I’m just a regular person with a full life that didn’t have time to change my Houzz profile in awhile. But I do appreciate your participation

If I had 15K, it would be all crumpled after I rolled around in it for a while. :)

@ Dunder LLC

Truly, no offense to you for getting whatever deal or promotion, and fine to be a "regular person" in need of help!

But for the actual Pros? Let's just say that tells us quite a lot about Houzz. Or should I say Hou$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Wall paper may be appropriate.

Which of these items does $15k need to cover?

Rugs

Seating for 7 (do you need more in case you have guests?)

Coffee / side / end tables

Floor lamps

Table lamps

Case goods for storage

Window treatments

Wall art

Floor plants / containers

Is the room open to any other rooms and what are the colors in those rooms? What color do you want the walls or are you asking for advice on that as well? What are some words you use to describe your tastes and likes?

Thes answers are killing me. Better than a tik tok comments section😂

Remove the PRO. It really does not go well with your dilemma.

15 k covers everything. I know it’s not a lot in the design world but for us it is.
Hardwoods are gunstock maple. The rest of the house already had it so we continued it through.
Wall color is a very light grey. Cool tones. Yes the floor has orangish tones, and the wall is a cool tone, not ideal but I’m not a beige person. I’d be an off white person but I can’t keep a cup of coffee off my shirt and my kids are equally dropsy. So I need something that hides stains better than a white.
We have a grey/navy tweed couch and two navy mid century modern reclining leather chairs. Love those two looks. No clue what coffee tables and end tables to buy.
Also we need another couch. I liked the feel of the York deep couch at pottery barn. Don’t know which fabric to choose or if that cut would work for this space. Would love a chaise-loveseat- chaise combo, but don’t know if that would look weird with 2 chairs and a traditional couch.

No big rugs for now. Old cats. Young dog. Rugs have a VERY short lifespan for us. Maybe when we become pet free…….

Style? Memorable. I don’t want a room that looks like every other living room.
Not a farmhouse fan. Love art. The louvre, MOMA, neoclassical, baroque. I love the baroque paintings with people blowing bubble gum. Elegant but with a sense of humor.
My ideal house would be a neoclassical American revival with classic lines ( brick, wainscoting, high ceilings, trim, enormous fireplace) and yellow or magenta couches with a sculptural chair or two.

Not boho. Not so much pattern and “stuff” but yes to a mix of classic and color. Fun.

Room size is 32x23. Fireplace on left is 8 feet wide and 2 feet bumped out from wall. Fireplace is 10 feet from big bank of windows at the back of the room.

You all rock. Thank you for taking the time to write anything at all and thanks for the jokes:)
Pics are color of hardwood and the entrance to the room, plastic wall for painting.

For reference I like these styles :

And these: