The Most Popular Living Room Photos of 2015
Sectional sofas, vaulted ceilings and custom built-ins are just some of the features that made a big showing this year
Becky Harris
December 20, 2015
Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe as "collected."
I got into design via Landscape Architecture, which I studied at the University of Virginia.
Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe... More
When I was growing up, we had a formal living room right off the foyer with a white carpet, fancy drapes, a sofa and a crazy brass coffee table that looked like a giant coin. My parents bought it at our neighbor Mr. Park’s import shop. We never spent any time in there — we couldn’t risk spilling tea on the wall-to-wall carpet, and we all preferred the family room’s sectional when we wanted to hang out.
Thank goodness that era is over. Designers are helping their clients design living rooms that have an air of sophistication but are more comfortable, inviting and practical. In many homes making more efficient use of space, there’s one room that serves as a living room-family room hybrid. In open-floor plans, the TV has made its way into some of these rooms, while in others, a closed-off living room serves as the quiet room. It’s all a refreshing relief from the 1980s living room attitude. But I do wish my mom had kept that crazy coffee table; I keep seeing ones just like it in chic spaces like actress Ellen Pompeo’s Hollywood Hills home.
Thank goodness that era is over. Designers are helping their clients design living rooms that have an air of sophistication but are more comfortable, inviting and practical. In many homes making more efficient use of space, there’s one room that serves as a living room-family room hybrid. In open-floor plans, the TV has made its way into some of these rooms, while in others, a closed-off living room serves as the quiet room. It’s all a refreshing relief from the 1980s living room attitude. But I do wish my mom had kept that crazy coffee table; I keep seeing ones just like it in chic spaces like actress Ellen Pompeo’s Hollywood Hills home.
A deep cobalt sofa. Did anyone else notice that this rich jewel tone replaced a sea of neutral sofas this year? Designers used the hue with many different color palettes. Here an antique Oriental rug ties it all together.
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Sofa: Anthropologie; vintage chairs: Hans Wegner; sheep: Hansa; rug: Lawrence of La Brea
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Sofa: Anthropologie; vintage chairs: Hans Wegner; sheep: Hansa; rug: Lawrence of La Brea
Sectional sofas. Traditionally seen in family rooms, sectionals have been popping up in many formerly formal living rooms. With the popularity of open floor plans at an all-time high, a sectional is a great way to define a room meant for sitting and visiting.
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Mosaic lamps, mosaic table top: Helen and Margaret Bruton; sofa-back table frame and metal railing: Jeremy Montgomery IronWorks; artwork: Jeanette Maxfield Lewis, Paul Wunderlich, Pamela Lewis Oles, Armin Hansen, Edward DeWitt Taylor
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Mosaic lamps, mosaic table top: Helen and Margaret Bruton; sofa-back table frame and metal railing: Jeremy Montgomery IronWorks; artwork: Jeanette Maxfield Lewis, Paul Wunderlich, Pamela Lewis Oles, Armin Hansen, Edward DeWitt Taylor
Dark and moody. In many living rooms, especially smaller ones, designers replaced the light and airy feeling seen in the previous photo with a dark and moody one. Going dark can make for scrumptious rooms, and this one is no exception. The white ceiling, fireplace surround and barrel chairs provide wonderful contrast.
Wall color: Hague Blue, Farrow & Ball; chandelier: India Jane
Wall color: Hague Blue, Farrow & Ball; chandelier: India Jane
A vaulted ceiling. These high ceilings offer a host of design opportunities, from large light fixtures that suit the scale to exposed beams, timbers and rafters — or planks that fill in for texture, as seen here.
Wall color: Oxford Stone, Farrow & Ball; sconces: Vaughan; chandelier: Classic Two-Tier Ring Chandelier, Circa Lighting
Wall color: Oxford Stone, Farrow & Ball; sconces: Vaughan; chandelier: Classic Two-Tier Ring Chandelier, Circa Lighting
Customization. In this home on Cape Cod, the designers created the sofa, coffee table and rug to fit the space. Then they tied everything together with a mix of custom pillows in a range of patterns, in an all-American color palette of red, white and blue.
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Sofa: custom design in Romo Linara fabric; coffee table: custom via The Welch Co.; pillows: sewn by Kurmin Kreations; floral pillow fabric: Ralph Lauren; chevron pillow fabric: China Seas; knot pillow fabric: Robert Allen; backgammon board: Jonathan Adler; Aspen chair and ottoman: Schumacher, covered in Brunschwig & Fils fabric
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Sofa: custom design in Romo Linara fabric; coffee table: custom via The Welch Co.; pillows: sewn by Kurmin Kreations; floral pillow fabric: Ralph Lauren; chevron pillow fabric: China Seas; knot pillow fabric: Robert Allen; backgammon board: Jonathan Adler; Aspen chair and ottoman: Schumacher, covered in Brunschwig & Fils fabric
Fun with prints. A bold mix of prints in different patterns and scales enlivened many living rooms. The bold print on the chairs in this Florida home add a more casual feel.
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Curtain fabric: Martyn Lawrence Bullard Design; painting: Stephen Floyd Design;
chairs: Baker; chair upholstery: Zanzibar, Martyn Lawrence Bullard Design
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Curtain fabric: Martyn Lawrence Bullard Design; painting: Stephen Floyd Design;
chairs: Baker; chair upholstery: Zanzibar, Martyn Lawrence Bullard Design
Connecting to the outdoors. In this family-friendly Texas living room, large French doors, windows and transoms, a brick floor and vertical painted poplar boards inspired by the exterior siding create a strong connection to the views and the pergola-covered patio right beyond the doors.
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See more of this home
Built-ins. Custom bookshelves, cabinets and benches played a big role in living room design in 2015. It’s easy to see why — these well-planned units lend a seamless look. Many designers recommended using cabinets on the bottom to ground shelves and provide storage for less sightly items. In this home in Newport Beach, California, the designer added a special touch by wallpapering behind the shelves.
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Blue sofa: Casamance; gray chairs: Lee Industries; rug: Stark Carpet; chandelier: Cisco Home; drapery fabric: Zimmer + Rohde; bookcase wallpaper: Designers Guild; coffee tables: custom, Brooke Wagner
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Blue sofa: Casamance; gray chairs: Lee Industries; rug: Stark Carpet; chandelier: Cisco Home; drapery fabric: Zimmer + Rohde; bookcase wallpaper: Designers Guild; coffee tables: custom, Brooke Wagner
Beautifully arranged shelves. Homeowners mixed in favorite artwork, souvenirs, photos, plants and other beloved objects with their books. This adds interesting shapes, colors and textures to the composition, giving the eye places to settle.
Solving the TV-fireplace conundrum. The TV-over-fireplace remains a love-it-or-hate-it approach on Houzz. In this chic living room, the designer came up with a smart compromise: a fireplace tucked along one wall with a long, thick hearth that extends underneath the television. A mix of dark stone textures keeps the TV from feeling like a black hole.
Rug: Rugs of Distinction (Melbourne, Australia); sofa: custom; surround and hearth: bluestone
Rug: Rugs of Distinction (Melbourne, Australia); sofa: custom; surround and hearth: bluestone
Ditching the drywall. Homeowners looked for alternatives to the usual painted drywall, and designers came up with plenty of beautiful alternatives. Pickled pine walls lend coastal ease to this Gulf Shores, Alabama, beach house.
Rug: Hunters Furniture and Interiors; sofa: Melanie Martin Interiors
Rug: Hunters Furniture and Interiors; sofa: Melanie Martin Interiors
Small spaces. The living room in this London flat is just under 9 feet wide (from the TV to the wall behind the sofa). A well-sized sectional sofa cozies right into the space, leaving plenty of room to pass through. Shelves make the most of the wall space on either side of the chimney.
Wall color: Chic Shadow, Dulux; art over sofa: Guido Bagini; ottoman: made.com; floor lamp: antique with a custom shade in Thibaut fabric; floor: oak finished in Coastal Grey, Natural Wood Floor Co. (London)
Wall color: Chic Shadow, Dulux; art over sofa: Guido Bagini; ottoman: made.com; floor lamp: antique with a custom shade in Thibaut fabric; floor: oak finished in Coastal Grey, Natural Wood Floor Co. (London)
Signs of life. The unofficial most popular houseplant of 2015 was the fiddleleaf fig tree, which brought life to many living rooms. Adding a living thing is a great way to fill an empty corner with color, texture and a beautiful silhouette.
Wall color: Classic Gray by Benjamin Moore; trim color: Simply White by Benjamin Moore; lucite lamp: vintage; sofa: B&B Italia; window treatments: custom, Riitta Herwitz Design Support
Wall color: Classic Gray by Benjamin Moore; trim color: Simply White by Benjamin Moore; lucite lamp: vintage; sofa: B&B Italia; window treatments: custom, Riitta Herwitz Design Support
French doors. This sophisticated style is an apt choice for living rooms, letting in light and creating strong connections to the outdoors. Horizontal panes on the doors lend a more modern look to this transitional room.
Shades of gray. Gray’s popularity continued through 2015. Soft shades like Benjamin Moore’s Stonington Gray (seen here) provided calm on many a living room wall. In this Nantucket home, the gray hues play off the driftwood-like wood on the beam and recede around the shiplap fireplace surround. Meanwhile, pops of baby blue add coastal color.
Spool chairs: Hickory Chair, custom-upholstered in fabric from Beacon Hill; coffee table: custom in Simute Sisal Gray by Stroheim; sofas: Restoration Hardware
Spool chairs: Hickory Chair, custom-upholstered in fabric from Beacon Hill; coffee table: custom in Simute Sisal Gray by Stroheim; sofas: Restoration Hardware
The casual living room. Casual won out over formal in many 2015 living room designs, especially since many of them combined living and family room in one space.
This California Wine Country home gets its ease from rustic stone and beams, while cushy upholstery brings the comfort. A limited color palette adds sophistication, though the fabrics are durable enough to stand up to a napping dog or the damp bathing suits of those coming in from the pool.
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Ottoman: custom, coverd in Kerry Joyce fabric; chandelier: McEwen Lighting; throw pillows: custom, in fabrics by Carolina Irving and Katie Leede
This California Wine Country home gets its ease from rustic stone and beams, while cushy upholstery brings the comfort. A limited color palette adds sophistication, though the fabrics are durable enough to stand up to a napping dog or the damp bathing suits of those coming in from the pool.
See more of this house
Ottoman: custom, coverd in Kerry Joyce fabric; chandelier: McEwen Lighting; throw pillows: custom, in fabrics by Carolina Irving and Katie Leede
A gallery wall. Designers helped homeowners inject their living rooms with personal style via gallery walls. A wide range of art, graphics, photographs and mementos mingled in interesting compositions. Here we see a mix of frames, but for a more formal look, you can tie everything together with matching frames and mats.
Wall color: San Antonio Gray by Benjamin Moore; Moroccan pouf: Ikram Design; table lamp: Jonathan Adler; coffee table: Dunn, Room and Board; bird print: Zinc Details (San Francisco); “Hello” artwork, custom by Heather Jennings, Make + Haus
Wall color: San Antonio Gray by Benjamin Moore; Moroccan pouf: Ikram Design; table lamp: Jonathan Adler; coffee table: Dunn, Room and Board; bird print: Zinc Details (San Francisco); “Hello” artwork, custom by Heather Jennings, Make + Haus
Midcentury modern style. Retro modern design continued to be popular among many Houzzers. Some of the most successful designs mixed old and new. In this Philadelphia living room, a wood stove original to the 1968 home creates a strong focal point. Classic pieces like the Barcelona chair and ottoman, a vintage lamp and casework mix well with a new sofa and rug.
Sofa: Restoration Hardware; Rabbit sculpture: Beau Buck; rug: ABC Carpet & Home
Sofa: Restoration Hardware; Rabbit sculpture: Beau Buck; rug: ABC Carpet & Home
An oversized ottoman. These versatile upholstered pieces serve as footrests, coffee tables and extra seating all rolled into one. They also work surprisingly well in smaller spaces, creating an anchor to place other furniture around.
While many of these pieces are custom-made to fit their spaces, their popularity means more and more were available at retailers in 2015.
While many of these pieces are custom-made to fit their spaces, their popularity means more and more were available at retailers in 2015.
Symmetry. This space is a good lesson in Living Room Layout 101. Two matching sofas flank the fireplace, with two chairs filling in the other side of the rectangular layout. A large coffee table ties it all together.
Lamps: Quatrefoil floor lamps by Suzanne Kasler, Circa Lighting
Do you have a designated formal living room or more of a hybrid? What’s your approach to the room? Did you notice any other living room trends in 2015 that you liked? Please let us know in the Comments.
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Lamps: Quatrefoil floor lamps by Suzanne Kasler, Circa Lighting
Do you have a designated formal living room or more of a hybrid? What’s your approach to the room? Did you notice any other living room trends in 2015 that you liked? Please let us know in the Comments.
More
Browse more living room stories
See more living room photos
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That was my exact thoughts "Caroline Nelson" as I viewed the photos. The problem it seems with designers these days is that the rooms never feel comfortable/inviting/lived in, but 'staged'. This is clearly noted when comparing these rooms to those of average individuals with decor flair. Why would you want to pay someone all that money to create something that is more suited to a magazine spread rather than creating a space that real people live in? Houzz, can we see more homes decorated by real people as these are really more inspirational?
Wow nice interior design. Great article and very helpful. I like the all pictures and ideas. Gallery wall design are awesome thank you Becky Harris .