Help with my home

[Thompson89]

Hi,
I am looking for some help with my home, mainly my living room. I moved into my home with my young daughter a year ago, long story short but change of circumstances meant this was the only home we could accept. Whilst I should feel grateful, and I am, the living room really bothers me. It has a bizarre shape and 2 doors, no matter how I arrange the furniture I can’t seem to get it to feel right. I don’t have a lot of spare money so I’m wondering if anyone has any ideas on layout/how I can improve the feel of it. Currently my sofa sits in the alcove which I don’t really like. However if I move it to the bay window that somehow doesn’t feel right either? 😩

Could you have the sofa opposite the fireplace? And get the tv mounted on the wall above the fireplace?

I think the layout is fine, your colours are improve-able though.

Too much grey (too safe! Experiment with warm colours in small amounts)
Break your space into smaller patches. So your sofa and TV as one zone, bay window as another and entrance another again, then tackle each one as an individual to improve.

I think, though it may just be the photo, your grey has blue tones in it, which are cold. If you really want all grey walls try a warmer shade of grey. Introduce colours with throws or smaller rugs, plants and lamps. Or you could add a warmer colour paint jn just the bay window.

Ignore stuff that says accent walls are out. It might work really well in your room which has so many zones.

If you have a library card you can use Borrowbox for free and access every interior magazine you could want. You'll find inspiration there, try out ideas and be adventurous with colour. Lots of colour is easier than a restrained approach.

I assume it is rented? It is a beautiful home and looks really cosy and welcoming.
The issue it the weird boxy door thing. I like the one where the sofa is in the nook next to the door.
Maybe another sofa on the wall opposite the fireplace would balance it out?

The windows need curtains to soften the look and make it less office like. Full length ones , even if you don't close them, look luxurious
You need an accent colour. Designers usually work on 60% main colour, 30% second colour, 10% accent colour. I actually quite like the pink colour of the balloon as an accent. Another trick they use is to repeat colours from adjoining rooms.

It’s a tricky layout and I think you’ve probably done the best you can. But it needs colour! Agree with other posters, get some curtains which can be cheap seeing how you have blinds as well, and some new cushions. I’d put a bold print on the curtains and bring some real warmth in, maybe keep an eye out for a rug that matches the colour scheme too.

This is what I was thinking
does the sofa go over the door? Do you use both doors ?

I'd change the light shade. Looks cheap, do not like seeing the light bulb and that style does not give good light anywhere esp. living room.

Also, lower your pictures, clock etc, when you redecorate, they are too high.

It's a lovely room and looks comfortable.

Don't put TV on wall above fireplace,it's a horrible look.
A mirror above fireplace is a good idea

Sofa facing fireplace and TV to one side of fireplace,
Add some colour either to furnishings or the walls.
Some soft table lamps - stop using central light as it's too stark.

It is a nice room, and you have nice furniture. I agree with others that you could warm it up and make it cosier with lights on side tables and walls (you can get rechargeable wall lights and plug in ones if chasing out plaster isn't what you want to be doing right now - Lampsy has a wide range, and good price points). Add colour and pattern with cushions and blankets on the furniture. (Anyone who might want to give you something like this for Christmas?) THe TV on the table is the right height for viewing from the sofas, and I wouldn't hang it above the fireplace. Hang pictures, etc, lower down. (I think galleries usually do mid point about 150 cm above ground, but you can google this and check!)

The window is pretty, but needs warming up. Can you add curtains? - like, generous ones, with the rail close to the ceiling, and curtains down to the floor. Interior designers sometimes suggest using inexpensive, quite light weight, ready made ones (IKEA, Dunelm, H&M) and doubling up (two pairs either side) so you get lots of volume.

I"d slide the rug underneath the sofa, so they're more of a piece and you don't have a 'rug island'. The fireplace is really nice, and if you use it as a decorative shelf (lots of ideas on Instagram/Pinterest) with layers of pictures, postcards, vases, trinkets, candlesticks, whatever, you add interest to the wall for very little money.

When Christmas is over, and you move the tree, don't put the side tables back in the middle of the bay - they're nicer distributed around the room as side tables next to seating where they're more useful.

i think your home looks lovely.

what does the door in the room lead to? (one goes to/from the hallway, what about the second one?) Can it be boarded up? If so, put the TV there. Then place a sofa in the bay area, and another opposite it. Add a nice mirror over the fireplace. Use one or both alcoves as bookshelves and extra storage area. hope that helps.

You don’t have to use both doors. Completely up to you

Just as well we're all different.

i love the colours & id hate your suggestion. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Can you turn the sofa round 90° so it’s across the room? Having every piece of furniture against a wall gives the feeling of it being like a waiting room rather than a cosy living room

It's hard to tell how big the room is. But I think try leaving the door, walkway area out of your seating area. So gather seating more around the fire place and add a slim consol table on the wall next to the door on the wall where you come in. It's not a balanced space so you need to zone it.

Thanks all there are some amazing suggestions here. I do have to use both doors at the moment as one comes from the front door into the living room and the other one leads to the hallway. I’m not sold on blocking a door as then we’d have to go out of the back door to come in and out. I will try the sofa opposite the fireplace and maybe put a slim console table behind it as always felt it looked odd with a gap behind it (which I need to be able to open the door). Does anyone have any suggestions to a light shade as the light really bothers me but I can’t afford to change the fitting so needs to be a shade? Also with regards to curtains I really want them but I can’t afford a bay window curtain pole, my brother in law fitted a pole straight across but I took it down as I felt it looked silly going across and not angled into the bay 😩 I’m a bit fussy I think. I do quite like grey but think I’ve gone overboard with the grey, any suggestions to complimenting colours with cushions etc? X

Also, should I ditch the slightly darker wall? I’ve been on the fence since I did it?

Curtain track might be cheaper and although not perfect could look nice until you can afford a bay window pole? Or you might find a second hand one that you can modify on eBay?

Your bay window looks beautiful but I know what you mean about it being hard to get curtains to fit properly across bay windows. Some people have shutters which could be an idea when you have a bit more money? (I expect they’re expensive). In the meantime, I think they look fine as they are.

We had a lovely bay window in our living room in a previous house and went to great expense to get it professionally measured and curtains fitted by John Lewis, with a special bay window pole. Tbh it was still a pain to draw the curtains across the track so in the end we left them open all the time.

It's like a school dance, with all the furniture hugging the walls hoping not to be noticed.

I'd get a bit of colour in there, with the furnishings and on the walls. Grey-on-grey is very bland and soul-less.

Does this look better? Excuse the mess it was my daughter’s birthday recently. Is it okay with the door behind sofa? Doesn’t leave much room to come through?

I think it looks better but move the sofa half way down the bay window or where the window starts back level with the start of the window. A larger lamp shade ,just a simple design ,warmer colour. Rug across the other way. The splashes of pink in the photo shows how another colour will add warmth.

I think that rug brings the atmosphere down a bit, it’s so dark. I hear you about the difficulty of finding poles, I tend to hunt for them on eBay or gumtree as they can be so expensive to buy new.

Thanks I agree about the rug, I’ve had a hard time finding one I like as the shape of the room I always felt anything I tried looked silly. I have returned quite a few in the hunt for one I liked, any suggestions to what would go? And will keep my eyes open for the poles

Anything with a bit of colour, as a PP pointed out the splashes of colour from DCs birthday lifted the room. You could look on gumtree eBay but be careful re moths if it’s wool, cotton might be better. Maybe with pinks/ lime green/ light blue etc in it. Any colour that is bright and “ speaks to you”!

Thanks a lot I’ll keep my eyes open. Do you think the size is okay? I had a smaller one before but that felt too small but sometimes I think this one might be too big. Or maybe it’s just as it’s so dark that it makes it stand out more.