Must-Haves for my Dream Living Room
For the past several months, my husband and I have been dreaming about building a new house. Now that our plans are finally set and in motion, I can’t stop thinking about how I want to decorate the house! The kitchen and the living room are where we spend most of our time (as I think is the case with most families), so of course those are the rooms I can’t stop obsessing over. From throw pillows to curtains, sofas to coffee tables, below are some of the things that are top of mind for me right now in designing my dream living room.
Sofa
I love sectional sofas. There’s something cozy and inviting about these big pieces of furniture that can bring a family together to enjoy a movie or game night. Since my husband and I bought our first house, we’ve had a sectional and that’s not about to change in our new home. My only complaint about sectionals is that because they’re so big, they often take up a lot of space that could have been used for storage. I mean, what are you supposed to do with your extra throw pillows and blankets? That’s where the sofa below from Home Reserve comes in! Each section of this sofa has built in storage, so you can move the cushion and keep pillows, blankets, board games, etc… stored below! It’s the perfect solution to my dilemma of storage vs. sectional!
Another incredible option for a sectional sofa is this super-glam option from Arhaus. I have never seen a sectional that I could associate with words like “glamorous” or “beautiful,” but this it! I love tufted sofas and ottomans, and this tufted sectional is no exception! In our new house, we’ll have a sitting room, living room, and loft, so I’m sure I can find room to fit this beauty in somewhere! 😉 Arhaus has tons of sectionals that actually fit the definition of “beautiful”.
Chairs
I love how recliners feel when sitting in them, but I hate how they look. So many recliners seem to be overstuffed, large, and bulky, which makes them really difficult to fit into a certain design aesthetic. The recliners I found here from Target though are perfect for what I’m looking for! They’re not too big, not bulky or awkward, and still serve their general purpose, which is of course, to recline! 🙂 I’m not sold on the color of the one I have below, but with 8 different color options, there’s definitely going to be one that fits in with my dream living room style.
Coffee Table
A few years ago I made a tufted ottoman/coffee table and I will likely never go back to a solid-surface coffee table, especially now with a little one running around! While a soft, tufted surface doesn’t always make it easy to rest drinks on if you want to use the ottoman as an actual coffee table, that problem can be easily solved by putting a tray on top of the ottoman to hold drinks and remotes. This tufted ottoman from Wayfair is perfect for my family as my daughter is likely to climb all over it!
TV Stand
While I plan on wall-mounting my TV in the new house, I still want a TV stand or something under the TV so it’s not just kind of floating in space. I also would really love to have a fireplace, but with my allergies and asthma, a wood-burning fireplace never works out for me quite so well. So when I saw this fireplace TV stand from Birch Lane, I knew it had to be mine! This TV stand comes in wood tone and white, which is my preference in the new house.
Curtains
If you’ve never shopped for curtains before at IKEA, you should. I’ve been so pleased with the curtains that I’ve purchased at IKEA, that I plan to purchase the living room curtains for the new house at IKEA as well. They have soft and flowy curtains, as well as room-darkening curtains, so whatever you’re looking for, you’re sure to find them at IKEA for a reasonable cost. At the moment, the ones below are one I could totally see fitting in to my dream space.
Throw Blankets
At any given time, I have no less than 6 throw blankets in my living room. It’s also fair to assume that you’d find at least the same number of throw pillows in my living room as well. When it comes to throw pillows, I actually try to make my own to make sure I can get exactly what I want, and it typically costs much less than if I were to by them somewhere. Throw blankets however, I am always on the lookout for some cute throw blankets I can swap out with the seasons that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. Walmart has actually become the place I go to find a lot of my throw blankets. Their prices are great and they have great options that are always on trend for the season. The cable knit throw below is one that I’ll likely end up with even before we get in to our new house! 🙂
Frames
Until recently, I hadn’t included many picture frames in my decor. There really isn’t a good reason why other than it was so hard to find frames that I really loved. I had bought several frames at the dollar store, Target, HomeGoods and more, but very few of them last more than a few months as they just didn’t fit in with my style. Then I found these from Arhaus. They are exactly what I want! I wanted frames that will fit with any decor and not look out of place. These frames are so unique in that they can be filled with more than pictures, like dried botanical elements, as seen in the image below.
So there you have it, my dream living room! I’m sure in the next few months until the new house is done, I’ll change my mind several times, but for now, these are the items that strike my fancy!
Where are some of your favorite places to shop for home decor and furniture?
