15 Living Room Decorating Styles to Consider for a Makeover Plus 5 You Should Totally Avoid
Ready to give your living room a fresh new look? Choosing the right decorating style can transform your space from boring to breathtaking.
Whether you love clean lines or cozy vibes, the perfect style is waiting for you. Let’s explore 15 amazing options to inspire your next makeover—and 5 outdated trends you should definitely skip!
1. Mid-Century Modern
Clean lines and organic curves blend perfectly in this timeless style from the 1950s-60s.
Walnut wood, geometric patterns, and statement lighting create spaces that feel both vintage and current. Iconic pieces like Eames chairs or sputnik chandeliers instantly elevate any room without feeling stuffy.
2. Japandi
Marrying Japanese minimalism with Scandinavian coziness creates pure magic in living spaces.
Natural materials like light woods, neutral colors, and thoughtful organization foster a sense of calm. Functional beauty shines through uncluttered spaces where each carefully chosen piece serves both purpose and aesthetic pleasure.
3. Modern Farmhouse
Shiplap walls, reclaimed wood, and industrial accents create spaces that feel both fresh and lived-in. Adding vintage finds alongside contemporary pieces strikes the perfect balance between rustic comfort and clean sophistication that makes everyone feel right at home.
4. Eclectic Boho
Layered rugs, macramé hangings, and an abundance of plants create spaces bursting with personality and warmth. Rules take a backseat while personal treasures collected from travels or handed down through generations become the stars of this joyfully unconventional style.
5. Coastal Grandmother
Imagine Nancy Meyers movie interiors with their effortless elegance and you’ve captured this trending style.
Breezy linen sofas, blue-and-white ceramics, and natural fiber rugs create spaces that feel like a permanent vacation. Fresh flowers and bowls of citrus add pops of sunshine to rooms designed for comfortable sophistication without trying too hard.
6. Parisian Apartment
Ornate moldings frame walls where contemporary art hangs alongside vintage mirrors in this sophisticated style.
Herringbone floors, velvet upholstery, and crystal chandeliers create spaces that balance historic charm with modern sensibilities. Carefully curated vignettes featuring books and personal treasures add warmth to rooms that feel both grand and intimate.
7. Desert Minimalism
Sun-baked earth tones create a grounding palette in this serene, nature-inspired style.
Organic shapes, textural elements, and statement plants like cacti bring the outdoors in. Low-profile furniture with clean lines allows architectural features to shine while creating spaces that feel both contemporary and connected to ancient landscapes.
8. Industrial Loft
Exposed brick, metal fixtures, and reclaimed wood create authentically rugged backdrops for living. Softening these hard edges with leather sofas, vintage rugs, and warm lighting transforms formerly commercial spaces into surprisingly cozy homes with undeniable character.
9. New Traditional
Wing chairs, skirted sofas, and antique wood pieces mix with bold wallpapers and contemporary art. Balancing formality with comfort, this style embraces traditional elements while avoiding the stuffiness that made grandma’s formal living room feel off-limits.
10. Organic Modern
Unfinished woods, stone surfaces, and handcrafted ceramics bring tactile pleasure to minimalist rooms. Curved furniture with sculptural qualities adds visual interest while maintaining the clean, uncluttered aesthetic that makes this style feel like a spa-like retreat.
11. Art Deco Revival
Velvet upholstery, brass accents, and mirrored surfaces create luxurious spaces with undeniable drama. Symmetrical arrangements and strong architectural elements like stepped forms or sunburst patterns add structure to rooms designed for sophisticated entertaining.
12. Scandinavian Simplicity
Blond woods, textural neutrals, and pops of black create contrast without overwhelming the senses. Functionality drives design choices while sheepskin throws and candles add hygge warmth to spaces that masterfully balance practicality with understated beauty.
13. Vintage Maximalism
Gallery walls, collected treasures, and statement furniture create spaces bursting with personality and stories. Nothing matches perfectly, yet everything works together in harmonious chaos where more truly becomes more for those who embrace living surrounded by things they love.
14. Rustic Cabin Chic
Stone fireplaces, plaid textiles, and leather furniture invite relaxation after outdoor adventures. Antler accents, wool blankets, and vintage snowshoes add authentic mountain character to rooms that feel like permanent vacation retreats regardless of actual geography.
15. Urban Contemporary
Sleek surfaces meet architectural lighting in this sophisticated city-inspired style.
Low-profile furniture, monochromatic color schemes, and statement art create spaces with gallery-like precision. Technology integrates seamlessly into rooms designed for modern living where form follows function without sacrificing visual impact or comfort.
16. Overly Matchy-Matchy Sets
Identical wood finishes, perfectly coordinated fabric patterns, and matching coffee table books signal a lack of personality. Avoiding this mistake saves your space from feeling like a furniture catalog while allowing authentic style to emerge through thoughtfully collected pieces.
17. Faux Tuscan Overload
Heavy wrought iron, grape and olive motifs, and excessive dark wood create gloomy spaces. Skipping this Mediterranean-inspired nightmare saves rooms from feeling like chain Italian restaurants while opening possibilities for authentic warmth through cleaner design choices.
18. 90s Burgundy and Hunter Green
Dark color schemes paired with gold accents and heavy window treatments create depressingly dated spaces. Moving beyond this time capsule opens rooms to fresher color combinations that won’t immediately reveal when your last renovation occurred.
19. Plastic Futurism
Molded plastic furniture, LED strip lighting in every crevice, and glossy white surfaces feel more like sterile waiting rooms than homes. Avoiding this cold approach saves living areas from feeling like budget sci-fi movie sets while allowing genuine contemporary style to shine.
20. Beige-on-Beige Bland
Matched beige walls, carpets, and furniture blend into a sea of blandness nobody remembers. Escaping this design purgatory allows texture, contrast, and thoughtful color to create rooms worth coming home to instead of spaces that disappear into forgettable backgrounds.
