Living room makes the most of the light and space and colours relate to charred black timber cladding

Weather House is a bespoke home for a young, nature-loving family on a quintessentially compact Northcote block. Our clients Claire and Brent cherished the character of their century-old worker's cottage but required more considered space and flexibility in their home. Claire and Brent are camping enthusiasts, and in response their house is a love letter to the outdoors: a rich, durable environment infused with the grounded ambience of being in nature. From the street, the dark cladding of the sensitive rear extension echoes the existing cottage!s roofline, becoming a subtle shadow of the original house in both form and tone. As you move through the home, the double-height extension invites the climate and native landscaping inside at every turn. The light-bathed lounge, dining room and kitchen are anchored around, and seamlessly connected to, a versatile outdoor living area. A double-sided fireplace embedded into the house’s rear wall brings warmth and ambience to the lounge, and inspires a campfire atmosphere in the back yard. Championing tactility and durability, the material palette features polished concrete floors, blackbutt timber joinery and concrete brick walls. Peach and sage tones are employed as accents throughout the lower level, and amplified upstairs where sage forms the tonal base for the moody main bedroom. An adjacent private deck creates an additional tether to the outdoors, and houses planters and trellises that will decorate the home’s exterior with greenery. From the tactile and textured finishes of the interior to the surrounding Australian native garden that you just want to touch, the house encapsulates the feeling of being part of the outdoors; like Claire and Brent are camping at home. It is a tribute to Mother Nature, Weather House’s muse.

Elwood Apartment

Camilla Molders Design

A colorful living room and art wall

Darlinghurst

David Parsons Architect

Southbank Apartment

Jasmine McClelland Design

Contemporary apartment living room with warm neutral furnishings and a gorgeous feature floor lamp.

Bondi Palm Springs Apartment

KCreative Interiors

Palm Springs Vibe with transitional spaces. This project required bespoke open shelving, office nook and extra seating at the existing kitchen island. This relaxed, I never want to leave home because its so fabulous vibe continues out onto the balcony where the homeowners can relax or entertain with the breathtaking Bondi Valley and Ocean view. The joinery is seamless and minimal in design to balance out the Palm Springs fabulousness. All joinery was designed by KCreative Interiors and custom made at Swadlings Timber and Hardware Timber Finish: American Oak

Stretchy Space

Ande Bunbury Architects

Built in storage hides entertainment equipment and incorporates a folded steel stair to a mezzanine storage space in this apartment. Custom designed floating shelves easily allow for a rotating display of the owners art collection. By keeping clutter hidden away this apartment is kept simple and spacious.

Enamour Terrace

Kitty Lee Architecture

College Street Apartment

Honour Creative

The existing apartment is a contemporary build which didn’t require any major changes to the structural layout. However, in order to feel more warm and inviting, the space needed to be uplifted with new flooring, painting, furniture, joinery and the addition of more personal features. Within the existing footprint, thoughtful furniture planning was required in the main living area to create defined spaces that flow and connect well to each other.

Wellington Waterfront Apartment

Hello Home Interiors

The brief was to have a functional kitchen design that is beautiful with clean finishes and lots of additional storage. We designed cabinetry and wine storage on the living room side of the penninsula bench and an overhead cabinet to allow glassware to be accessed from both sides.

CREATING SPACE IN A COMPACT HOME

Creative Space Architecture

This house was designed within a new residential subdivision in Omokoroa. A square site of 400m² and a tight budget presented challenges which required some alternative design solutions. Designed to accommodate a family of five, design emphasis was placed on creating a large, multifunctional family zone on the ground floor. The house is in a basic L-shape configuration which allows for a northfacing lawn. This lets the house recede from the street rather than dominating the section - a rare commodity in new, smaller subdivisions which are now becoming the norm. The upper floor is a total kid zone. With three active boys to accommodate, the entire upper floor is essentially a loft with three bedrooms, a separate bathroom and a wide hallway-breakout space. The loft has been employed due to the requirement for the space but onerous planning restrictions meant that a full two-story house would have meant a total non-compliant solution. Centre-pivot open roof windows provide awesome airflow and light through the entire loft space. This home has a smart but relaxed appearance: geometric forms clad in concrete bricks, board and batten cladding and bandsawn larch weatherboards. It’s compact but spacious and is warm, light filled and homely. This is a new take on modern, suburban living that is a point of difference within a Greenfield subdivision that is otherwise filled with standard volume homes. The loft space frees up the building footprint to be smaller, which creates advantages in the form of improved energy efficiency and creating more usable land on the site. These aspects have been reflected in the recently updated housing CV’s which has this property valued significantly higher then the neighbouring properties all with the same sized sections.

Libertyville Custom Home In Law Suite

Great Rooms Building Group

Casey Dunn

Mid-century modern living room with open plan and floor to ceiling windows for indoor-outdoor ambiance, redwood paneled walls, exposed wood beam ceiling, wood flooring and mid-century modern style furniture, in Berkeley, California. - Photo by Bruce Damonte.

90's Townhome Makeover

1st Impressions Design, LLC

Black and white trim and warm gray walls create transitional style in a small-space living room.

Sudbury Townhouse

Laurie Gorelick Interiors

Hampstead Apartment

Studio Morton

We demolished and re-built the interior of this Victorian apartment in Hampstead for a delightful couple. The kitchen and bathroom were relocated and walls were opened up to flood the apartment with light. Geometric patterns were used throughout with a dark grey feature wall in the living room adding drama. The bespoke, shaker-style kitchen that we designed was painted a complimentary light grey. Photo Credit: Emma Lewis

Dunning Drive, Camillus

Seneca Home Staging

Large picture window in Cape Cod budget-minded living room

Mill Spring Modern Farmhouse

Altura Architects

Small den off the main living space in this modern farmhouse in Mill Spring, NC. Black and white color palette with eclectic art from around the world. Heavy wooden furniture warms the room. Comfortable l-shaped gray couch is perfect for reading or cozying up by the fireplace. Photography by Todd Crawford.

Tequesta Brickell Key Residence

Interiors by Maite Granda

Feature in: Luxe Magazine Miami & South Florida Luxury Magazine If visitors to Robyn and Allan Webb’s one-bedroom Miami apartment expect the typical all-white Miami aesthetic, they’ll be pleasantly surprised upon stepping inside. There, bold theatrical colors, like a black textured wallcovering and bright teal sofa, mix with funky patterns, such as a black-and-white striped chair, to create a space that exudes charm. In fact, it’s the wife’s style that initially inspired the design for the home on the 20th floor of a Brickell Key high-rise. “As soon as I saw her with a green leather jacket draped across her shoulders, I knew we would be doing something chic that was nothing like the typical all- white modern Miami aesthetic,” says designer Maite Granda of Robyn’s ensemble the first time they met. The Webbs, who often vacation in Paris, also had a clear vision for their new Miami digs: They wanted it to exude their own modern interpretation of French decor. “We wanted a home that was luxurious and beautiful,” says Robyn, noting they were downsizing from a four-story residence in Alexandria, Virginia. “But it also had to be functional.” To read more visit: https: https://maitegranda.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/LX_MIA18_HOM_MaiteGranda_10.pdf Rolando Diaz

Small Living Room Design Photos

A living room, often referred to as a lounge room in Australia and New Zealand, is the hub of the home. If you only have one living room in the house, it’s likely to serve multiple purposes: be it a place to watch TV, play games, spend quality time with family or hang out with friends. If you have the luxury of two living areas, one is usually a formal living room or lounge room, reserved for reading, relaxing and entertaining. A successful living room design is inviting, has enough seating for the whole clan – a comfortable couch is a must – and encourages conversation. Browse photos on Houzz for living room layouts, furniture and decor, and strike up a conversation with the interior designers or architects of your favourite picks. For even more living room ideas, check out the Stories section on Houzz.

Which living room layouts will work best for you?

Every living area will have design challenges. A long, narrow lounge room, for example, risks looking like a hallway if furniture is lined up against the walls. Instead, opt for small furniture items, like a cosy two-seater couch, and create various focal points throughout the space. In square living rooms, a symmetrical layout encourages a formal setting. Place seating on either side of the room, with a focal point in the middle to pull the room together. For a truly intimate vibe, replace your couch with some occasional chairs positioned around a coffee table or ottoman. This will make the main focus conversation. An open-plan home – one where the lines are blurred between kitchen, dining and living – may require a layout that focuses on definition. You’ll want to make sure furniture doesn’t block the flow between spaces, and instead use something like an area rug to create zones.

How can you decorate your living room?

The living room can be a place in which to show off your personality, but if you want a timeless living room scheme, stick to neutral walls, couches and ottomans. Colour can be added through accessories, and is a lot more interchangeable! Rugs, cushions and throws are great for adding colour, while mirrors, lamps and ceiling lights will set the mood. Make your living room unique by including family heirlooms and photos. For a polished look, try creating a coffee table vignette – you could use books as pedestals or group items together on a tray. Try adding a vase, a mixture of round and rectangular objects and some books.

What are some small living room ideas?

Small living room designs can be tricky to work with, but aren’t doomed to fail. Often, you just have to get creative with furniture. An open-back chaise can create a sense of spaciousness, while small side tables paired together can substitute a coffee table. Even better, an ottoman can be used as a footrest, coffee table or extra seating. Big furniture items like the couch are best kept in light colours, and if there’s room for a coffee table, a glass-top one is best. If you have two spaces in one – perhaps your living room sits in front of a single-wall kitchen – make sure they are connected by decor, colour and style. For definition, just add area rugs, or use your couch as a dividing wall. It’s worth having a few furniture pieces, whether a bookshelf, couch or entertainment unit, in the same colour as the walls, too, so they blend into the room and visually expand the space.

Is open-plan living for you?

Today’s homes often embrace open-plan living, whereby the living room runs off the kitchen and/or dining areas. Open-plan living allows greater functionality, but can risk creating a vast, soulless space if not done right. To avoid a cavernous feel in an open-plan design, define areas with furniture, rugs and lighting, or consider using a wall divider. Also be sure to keep flooring, lighting and materials consistent throughout, for cohesiveness. Noise may be an issue – someone banging pots and pans while you’re watching TV, for example – so include lots of soft furnishings, such as rugs, curtains and couches to help absorb the noise. You will also need to factor in plenty of storage, so mess is kept at bay.