Our living room has slowly become the most popular spot in the whole house. The original plan was to relocate the living room downstairs as soon as the basement is complete, which would allow the upstairs space to be more formal. But I can’t lie, we love our living room!
With all the fresh elements added, this has become the ultimate spot to binge watch our favorite shows. Simply put, we aren’t in any rush to move to the basement.
Today on the blog, I will discuss all the details of our living room essentials that changed our home to act as a guide for your remodel process!
Living Room Sources:
- Electric Fireplace
- Sofa
- Accent Chair
- Dark Rug
- Coffee Table
- White Curtains
- Leather Throw Pillow
- Tassel Throw Pillow
My Dream Living Room Fireplace
I pinch myself every day I get to have this beautiful fireplace in my living room. Fall is coming soon, and I believe there is no greater feeling than turning on the fire and cuddling close with your family while watching a movie.
Building The Fireplace
When starting the building process, I knew I wanted a grand fireplace, but designed in such a way it would never overwhelm the space. The key turned out to be all in the wood spacing.
Choosing larger pieces of wood for shiplap added a cozy touch, but spacing it out allowed for a more modern touch- it was the best of both worlds!
The Measurements: 50″ electric fireplace. 12″ wood for shiplap look. 10′ ceilings.
Choosing Gas Or Electric
One huge money saver was switching our fireplace from gas to electric. The extra heat from the gas was not a concern, since our home is new and well insulated, and the flames from it look really real.
Here are the links to find our fireplace:
We use it just for the look of a fire being on, although it does give out a good amount of heat! Tip: Have your electrician wire for a 240V. This allows the fireplace to produce 2x the heat.
The Paint Color Choice
While I always knew a bold color choice would elevate the entire space, it was a bit nerve-wracking to commit to it. If you’re considering going down this path- just do it! You’ll love the end result.
Our fireplace is painted with Sherwin Williams Tricorn Black. I love using Sherwin Williams in any project I can. After two coats, you’ve created the perfect opaque color that will last for years.
Debating On Built-Ins
I went back and forth on adding built-ins next to the fireplace, but we needed somewhere to hide our receiver, so we didn’t have much of a choice. I think the built-ins help make the room feel larger and give space to display more design elements.
The Measurements: The shelves are 3” high and 68” wide, spaced 10″ apart.
The Coziest Living Room Sofa
A question I get all the time is where our couches are from. I couldn’t bring myself to spend money on a custom couch that cost between $5k-$10k. We got these Restoration Hardware dupes from Value City Furniture and they have been perfect.
Here are some other great dupes I’ve found:
I will say because they are filled with feathers, they do loose their shape immediately after sitting on them. A simple fluff up regains the shape if you want them to look nice, but since this is not a staged room, we don’t mind that they don’t look perfect all of the time.
When the time does come to transform this space into a formal living room, I will most likely switch these to leather couches.
Completing The Living Room Space
No living room is complete without the perfect accents. No matter what space you remodel, using contrasting colors, tones, gives an overall elevated touch. We achieved this in a few ways:
Building In Beams
Dark wood beams was not my original plan for this space, but now I absolutely love it! Originally, I was set on doing white oak beams which would have been quite costly, so instead we used poplar wood and stained them. The specific stain is: Minwax Dark Walnut.
The dark black fireplace with rich wood beams surrounded by mostly white is my new favorite design take!
Finding A Plush Rug
No room is finished without the perfect rug. Choosing one that is plush and oversized allows the room to feel grounded, especially in open concept spaces.
When searching for the perfect rug, I wanted to bring in some of the darker tones of the fireplace and wood beams. That being said, it still had to remain neutral enough that it wasn’t distracting.
After searching long and hard, I found the perfect one here:
Finishing Up Your Living Room
The final touches of any room allow you to take a step back and breathe a sigh of relief. Finally, the remodel is finished! I know it can be challenging to feel like a room is complete, so if you need help check out this post on the easiest ways to update a room!
I loved this part of the living room remodel because it brought in a lot of warmth. My favorite design elements are always a dreamy set of curtains, fun decor items to fill up the shelves, and a statement chair.
If you’re looking for a few finishing pieces, check out some of my favorites:
This remodel felt like a long time coming, so I am thrilled to share the final update with you all. If you end up incorporating any of these design tips in your own home, please let me know in the comments or over on my Instagram!
