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This post will show you 21 ideas to help you create the perfect minimalist living room!
If you are looking for a living room where clean lines, natural light, and simple but sophisticated pieces are the stars of the show, then a minimalist living room is exactly what you need.
Embracing minimalism in your living area will allow you to create an orderly, elegant space where you can take refuge from the clutter and chaos of daily life.
All you need to create the perfect minimalist living room is an appreciation for quality over quantity and the 21 ideas I have collected for you in this post!
Minimalist Living Room: The Basics
Minimalism is all about carefully selecting statement pieces, where each item of decor and furniture greatly contributes to the overall design.
When choosing which pieces to invest in as you create your minimalist living room, always keep in mind the core principles of this design style:
- Focus on a neutral color palette with occasional accent pieces
- Set up a layout that creates an open space where light and movement can flow seamlessly
- Layer texture and materials to create a visually interesting space
- Include hidden storage options to help you keep surfaces clean during daily life traffic
Now that you know minimalist basics, let’s jump into 21 ideas to inspire your minimalist living room design!
21 Ideas For A Stunning Minimalist Living Room
Choose A Neutral Color Palette
Credit: @interior_by_cho
A minimalist living room is intended to be a peaceful haven for your senses right at the core of your home.
One of the best ways to achieve such a calming, tranquil ambiance is to embrace a neutral palette for your furniture and decor fully.
Choose warm shades of beige and off-whites, layering different textures and materials, to achieve a cozy but elegant design you’ll love.
Of course, don’t forget to add an accent piece like a fresh bouquet to create a beautiful focal point that completes your neutral decor.
Add Greenery & Flowers
Credit: @birchcrib
Plants and flowers can become your best friends when it comes to styling a minimalist living room.
Their bright but relatively neutral tones will be a great fit for most minimalist palettes.
Greenery will also add a touch of nature to your space, contrasting the sleek, modern lines of your furniture.
Focus on Functionality
Credit: @southwestbysoutheast
It can be challenging to strike the perfect balance between a minimalist home and bare spaces that feel soulless.
A great way to avoid ending up with a minimalist living room that feels just a bit too empty is to prioritize functionality.
Start by listing which pieces you will need to use daily. For your living room, this will likely include a couch, armchairs, coffee table, TV, and TV stand.
Anything beyond these items will fall into optional decor, making it easier for you to decide what to invest in and how minimal you want to be in your approach.
Use Floating Shelves
Source: Image by freepik
Floating shelves are the epitome of minimalist design: sleek, modern, and stripped of all unnecessary features.
Whether you are considering built-in shelves or are simply looking for a new way to display your favorite decor pieces, consider adding a few floating shelves to your minimalist living room.
You will be able to showcase art pieces, and photos, or even add a few baskets and boxes for hidden storage solutions.
Add a Textured Accent Piece
Credit: @karolinakotrbova
When working with a neutral palette, it’s important to introduce variety in textures and materials to avoid a flat design.
A simple but effective way to achieve this is to include in your minimalist living room an accent armchair.
Fabrics like bouclè or even leather are fantastic options for sophisticated pieces that are certain to stand out in your space.
Include Minimalist Lighting Options
While your minimalist living room should prioritize enhancing natural light, it’s important to also include light fixtures that can help complete your design.
Opt for a modern, statement chandelier to have your light fixture double as an art piece. Similarly, you can choose a beautiful floor lamp to add another lighting source to the room.
Opt for Simple Lines & Shapes
Source: @sarah.amos.interiors
A minimalist living room should embrace the beauty of simplicity, including basic shapes and clean lines in both your furniture and decor pieces.
Avoid formal pieces and prioritize instead plainer items like a classic L-shaped sofa or a small round coffee table.
The beauty of minimalism comes in tastefully combining simpler shapes for a result that comes across as elegant as it is understated.
Prioritize Large But Minimal Decor
Unlike popular belief, decor pieces are just as important in a minimalist living room as for any other design style.
Especially when working with very modern, minimalist furniture, you will need to add smaller pieces to help ground these larger items.
The key is to balance modern furniture with larger items of decor like a vase or a display bowl. This will help you avoid the risk of cluttered surfaces, while, at the same time, adding visual context to your space.
Include Hidden Storage Options
Credit: @by.arkt
We all love a freshly-styled minimalist living room that belongs on the pages of an interior design magazine.
However, perfectly organized surfaces are not always easy to maintain when busy daily life gets in the way.
I strongly believe your home should accommodate your lifestyle, not the other way around. This is why I am a huge fan of hidden storage spaces to ensure you can keep your space looking good even if you don’t have time to always stay on top of things.
A bookshelf with storage baskets or closed shelves is a stylish way to include storage without sacrificing the minimalist look you are trying to achieve.
Create An Open Space
Credit: @interior_by_cho
Minimalist designs are great at using furniture and unexpected shapes to create an airy, open space.
Consider adding a curved couch to achieve both a cozy living area and a room where movement can flow seamlessly across its sections.
Lighter colors and plenty of natural lights will also play a crucial role in achieving the open space look.
Choose Light Curtains
If you are blessed with a living room with plenty of natural light, minimalism requires that you take full advantage of it!
Choose lightweight, sheer curtains or a simple, unobtrusive window treatment to maximize the amount of light you are letting in throughout the day.
If you are not able to compromise on coverage for privacy reasons, lightweight linen is a good solution as well.
Hang Minimalist Artwork
For stunning wall art, choose a single minimalist piece to make a statement.
Think of large, monochrome pieces, or modern artwork that can help complete your minimalist living room.
Bonus tip: making your minimalist piece can be a great weekend activity. Invest in a large canvas and a few colors, choose your favorite modern artist for inspiration, and get creative! You’ll end up with a unique piece that speaks entirely of you.
The Quality Over Quantity Principle
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A minimalist living room needs to be designed around high-quality pieces, items where materials, textures, and craftsmanship are the absolute protagonists.
If you can, consider investing in the core pieces of your minimalist living room like a designer couch or a solid wood, hand-made coffee table.
These items will stand the test of time and elevate your living room design.
Play with Geometric Shapes
Modern, minimalist items often play with geometric shapes to add a visually interesting element to the design while still embracing simplicity.
I am a huge fan of this mirrored cube side table, especially when placed in contrast to the copper coffee table.
The variety in materials, the shiny surfaces, and the very contemporary feel of these pieces make for a trendy minimalist living room even in a smaller space!
Choose Black To Add Depth
Credit: @ourneutralground
While black is often only considered an accent color in a minimalist living room, it can be the perfect neutral to add visual depth to your design if a light palette is not your preference.
Black is a wonderful way to take a more unique approach to minimalist design, steering away from the traditional all-white interiors we usually see.
Don’t forget to add a few warm pieces like lighter pillows, a grey couch, or a jute rug to counterbalance the harshness of the color and ensure the living room maintains a cozy ambiance.
Incorporate Mid-Century Modern Pieces
Mid-century modern pieces are a great way to include a touch of retro to your minimalist living room.
This interior style with its sleek lines, high-quality, natural finishes, and delicate colors, could be a perfect match to some of your more modern items.
I like to add wicker whenever possible in my designs, so I love the idea of a woven mid-century armchair!
Choose White Walls for The Perfect Blank Space
Minimalist interiors are the perfect place for bright, white walls.
In this style, walls are a blank canvas to showcase your minimalist furniture and decor, making it a truly timeless choice.
Slightly off-white colors can also be a great alternative if you are concerned with maintenance.
Display Your Books Inside Out
Credit: Abi Dare – These Four Walls Blog
Recreate this photo:
A bit of a controversial idea for book lovers, displaying your books inside out can be a stylish design choice.
It will help you include even your most colorful books in your minimalist living room without sacrificing the neutral palette of your dreams.
However, this idea is not the most functional. Be mindful not to store this way volumes that you regularly need to access as they might be challenging to locate.
Thrifting books can be a good solution if you love the look but do not want to sacrifice your library for it!
Use Mirrors To Reflect Light
Once again we are talking about the importance of enhancing natural light in a minimalist living room.
Mirrors are perfect for reflecting natural light across your space, giving the visual illusion of a larger space.
Bonus points if you find a creative way to use mirrors to replace wall art like in the inspiration picture above. You will add an interesting element to your minimalist living room while brightening your space. I like to call that a win-win solution!
Don’t Be Afraid to Add A Few Traditional Pieces
Source: Image by rawpixel.com on Freepik
If you love the clean lines and simplicity of a minimalist living room but are not sold on very modern furniture, no need to worry!
Consider using classic, more traditional pieces that you love while, at the same time, embracing the core principles of minimalism.
Focus on creating an open space, include geometric shapes, choose a small selection of high-quality pieces, and steer clear of any clutter. The result will be a beautiful transitional living room!
Declutter Your Space
Credit: @elorahomeinteriors
If you are ready to embrace minimalism in its more textbook form, then it’s time to strip down your decor to the bare minimum.
Make a list of all the items of decor you have in your minimalist living room and proceed to eliminate everything that is not needed for practical or core design reasons.
You’ll experience the freeing feeling of getting rid of clutter and end up with a space where the pieces you have carefully chosen to keep shine on their own!
To Conclude
This post showed you 21 ideas to help you create an elegant minimalist living room!
When designing your own space, remember that minimalism embraces the principle of quality over quantity. Prioritize choosing a few, carefully-selected pieces that can help you create a light, airy space.
Don’t be afraid to include more colorful accent pieces, and focus on creating a minimalist living room that can combine design and functionality in equal parts!
