Photo: Brian Grech

Can a living room be simultaneously designed for family living as well as for entertaining?

By virtue of being a living space, a living room has to be a multi-purpose room. On one hand, it needs to look good as it is usually the room that gives the first impressions of a home – however, it must also be functional as it is where we watch TV, relax, read, host a party or let the little ones play. A well-designed living room is not a luxury but a necessity.

What are the essential elements of a well-designed living room?

The essentials vary from one home to another. When planning the living room layout, designers have to work closely with the people who will be living in that space. Designers need to understand that a living room is a very personal space and that the design has to be functional while blending in with the taste of the people who will be spending time in it.

The bare essentials are usually the space itself, natural daylight as well as artificial lighting. Another important consideration is preparing the connections for all the technology that a modern living room houses, including data, satellite, dimming and power outlets. This is very important as once the plastering is finished, it’s a nuisance to redo the connections.

Since a living room includes various elements, does it necessarily need a theme that combines everything?

Nowadays living rooms are usually part of an open-plan layout, so rhythm and flow are very important.

Rhythm needs to be present in both the colour schemes and furnishings. The various furniture items also need to blend in and create an interesting design conversation. The best approach is to use a mix of colours and work from the ground upwards. Then use the same colour scheme as a base to dress up the soft furnishings.

Good flow is also essential – the ergonomics of the space need to flow from one part of the living room to the other.

The result needs to be easy on the eye – in my opinion good design is one that looks effortlessly done when viewed at first glance.

Can seating arrangements in a living room be flexible?

While in a living room, seating is usually arranged for the best position to view the television, seating arrangements in a sitting room can be more flexible.

If space permits, we can accessorise a large sofa with one-seaters and pouffes – such an arrangement gives you added flexibility in the living or sitting room.

What lighting is most suitable for a living room?

First you need to see if a living room has ample natural daylight. If that is the case, then we can move on to plan artificial lighting.

With artificial lighting we can create anything from a soft and warm welcoming living space to a small cinema or colour changing effects. All this is possible thanks to the technology available – the beauty of such technology is that these lighting effects are hidden away in coves and bulkheads and can function at the press of a button when we desire. Of course, the more lighting variation we introduce, the more expensive it becomes.

How can technology be integrated in a living room?

Nowadays intelligent lighting systems go hand in hand with sound and control. There are some lovely systems available that incorporate sound, vision, blinds and lighting all together. These systems need to be planned from the start and require some effort – the result, however, can be exceptional.

What colours make a living room more relaxing?

In my opinion there should be a base element of neutral colours varying from different shades of white to creams or very light greys.

How you build up colours from that base depends on how warm, colourful or relaxing you want your living room to be.

The more relaxing colours are whites, creams, taupe and hints of bronze or copper. You can also go for a monochromatic look with white, light greys, silver and black. These two colour schemes are very different, but both create a relaxing atmosphere.

What role do textiles have in a living room?

Textiles are made up of different textures – the beauty of textiles is that you can mix a blend of textures together from leather to velvet to silk. The layering of textures is very interesting and produces depth over plain surfaces.

How important is living room storage?

In modern homes, the trend is to have less walls and more open spaces – however, we also need to plan storage. In a living room, storage space needs to form an essential part of a functional design.