With the arrival of spring and spring cleaning, the urge to decorate and freshen up the look of the living room often pops up too. Your refresh can be a few small decor touches, a new coat of paint or a complete design overhaul of the space. Like we always say, you’re only limited by your imagination — and your budget! A neutral living room can be livened up by swapping out a few chairs for brighter and bolder options, or investing in a big new sofa can give the room a whole new lease on life. Sometimes it’s hard to know where to start or what you might like to include in your newly revamped living room, so it helps to browse through inspirational rooms and to look at some of the furniture and decor options out there. Why not start with these beautiful living rooms that are full of ideas?

Eclectically Colorful

One of the best things that has happened to design is the penchant for mixing instead of matching. No longer do all the pieces in your living room have to match. In fact, it’s better and far more interesting if they don’t! This also makes it much easier to refresh the living room with just a few new elements. This luxe but laid back living room is a good example. All the furniture is upholstered in suede and velvet in two different colors, while the rug anchors the room with a third hue. The different colors are unified by the white tables and the accessories, including the large, pink fresh flowers.

Casually Asian Inspired

Interior decor has been inspired by Asian elements and design concepts for centuries, however, today’s version is cleaner and more classic than cliché. This living room incorporates seating that has the unique leg and frame shapes, as does the small side table. The accessories throughout have hints of Asian inspiration and the potted tree adds a natural element that helps make this a feng shui living room as well. Even the rug’s subtle design evokes the feeling of a tatami mat.

Embrace the Unexpected

This modern living room is everything a minimalist space should be: luxurious in its clean lines and spare nature. Two roomy velvet-upholstered chairs add a pop of color to the space and the lighting above the coffee table is a totally unexpected element. First of all, most living rooms do not usually have a pendant hanging over the coffee table and certainly not this low. By bringing the globe fixture down to a much lower position, just above the table, it changes the nature of the light in the space. Rather than spill from overhead, it now emanates from the center of the room at the level of people who sit in the chairs. If you already have a pendant in the living room, it wouldn’t be difficult to try something like this.

Contemporary and Coordinated Options

Of course, there are people who still prefer a more coordinated look, no matter what the decor genre. This contemporary living is built around a neutral palette that gets its drama from the deep chocolate brown upholstered sofa and matching armchair. The brown and white palette is a new take on the classic black and white, and the matching elements are more subtle. The detailing on the arms of the chair and sofa and the unusual wood frame of the tables are the unifying, matching elements. It’s a matched set that is not over the top and instead is very fashion-forward.

Sectional Functionality

The functionality of today’s sectional sofas has grown immensely, making it far more than just a piece to sit on. This large, family-friendly design has plenty of room for seating and a built-in side table as well as a shelving unit that runs around the back of the sofa. There’s no need for a separate end table with this design. The coffee table doesn’texactly match but its white trim and rounded edges repeat the shape of the wood around the sofa, which helps visually tie the room together.

Double up on Coffee Tables

We’ve all seen the trend of multiple, small occasional table taking the place of the coffee table. Now, instead of one humongous coffee table — which some people really like — try using two identical rectangular coffee tables. The trick is to place them in a staggered way, which maintains good flow around the sofa and chairs yet fills the central space in the room. Accessorizing the tables in the right way is also key, with the one farthest away from the sofa being minimally decorated at one end to balance them out.

A Formal Focus

Those who love formality will like this living room because it has plenty. Still, the room is not too frilly thanks to restrained embellishment on the cabinetry and the more contemporary geometric wall decor. The overall look of the twin cabinets is indeed formal, yet there’s a television hanging between them. The TV is made less obtrusive and more decorative with multiple layers of framing as if it were an artwork. A comfortable ottoman is traditionally tufted yet paired with a contemporary, curved sectional sofa.

Comfortable Minimalism

Minimalism certainly does not equal discomfort in this spare living room design. The furniture is linear and unadorned, but it’s also comfortably stuffed so that lounging here is a very appealing idea. Pieces like these would also be good for a family room thanks to their versatility. Accessories in a room like this are minimal too, which makes it super family-friendly. The overall look can easily be dressed up or down with the selection of accessories. Here the cushions are a little fancier because of the textiles used, but they could just as easily be changed out for something more casual for a dressed-down look.

Horizontal Orientation

Instead of opting for tall bookcases or shelving units, a larger room can have a completely different aesthetic if you choose pieces that are long and low. A largely black and white living room takes on a more modern look because the cabinets are low and run the length of the room. Floating wall shelves are installed on just one side of the television and don’t go very high up the wall. Book lovers can get a little extra storage space by including a coffee table that has a shelf underneath for stashing favorite volumes. You also might have noticed how a single chair offers up a dramatic pop of color, even when it’s a muted pink.

Color Conscious

This living room is a grand example of how to make color a dominant theme without going overboard. For the most part, the shades used are muted and set against the neutral floor covering and horizontally paneled wood walls. The deep teal sofa is matched with a subtly patterned one. The brighter pops of teal and turquoise in the room come from the small accessories such as books and pots. Another interesting thing about this living room is its horizontal orientation, even though it includes a taller bookcase at one end. The direction of the wood panels, widely spaced hanging mirror and long, low bookcase emphasize the flow.

Play With Mirrors

Certain areas of the home are a no-brainer when it comes to using mirrors for function or decor, but the living room might not automatically come to mind. Using mirrors that have unique shapes or odd sizes is one way to create an eye-catching accent but grouping multiple mirrors is another easy option. Here, three round mirrors in two different sizes become a modern decor accent. Take note that the grouping uses an odd number. This is an important and useful concept when creating groupings of any kind: Odd numbers are more pleasing and easier to arrange.

Multifunctional Living Space

Open concept spaces can be marvelous but they can also be challenging to decorate if they are on the small side. A room that serves as a dining space and living area needs all the parts to work in harmony since it is not large enough to have separate groupings for each. In this case, using a closed cabinet as well as an open shelving unit can help balance display space with the need for functional storage. Another helpful tip is that durable materials are best for this type of set-up, rather than any fussy, high maintenance finishes or textiles.

Contemporary Slouch

Sofas all used to be rather prim and proper, with upholstery tightly stretched, no matter the specific design. Now, people who like a looser, more casual aesthetic can have furniture that fits their lifestyle better. Today’s new designs offer up plenty of models with pillow backs and floppy cushions that are just made for cozying up for an evening of binge-watching. The laid back sofa and chair styles are best paired with other contemporary pieces.

Artful Shelving

When it comes to shelving, it helps to think beyond the box. Not all shelving has to be rectangular or linear. Artful options that turn shelving into a statement can really make a difference in the living room. This wall features separate units that are designed like a geometric optical illusion. The shelves are not level, so they won’t work for displaying things like vessels but they can hold books, plants and some other accessories. Just installing these types of shelves will change the whole space.

Statement Pieces

There’s no faster or easier way to change a living room than to add a statement piece of furniture. This can be a sofa, a unique lamp or a credenza like the one here. Beautiful wood grain and modern hardware make this an eye-catching piece. In this case, it’s combined with statement lamps, both as a floor model as well as a table lamp. Used in a small seating grouping like this one, it’s definitely the focal point.

Important Details

It’s often said that the devil is in the details, but when it comes to home design, the big difference is also in the details. While this velvet upholstered sofa is beautiful for many reasons, the one feature that really sets it apart is the unusual tufting design in the center of the sofa back. It’s a small detail in the big scheme of the living room, but it instantly draws the eye. A piece of furniture with this kind of element should be properly combined with complementary pieces in the same shade or in unobtrusive neutrals like the side chair. A pop of bright turquoise cushions helps tie the pieces together.

Feature a Wall

Stories about accent walls or feature walls, usually focus on artwork, paint or wallcoverings. For a real statement, how about installing something really out of the ordinary and then projecting images on it? On its own, this wall covered in cylinders is striking on its own, so even if you aren’t showing movies or images on it, it still stands out. the digital images projected on it can take many forms. Or, just use one of the elements on its own. There are lots of options for digital artwork subscriptions these days, or, you can simply share your own images.

Ever-Popular Gallery Walls

Some trend experts say that gallery walls have had their moment in the spotlight and are waning in popularity, but there are still many people who love them. And rightly so. In some spaces, they work very well, as in this living room, where the placement is a little different. Instead of the typical grouping being hung evenly spaced all on one wall, here the arrangement is different. The gaps, size order and carryover of two iframes onto the other wall are unexpected and very stylish.

Made for Entertaining

People who love to entertain often have slightly different considerations for the living room, Sure, it has to be comfortable, but it also needs to accommodate more than just the immediate family. This dual-duty living room has two roomy sectionals that are great for everyday relaxing but their wide segments offer up more spots for seating during a party or gathering. In addition, round ottomans flank the two ample coffee tables, adding a few more spots.

A Touch of Nature

Tell people to add live plants to a room and they automatically think about things in pots of various sizes. Adding greenery to a living room can be done in many creative ways and it doesn’t have to involve run-of-the-mill planters on stands. In addition to the shrub-like plant by the sofa, this living room is dominated by vines that cascade from the ceiling and down the wall. You can use a ledge or a shelf to hold the planters that are installed to hide everything but the hanging vines.

Making any change — big or small — can have a huge impact in a space as long as they are well thought out. A little planning can go a long way when refreshing your decor, leaving you much happier with the result. Living room ideas abound so you can find plenty of inspiration for what you might like to do to yours. The tough part is deciding which changes to make first!