Today we are going to go through all the major do’s and don’ts when it comes to living room decorating.
The living room is the heart of the home, where comfort, style, and personality come together to create a welcoming space. Whether it’s for family gatherings, quiet evenings, or entertaining guests, the right decor can set the tone for the entire home.
From choosing the perfect furniture to selecting accent pieces that reflect your unique taste, every detail plays a role in crafting a space that feels both functional and inviting. With the right balance of colors, textures, and layouts, your living room can transform into a true sanctuary.

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Living Room Decorating Do’s
Have a focal point
When planning out your layout always have a focal point for your furniture to look towards. This can be a fireplace, built-ins, or a major piece of furniture (with a TV possibly).
The reason we do this is to make the room flow, it’s good fung shui which will make your space feel cohesive.
In my home, we have two focal points, the fireplace and the tv. I didn’t want to hang the TV on the stone fireplace so we took the very large blank wall and put our TV on that wall with a gallery of family photos around.
Our couch faces the TV but the accent chairs can face the fireplace, I don’t always have them that way but it’s a great alternative. Eventually, I would like to get an L-shaped sectional sofa to face both the TV and fireplace.

In our basement family room, I created these built-ins to surround a TV and we have a sofa facing it. This is the major focal point of the room even though there is a fireplace on another wall.
You can choose your focal point, As you can see we chose the built-ins to be the focal point and ran with it.

My daughter moved out and took the sofa from this room so I moved my desk center until we get a new sofa. But as you can see the built-ins are the focal point and store so much of our stuff!
Pull furniture away from the wall
Don’t feel like you have to have all your furniture against the walls. This can make a room feel awkward.
In my family room, I put the couch in line with the edge of the fireplace so we have a walkway behind the couch to travel to the breakfast nook and kitchen.

We have our armchairs in the room so they face the fireplace and you can walk behind them to access the sliding door to the deck.
Pulling the furniture into the room makes it feel more cozy and intimate with your conversation area.
Add an area rug
Area rugs are great for pulling your living room together. They connect all the furniture and create a conversation area for you and your guests.
If you have hardwood or tile floors an area rug can soften the space which is great if you have young children.
If you have carpet you can add an area rug on top to create a designated space for your family room. It would be great if you had an open floor plan with a lot of carpet. It defines that living room space.
Have enough seating space
Make sure you have a lot of seating for guests. Sectionals are great for this but you don’t have to get one. It is possible to have a lot of seating with a couch and accent chairs.
Another great idea is ottomans, they act as coffee tables, footrests, but if you have a large gathering they act as additional seating!
Not only does this family room have a large sectional sofa but it also has accent chairs. Something for everyone to sit in!
Get the correct size coffee table or ottoman
Your coffee table or ottoman should be at least half the size of your sofa. It should also be within a few inches of the sofa in height.
Add a console table behind the couch
This is a great idea if you have a couch pulled away from the wall. I added one and it holds decor but it’s also very functional for electronics, books, adding lighting to, and more.
You can also add one behind a couch against the wall to add this additional functionality.
Add hints of black
It’s often said that a room isn’t done unless you have touches of black. Black adds sophistication and it also grounds a room. Always add a little black.
You don’t have to get a piece of furniture in black, you can just add a few black accessories.
In my living room, I have a gallery wall around my TV with black frames. I have black accessories for my fireplace and a black clock above the stone fireplace mantel.

Clearly not my best photo but here are the black frames around my tv. Bonus if you have a little dog that has black fur!
Add a tray to corral accessories
If you have a lot of small accessories it’s a good idea to put them on a tray. A lot of accessories can make a space feel cluttered.
Putting them on the tray tricks the eye into seeing many things into one thing. By putting them on a tray it feels more like they are one item.
I like to use trays on an ottoman or coffee table. It’s also a great idea if you have a lot of accessories on a console table or built-ins.
Here we have items corraled on an outdoor ottoman with a beautiful tray.
Have correct spacing
Spacing might be one of the most important things when planning your living room layout.
Between a couch and coffee table/ottoman, you need to have 15-18 inches of space. This gives you the ability to walk in between them without bruising up your shins and knees.
If you have a walkway between furniture, or between furniture and a wall, you need 24-36 inches of space. For example, between my sofa table and wall, I have 30 inches. It’s plenty of space to walk through to get to the other side of the room.
If you have two side chairs next to one another you should leave 24-48 inches in between them. This is also a great space for a small side table.
Living Room Decorating Don’ts
Furniture size
Furniture size is really important when it comes to the layout of your room.
If you have a very large room and tons of small furniture the room will look really cluttered and chaotic.
If you have a small space with oversized furniture then the room will feel cramped and you won’t feel like you can move around in it easily.
Area rug size
It’s a great idea to have an area rug but the size of that rug is so important. And the size depends on the size of your room and your furniture placement.
A good rule of thumb is always to make sure at least the front legs of all the furniture are on the rug. It’s better to have the whole piece on the area rug but sometimes that is hard to do.

This is exactly what you want at a minimum. The rug could actually be larger to go all the way under the sofas and end tables but this is okay. Do not go smaller than this.
Keep matching pillows from the sofa
When you buy a sofa they always give you matching pillows. Don’t use them. Get a pillow cover from Amazon or just gift them to someone else. Don’t use them on your sofa.
Pillows can be pretty cheap and I love to change them out for different seasons and holidays. Having layered pillows of different patterns makes your space look more sophisticated.
Buy a living room set
If you are buying who sofas then it’s okay for them to match. If you are buying a sofa, loveseat, armchair or recliner do not get them all matching.
What’s the difference? When you buy two sofas most likely you are putting them in a room facing one another and having them match gives really good symmetry (I am a symmetry girl).
If you have multiple pieces and they all match it’s just not a good look. Having your armchairs be different from your sofa gives your room a more designed look. It adds interest.
Forget Lighting
I don’t know about you but I live in my living room (hence the name I suppose). I work in here, watch TV, and basically do everything in this room.
It’s really important to have good lighting in this space and lighting that is different. What do I mean by this?
You need overhead lighting. When it’s dark or the weather is bad and you need to illuminate the space a great chandelier will be your best friend.
When we bought our house the living room had a ceiling fan with no light. There were two recessed lights that angled toward the fireplace. That was it. You couldn’t see anything.
I swapped it out with a huge wagon wheel chandelier with 12 lights on it. My husband calls it the sun but with a dimmer switch, it is the best light EVER!


Make sure you have some floor lamps for those dark corners of the room and some table lamps for task lighting. I like to cross stitch so a nice table lamp is my bestie! If you like to read you will love it too.
Neglect scale for artwork
When it comes to scale for your artwork I think bigger is better. A small piece of art on a large wall will just look ridiculous.
I think a large piece of artwork is always best, even on a small wall. All you need is a few inches around the frame.
If you have a large wall then consider a gallery wall. I did that on the wall where my TV is. My Mom did this on the wall of her hallway. It is a great way to add lots of small pieces to make the look of one large piece.
Clutter
Clutter is my biggest pet peeve! All it does is create chaos for the eye.
I am a firm believer that your home has an impact on your mental state. A chaotic home makes me stressed out!
Pick things up and put them away every day. A few minutes a day can make a huge difference.
Add hidden storage! Baskets with lids are great for hiding things you don’t want to see. In my built-ins I added baskets to store some of my Real Estate materials.

Built-ins are great if you have cabinets. My built-ins hold SO MUCH STUFF! One cabinet is for crafts (don’t open it or you might have stuff fall out on you), and another is for electronics.
One is for games and one is for work materials. All things you really don’t want out to see all the time.
I also love blanket storage. If you live in a cold area like I do (it was 3 degrees when I woke up this morning!) you need a lot of blankets.
I have a dresser in my living room that stores blankets, in the downstairs den I have a large basket to corral them. In my bedroom,I built a blanket ladder. All great ideas on how to store blankets.

What to splurge on and what not to splurge on when decorating a living room.
Splurge on upholstered furniture. These are the workhorses in the room and they aren’t cheap. It’s a good idea to go ahead and pay for a well made piece of furniture because it will last longer.
Here are some items that I would not splurge on:
- throw pillows
- throw blankets
- area rugs
- side tables
- accessories
- lamps
You might wonder why not splurge on a side table. Well, they get spilled on, dented, and you will want to swap them out often. So don’t spend a ton of money on them.
Real story, I spilled a bottle of nail polish remover on my parent’s side table when I was a kid. Totally ruined it!
When you buy throw pillows opt for just the cover and not the whole pillow. Before you know it the pillows will add up and storing them will be a nightmare.
You don’t have to buy fancy area rugs that cost a ton. There are a lot of online places to buy area rugs and I have a post totally dedicated to that. Go check it out.
Frequently Asked Questions about Living Room Decorating
What does the rule of three mean in interior design?
This goes with the rule of decorating with items in odd numbers. The rule of three means three items collected together.
Should every wall in a living room have artwork?
This is a personal option. No, they don’t If you have a small wall you don’t have to hang anything on it. I have two small spaces in my downstairs den that I have no artwork on and I like it.
Sometimes having too much on the walls can make a room feel cluttered.
What makes a living room too cluttered?
Clutter, plain and simple. It can be too many toys, accessories,or stuff on surfaces. You need to be able to put a book or glass of water on a table easily.
You can also have too much stuff on the walls and it will make a room look cluttered. That’s why I always feel like a large piece of art is better than multiple pieces.
What is the 3-5-7 rule in decorating?
It is the rule that it’s best to decorate and group items in odd numbers such as 3, 5, or 7.
What are the rules for wall decor?
If you have furniture under the artwork your art, or grouping of art, should be 2/3’s the width of your piece of furniture.
What is the 2/3 rule?
The artwork above the furniture should be 2/3 the width of the sofa.
What is the golden rule for home decor?
Your furniture should not take up more than 60% of the room or floor space. Too much less than 60% and your room can feel sparse.
Other decorating posts you might like:
- Gorgeous Screened-In Porch Decorating Ideas
- 7 Easy Small Front Porch Decorating Ideas
- 11 Stylish Staircase Decorating Ideas
- Winter Decorating Ideas: Beautiful Ideas for a Winter Home
- What is Cottagecore Style?
- What is Grandmillennial Style?


Living Room Decorating Do’s and Don’ts
As a licensed Real Estate Agent and an avid home decorator, I strive to give my clients the very best I can when it comes to staging, selling, and decorating their homes. I have lots of experience with paint color choices and love to DIY my home so I can have everything just the way I want it. I share my ideas and projects with the world in the hopes that I can help others have their homes just the way they want as well.