This could be a great reading space.Where do people literally live anyway? When we are at home, studies show, approximately 96 percent of our time is spent alone or with our family—but only four percent of that home time is spent in company. This is all the more reason to create a living room that you will really put to use.
—ALEXANDRA STODDARD
One room that can expand your living space is your living room. Depending on how you envision the space, this room can be a quiet spot to read, a place to look at favorite photos, or a cozy place to talk with your spouse or kids.
The living room is probably the most formal room in your home, likely somewhere near your front entry. Your living room should be one of your more beautiful, clutter free rooms. And if your family room and living room are the same, that is even more important because now guests and family share the same space.
The name “living room” can be a misnomer in that often not much actual living happens there. You may keep it strictly for entertaining on formal occasions, or you may have added a computer desk or piano to allow daily activity to happen there.
Decide what purpose you would like this room to serve at this time in your life, and then review the practical tips in this chapter to help you plan the space to become a “living” room that serves you.
Create a Plan
Our goal is to clean, simplify, and arrange your living room space to meet your current needs.
The plan consists of three steps:
1. Dust and polish tabletops in the room.
3. Fine-tune the room by activity zones.
2. Organize cabinets and stored items.
Simplify Your Living Room
Motivation:
This could be a great reading space.
I want my living room to be a nice space for family and friends.
It’s pretty simple to maintain once it’s in order.
Supplies:
Dust cloth and furniture polish
Vacuum
Three boxes for things to put away, donate, and sell
Time Estimate:
2–4 hours
Reward:
A living room you can use for reading, relaxing, and entertaining.
Approach It by Sections
Sit in your living room and make a list of the activities that happen in this room. Would a lamp by each chair invite you to relax and read a magazine here? Does someone play the piano or clarinet here? Do you sit here for a cup of coffee and a good chat when a friend stops over?
If there are pieces of furniture you want moved out of the room or into the room, do that first. Once your furniture is appropriately positioned, you are ready to begin. This shouldn’t be too hard a room to do, so keep going and you should breeze through it.
Tabletops and Sofas
Empty everything off the coffee table and end tables into three piles: keep, store elsewhere, or toss. Leave at least two-thirds of each coffee table and end table clear. Rotate some interesting items as a display that will be a conversation starter.
Now follow the clear line of sight by dusting and polishing the tabletops in your living room. This is a good time to put away books, papers, and knickknacks that belong elsewhere. Keep only recent magazines and recycle or store the rest in a magazine holder.
Toys should be returned to the playroom or children’s bedrooms. Travel brochures and papers go back in a file. Holiday decorations should be put away. China figurines should be washed and thoroughly dried before putting them back.
Clear any clutter off the sofa and fluff the pillows. Be sure to check under the seat cushions—you might find something valuable! Windows, picture frames, and glass tabletops should be cleaned as well. Soon the room should be back in pristine condition with this extra effort.
Floor
For a thorough cleaning, move the furniture and clean the floor. As you vacuum or mop, take note of any piles that may have started to accumulate, such as photos and books in a corner. You may even find something valuable you have been looking for.
Floor plants may need repotting and fertilizer. Large silk trees or plants should be dusted or replaced. This is also a great time to vacuum or wash the baseboards for an extra-clean look.
Bookshelves
As you dust the shelves, empty one shelf at a time into two piles: keep or donate. Look for any books and knickknacks you have outgrown and pass them on to free up space. Be sure to give them away within twenty-four hours.
SPACE-SAVING TIP #34
Practice the “two-minute pickup” every time you leave the living room and it will stay clean.
Cabinets and Closed Storage
It’s amazing how valuable items can be hidden away in a drawer or on a shelf and turn into clutter over the years. That’s why it’s important to go through the “hidden” storage areas such as:
Chest with drawers. If you have a chest with drawers, sort the contents one drawer at a time into three piles: keep, store elsewhere, and toss. You can easily dispose of old brochures and newspaper clippings, pet toys, and children’s toys that your family has outgrown. Now is the time for a fresh start in your drawers.
Desk. A small desk or writing table can be nice in the living room, but it can also attract clutter. Go through each drawer and keep only what you like and still use.
Front closet. Often near the living room is a front closet by the entryway. Clean this just like a bedroom closet: rod hanging items first, floor second, and shelving third. For more information about closet cleaning, see chapter 6.
The front closet needs hangers for guests, hangers and hooks for family coats, and baskets for mittens and sports equipment. If too much is piled on the closet floor, it is a good sign that you need to put in shelves or a bookcase to hold all the items.
This closet may be the one to hold your dining room tablecloths, table leaves, or vacuum. Place them sideways at one end so they’re not the first things you see when you open your front closet. A multipurpose closet can still look good and be functional if you keep it weeded out.
SPACE-SAVING TIP #35
Organize your photos in books for the current year and display them at the holidays. Expand their usefulness by making copies so siblings and children have their own book from you.
Activity Zones
After the clutter is cleared, then it’s time to fine-tune the room by activity zones. The living room may be larger than other rooms, so it often consists of more than a sofa and chairs. It can also be used for other types of activities.
Music. A piano or other musical instrument, such as an organ or guitar, in the living room can be a focal point. Arrange furniture in the room so people can easily listen to your resident musician. Also include a place for storing sheet music, such as the piano bench or antique music cabinet. A music stand for a string or band instrument player can be attractively displayed by a plant or floor lamp.
Be sure there is a place for the accompanying music case so it doesn’t end up on your sofa each day. A luggage rack can hold the instrument case and an ottoman with a hinge can hold attachments and music.
Photo albums. A living room bookshelf can be a lovely place to display family photo albums. Similar size binders and leather lookalikes add a touch of class. A label maker can attractively label the spine with the year and contents. Filing your family history from oldest to newest will make it easy for family to pull a photo album off the shelf and relive chapters of your life.
It may be time to scan your pictures and save them digitally. This would be a project in itself to assign to a later date, but tackling one book per year could make this an important family legacy. This also makes it easy to divide up family photos with everyone getting equal photos.
Family heirlooms. The living room is a good place to display family treasures such as an heirloom clock or arts and crafts passed on from generations. Bookshelves can display framed family world travels or significant memorabilia from family. Display some pleasant reminders that give you a sense of family history.
We have an antique desk in our front entry carved in the late 1800s by a great-great-aunt that means the world to me. It shows what talent we had in our family tree and reminds me of my love of writing and creating at a desk.
SPACE-SAVING TIP #36
Expand the usefulness of your living room to be able to read, listen to music, or do light paperwork too.
Lighten Up and Let Go
If the traffic pattern in the living room has gotten crowded over the years, it may be time to let go of some furniture and rearrange the room.
You may want to try a consignment shop to trade good items for cash. This could include special furniture such as chairs, end tables, lamps, and art. Offer china and valuable items to relatives or sell them on eBay. You could also sell them online through a local vendor such as Craigslist to save you the time and expense of shipping.
Find a local charity that would accept your closet items such as winter clothes, sports equipment, and books. You can sell unused musical instruments to a music store or donate them to a school band. The key is to get rid of things you no longer use before they lose their value.
Living Room Checklist
____ 1. Is my furniture attractive and usefully arranged, with all excess furniture given away?
____ 2. Are the tabletops attractively arranged and uncluttered?
____ 3. Do my bookshelves look nice and hold what I currently enjoy?
____ 4. Are my cabinets and chests cleaned out and simple?
____ 5. Are my photo books labeled and up to date?
____ 6. Does my front closet work for me and my guests?
____ 7. Do I have reading lamps and storage for music or desk work?
____ 8. Are my family treasures displayed but not cluttered?
____ 9. Is there a clear line of sight across the table tops and furniture?
____ 10. Am I making the most of my living room so that it is useful and clutter free each day?
Tips from “The Decorating Coach,” Susan Wells
Transform your living room from boring to beautiful with attention to the little details that make a big difference.
Stimulate with artwork. Pictures impart personality, but they must be the right proportion and strategically placed. Hang one or two to measure two-thirds the width of the sofa, with the bottom of the frame(s) six to ten inches above the back. A small picture will “float” on the wall, so cleverly anchor it to a grouping such as an end table and lamp. Transforms a dull corner into the center of attention!
Excite cold windows with a valance made from a spectacular fabric that adds softness and definition. Repeat the pattern with several pillows to grace the seating area. A few accents make the entire room look fresh.
Rejuvenate in a relaxing ambience by turning off the task lighting. Hide a small, inexpensive floor lamp behind a vase, plant, or small pieces of furniture, and you’ll create a new look each evening.
Manage It Simply
Every home has a unique use of the living room. Make your living room an attractive space that you use, not just one you walk by every day.
• After organizing the living room for the Nelson family, I put a reading lamp from another part of the house at each end of the sofa. Immediately the room became useful for homework reading and relaxing. The parents were thrilled that their teenagers actually sat down and spent time with them as they worked at their desk in that room.
• One client noticed her baby grand piano took up a lot of space in her living room. Her kids were grown and didn’t want the piano, so she sold it—to us! Our kids took piano lessons, and our oldest daughter, Christy, became a music teacher. We are grateful for this woman’s willingness to let go of what wasn’t useful anymore.
• Lillian’s living room had always been arranged the same way. However, her daughter’s friend was a decorator and repositioned the furniture and bought a new wingback chair and a matching picture to create a new setting. Many guests now enjoy Lillian’s home cooking and overnight hospitality because one person shared her talents and rearranged the room to be a warmer gathering place.
Do something new in your living room space so you and your guests won’t grow tired of it. And if you have family or friends with a decorating or organizing talent, accept their help when they ask!
Review: The CALM Living Room Approach
Create a Plan
Clear visible surfaces and polish tabletops.
Organize cabinets and stored items.
Fine-tune the room by activity zones.
Approach It by Sections
Keep large furniture pieces looking nice.
Organize special activity areas.
Look for hidden piles and projects and finish them.
Lighten Up and Let Go
Charities will pick up extra furniture and resalable items.
Consignment shops are good for turning items into cash.
Online auctions, such as eBay, are good for smaller items you can sell and ship.
Manage It Simply
Daily—Do a “two-minute pickup” to keep this room in shape.
Quarterly—Go through the front closet to keep coats and sports equipment out of the way.
Yearly—Clean the living room in the fall before holiday visitors drop by.
A well-organized living room sets the tone for an organized home. Remember to do a two-minute pickup in this space each day, and you will have a clean and usable living room for your family and guests to enjoy anytime.
You can’t change anyone but you. It is your example that is going to set the tone for your home. When it is done with a loving attitude, they will take notice and start to help.
—MARLA CRILLY