Modernise Your Living Room in Just 11 Simple Steps | Wayfair.co.uk (2024)

Curate a gallery wall in your living room with contemporary artwork. Blend abstract portraits with bold shapes and patterns for varied interest. Stick to a black-and-white colour scheme to contrast a colourful living room, or match your artwork’s palette to your space’s colour scheme for a cohesive look. Craft your own gallery wall with different sizes and abstract styles, or let us do the work for you with a prearranged wall art set.

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Ground modern living rooms with an area rug in a fresh geometric or abstract pattern. Decorating a contemporary living room with a multicoloured rug brings vibrant colour to an otherwise neutral living space. Juxtapose a blue sofa and mid-century modern coffee table in caramel wood tones with black geometric shapes popping out against a white backdrop. Make an artful statement with a living room area rug in an abstract shape.

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Make decorating a modern living room easy when you opt for metallic decor in futuristic shapes. Metal accents work well in mid-century modern and industrial aesthetics. Complement a warm color scheme with modern living decor like a brass table lamp with a cylindrical base and half-dome top. Pot houseplants in metal planters made of sleek stainless steel, bronze, copper or iron. Create cool contrast by displaying a metal candle holder on a wood coffee table or accent cabinet.

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Light up your living room with contemporary living room decor like a mid-century-style chandelier that makes an impact. Hang a sputnik chandelier with sleek gold arms above your coffee table to elevate your morning coffee sessions. Enrich Scandi-inspired living rooms with a paper shade pendant light for a relaxed warm glow. Echo industrial vibes with a metal chandelier with sleek black shades or interlayered geometric shapes. Filter under the Style tab on the left-hand-side of product pages to find the right lighting styles for your modern living room.

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Pay tribute to modern art while also simplifying the decorating process by hanging a large-scale art print in your space. Complement mid-century modern furnishings with a retro-style abstract print featuring grooved curves. Juxtapose white walls and neutral furnishings with a layered blue design to create a statement piece to discuss at your next dinner party. Or look for neutral abstracts with thin outlines and muted colours to echo a relaxed, minimalist space.

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Hang a mirror by the window to reflect light, open your room and add interest to blank wall space above the console table. This is a good example of modern living room decorating ideas for apartments, since mirrors create the illusion of more space. Choose a mirror with an oval, hexagonal, or teardrop shape to elevate your contemporary aesthetic. Enhance the look by choosing a mirror with a metallic rim, wooden accent shelf or patterned frame. Create an abstract gallery using wall mirrors of different sizes and shapes for a cool decor alternative to wall art that also adds visual dimension.

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Reimagine your coffee table as a display space when decorating a modern living room. Place sprigs of greenery or fall foliage in a statement-making vase. Choose a vase with a sculptural silhouette, futuristic shape or striking pattern that can work on its own when it's time to change out floral arrangements. Complete the look with a decorative bowl and a stack of modern art books to flip through on lazy Sundays.

Wondering how to decorate a modern living room with minimal effort? Go green. Use a side table as a glorified plant stand for a boho-inspired living room. Pot your Monstera Deliciosa in a fun striped planter to add contrast to woven cane furniture and solid gray upholstery. Make use of vertical space with wall planters for small succulents, trailing pothos, string-of-hearts, and other visually-striking houseplants.

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Highlight retro living spaces with contemporary living room decor in mid-century style and retro colour schemes. Create an evocative tribute on the accent cabinet behind your sofa with a decorative bowl in a mid-century modern silhouette. Showcase your go-to ‘70s film when you hang a framed movie poster on the wall — a great backdrop for throwback movie nights. Pair it with an abstract print in color-blocked shades of burnt orange, mustard yellow, retro red and deep brown to highlight that decade’s colour palette. Complete your modern living room decorating with a mid-century modern-style radio or table vase.

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Give your living room a bohemian or Scandi-inspired feel with a woven wall hanging. Create a fun contrast when decorating contemporary living rooms by displaying a wall tapestry above a streamlined, minimalist sofa and pairing it with textured terrazzo table lamps. Keep a bold sofa your room’s central focus with a cream scroll-style wall hanging in an abstract weave pattern or make a statement with multicoloured fringe extending downwards from a carved wood base.

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Emulate the abstract nature of Bauhaus architecture by leaning a futuristic building print against the wall. Place a smooth white spherical sculpture on a stack of art design books. Mirror the Bauhaus movement's use of primary colours with a decorative tray in bright yellow to juxtapose your room’s relaxed blue furnishings.

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