Industrial chic
Not all homeowners are interested in the conventional walls, floors, and patterns that traditionally indicate a comforting space. In fact, one of the best modern living room ideas is to turn the space into an industrial playground. Leveraging both concrete materials and faux concrete patterns, this design is about embracing hard materials and celebrating gray accessories.
For contrast, bright red, white, and green accents draw the eye away from the abundance of gray while adding an eclectic vibe. This is a perfect fit for homes in urban areas, especially those in converted warehouses and lofts, usually located in a more historically industrial part of the city itself.
Longhorn living room
Looking for something that looks like it came straight from a Texas ranch? There’s no need to look any further, with a design that embraces all of Texas’ historically prominent design elements: The longhorn bust, wide planks that have been whitewashed for contrast, and exposed beams that help to break up the height of a traditionally vaulted ceiling.
The design creates cozy spaces through the use of modern furniture, centered on a natural and intriguing coffee table. With windows that run the length of the room’s height, natural light helps to give the space an open and inviting feel that will make it a hub of family and social activity for years to come.
Concrete apartment living
Some urban apartments have been restyled in recent years to embrace concrete, much in the same way that they began embracing exposed brick walls a few decades ago. Concrete’s industrial appeal is transformed into a more inviting aesthetic with this design, which is uniquely urban from top to bottom.
Bright, neon fixtures bring new sources of light and color into the room without so much as a splash of paint on the walls. A modern sectional, which focuses centrally on the television and bookshelves, provides both a focal point and a comfortable place to catch up on the news of the day or entertain a few guests.
The unique configuration of this design, and its embrace of unconventional lighting, means that it can scale up or down to a room of almost any size in an urban environment.
Nordic comfort idea
When most people think of Scandinavian living room decor ideas, they often refer to the styles, patterns, and accessories sold at IKEA. That’s not a bad template. In fact, this design looks like something that could plausibly be seen in many Scandinavian homes and IKEA stores.
The difference, however, is in this design’s embrace of premium materials, bolder colors, and the type of unique wall accents that take time to find and skill to hang.
This design has all the trappings of Scandinavian minimalism: stainless steel materials, a natural floor, smooth walls, and only a minimal embrace of color to provide focal points. It’s an excellent choice for urban dwellers and the purely modern homeowner who wants a forward-thinking living room interior design.
Over the rainbow
Don’t show these living room decor ideas to exposed brick purists. While the brick can still be seen in this design, its natural finish is hidden behind what looks like a combination of urban murals and urban graffiti. Perfect for a penthouse or even a basement family room, this design’s use of color is minimal.
The accent wall’s rainbow of colors contrasts nicely with white walls, floors, and home furnishings, giving the space a modern and minimalist feel that will appeal to homeowners and designers with those sensibilities. While not for everyone, the living room decorating ideas found in this space provide great inspiration for transforming brick materials into a conversation piece.