In today’s fast-paced and stressful world, finding solace and tranquility within the comfort of our own homes has become increasingly important. As the heart of the home, the living room plays a significant role in creating a calming and peaceful environment. By incorporating thoughtful design elements, decluttering, and utilizing soothing colors and textures, you can transform your living room into a serene sanctuary where you can unwind and recharge.

Decluttering for a Tranquil Atmosphere

The first step in creating a calm living room is to declutter and simplify the space. Remove any unnecessary items, excess furniture, and visual clutter. Adopt a minimalist approach, keeping only the essential and meaningful items. Simplifying the room will create a sense of openness and spaciousness, allowing for a more tranquil atmosphere.

As an interior photographer, I’ve learned how to curate a space to look its best in photos. This almost always means removing quite a few pieces. While I may overdo it to make an image look its best, the principle still applies to a room in general. Have you ever noticed how much better the energy of a space feels after putting things back in their place and cleaning up?

The clutter that consumes a room can also consume space in our minds, so the more we can discard, the lighter we feel ourselves. I personally like to do a spring clean at least twice a year and really remove the things that no longer serve or spark joy in my home. This includes items I’ve kept out of guilt, not wanting to hurt the feelings of those who gave them to me. But in the end, if an item doesn’t have a purpose in my life or add to the story of our mid-century boho feel, it’s time to let it go.

Lighting for a Cozy and Inviting Ambiance

Lighting plays a crucial role in setting the mood of a room. Maximize the use of natural light by making window treatments easy to keep open, like our drape hooks, or choosing translucent options to allow ample sunlight to filter through. During the evening, opt for soft lighting options such as floor lamps, table lamps, or string lights to create a cozy and inviting ambiance. Avoid harsh, bright lights that can be jarring and disruptive to the calm atmosphere.

In our living room, we’re lucky to have a skylight that adds ample light to the space, making the deep jewel-tone blue of the fireplace even more eye-catching. I love sitting on the couch with the fireplace on while it rains, listening to the drops hitting the skylight. It’s moments like these that truly make a space feel like a sanctuary.

Incorporating Meaningful Pieces

Along with the skylight and large window, we’ve added vintage lamps to the space. These lamps are very special to me because they were my grandmother’s and great-grandmother’s. The Rococo-looking lamp that was originally a kerosene lamp and later converted to electric is one of my favorite possessions. This is when the story behind a piece takes precedence over having a perfectly aligned design.

The thing I love about the slow living lifestyle is being intentional with all that we do. If you have a reason for bringing a piece into your space, then it makes sense for the design. I don’t believe in making cookie-cutter houses that look like everyone else’s. I want pieces no one else will have to start conversations and share something about who I am. That’s what home means to me, and these items passed down or found on trips are the pieces that will make the most of your space and should always be used as statements.

Soothing Color Palettes and Textures

Choose a soothing color palette that promotes relaxation and calmness. Soft and muted hues like blues, greens, grays, and earth tones have a calming effect. Incorporate these colors through wall paint, wallpaper, fabrics, and décor.

In our living room, you’ll notice that I’m not afraid of a little color. I’ve broken down color theory more extensively in my free guide to choosing soothing colors for your space, but to keep it simple, I’m looking for colors that are less saturated and feel a little more earthy. Blues, greens, yellows, and even reds can come in these shades, like sky blue, deep ocean blue, sage green, soft yellow, and terracotta.

You don’t have to stick with gray and white to make your house feel calm. To me, that feels more like a hospital than an inspiring place to rest and get re-inspired. Instead, think of what a spa is like, with warming colors, patterns that remind you of nature, and scents and sounds to add to the experience.

In our living room, you’ll see that I went bold with a blue curtain in a fun pattern. I could have downplayed it and chosen something in the sage green shades that are used in the adjacent rooms, but I thought, “Why not?” My space is meant to be a statement, something to start conversations and a place where our family and others can get inspired. So, I went for it.

Along with the blue curtain, we have our favorite Article chairs in a terracotta color, a deep blue fireplace, and a rug that pulls it all together with grays and reds. I’ve experimented with different shades and hues to create visual interest while maintaining a serene environment.

Bringing Nature into the Living Room

Every design blog will tell you to bring nature into your home because we’re meant to be in nature. We need that connection. When the season blues take hold of me, I need to get my hands in the dirt, which usually means tending to my indoor plants.

While our home might be bright and colorful, we actually get limited direct sun, so we’re restricted to what type of indoor plants we can have, with a lot of leafy things that don’t flower. However, every room has some sort of plant in it, and the living room has the most light, so it has the most plants, with more to come, I’m sure.

Integrate nature-inspired elements into your living room to establish a connection with the outdoors. Use indoor plants such as peace lilies, snake plants, or aloe vera to introduce greenery and purify the air. Incorporate natural materials like wood, bamboo, or rattan in your furniture and accessories for an organic and grounding feel.

You’ll see that we have baskets within the space as a touch of nature, as well as the fibers on the pillows on the couch. Together, they add little pieces of nature that invite a calm energy. Nature-inspired artwork, wallpaper, photographs from your travels, or even the curtains with a variety of animals all bring the wild outdoors in to evoke a sense of calm.

Comfortable and Cozy Seating

Invest in comfortable seating options that invite you to relax and unwind. Consider plush sofas, armchairs, or oversized floor cushions that provide ample support. Opt for soft, natural fabrics like linen or cotton for upholstery, as they add to the overall comfort and relaxation of the space.

Layer with cozy throw blankets and pillows in soothing textures to enhance the sense of coziness. We waited years to get our Article wingback chairs, and they were worth the wait. Not only are they beautiful, but they’re also insanely comfortable. You can sit in these chairs in any different way and still be able to fall asleep.

I have a blanket on almost every piece of furniture in the house. They don’t always make it into the photographs because it can look a bit messy, but when it’s the naked eye in the room, it’s one more way to add texture, color, pattern, and, of course, coziness.

A Work in Progress

This living room was developed over the course of three years of living in this house and years of dreaming of the right furniture, and it’s still not done. To me, that’s the most important thing to remember in a slow home – it’s never finished. We dream of replacing the carpet with hardwood floors when the budget allows and adding some more paint and maybe a new door that leads to the garage.

While we think that once we re-decorate a space, we’re done for good, the truth is there is always something we’ll want to change or add. Styling a space is never done, but when done slowly and with intention, it can be a creative act that takes a lifetime and is well worth it.

I’m Katie Jackson, an artist and slow living advocate. Here on this blog, you’ll find me writing about living intentionally, stories behind my art, and my life in the slow lane. If you want articles like these sent directly to your inbox, sign up for my newsletter. I’m here to show you the magic in the ordinary. In slowing down and tuning in, you’ll find new inspiration in your life and your work. Join me on this journey to living intentionally and see how a little modern magic can transform your world.