Create A Designer Approved Focal Point In Your Living Room

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You eyes are actually full of muscles and being such, they like to be worked. You can avoid a boring living room by giving your eyes something to be drawn to. One focal point in a living room is enough, unless you have a huge living room or an open floor plan.

Items to use for Focal Points

A fireplace of any type is a focal point that is built into your living room. If you already have a fireplace, you can dress it up a bit by using reclaimed molding, tile or architecture to draw attention and interest in it. A large mirror can be a miraculous focal point and work wonders in a living room. The reflection from a mirror brightens and enlarges any space where you put it. It's best to hang it at eye level for the greatest results. You can build your room around a dramatic piece of artwork or a lovely sculpture. Pick up one color or pattern from your focal piece and add it to your room in small touches.

Decorate Your Walls

Walls are for so much more than just paint. You can create a feature wall or a hanging collection to add drama to your living room in a very inexpensive manner. You can create a collection on a wall with anything that can be framed--and most anything can be framed. You can use shadow boxes for smaller items and collections or self-stick hooks to attach items to the wall on a semi-permanent basis, and then you can change the items every so often. Ditch the inexpensive artwork and make the entire wall a feature wall that begs to be seen by all. Covering an entire wall of your living room with designer fabric can transform your entire living room into a dramatic area. You can alternately apply an inexpensive decal or paint a design or mural on the wall if you are a budding artist. If you have unattractive and dated windows or a long wall that is blank, consider covering a wall or the windows with ceiling to floor curtains to add an attractive solution to your living room.

Make Use of Assorted Shelving

Bookshelves are quite inexpensive and many homeowners stock up on them, but they may not realize how to use them to brighten a room and display objects correctly. Make sure you mix the items on your open shelving appropriately with two-thirds books and one-third decor. Keep your inexpensive items, such as paperbacks in a covered storage area, such as shelves with doors at the bottom of a shelving unit. Leave some breathing room for your decor on shelves and don't fill them up entirely or it will appear cluttered. Space between objects is always more visually appealing. If you have dark shelves you can brighten them by using mirrored picture frames, glass vases and any other reflective surfaces. You can add an extra layer of drama to this type of focal point by adding under the counter lighting on the shelves.

Plan a Clutter Catcher

The best space for a clutter catchall is beside the door you use the most to enter the living room. It can actually be in your entryway that leads to the living room or next to the living room doorway. You can make great use of an assortment of organizing baskets, hooks on the wall, cubbyholes, shelving and wall mounted trays to hold purses, keys, cell phones, mail, dirty shoes, backpacks, coats and your spare change. This will keep these items from cluttering the entire living room and looking messy, as they will all be in one area. Alternately, you can make use of a bench seat with storage under the seating area. You will want to have several organizers under the seat, making items easy to put in and take out or you most likely won't even use it.

Layers of Light

When most homeowners decorate a living room, they may decide that they will rely on overhead lighting alone. Harsh, overhead lights are not very conducive to relaxation. Adding floor lamps can soften a space. You can use an assortment of lamps at different heights and using different bulb watts to spread around the living room. Track ceiling lighting or recessed lighting as well and under the counter lighting and art lights can help to highlight certain areas while providing some ambient lighting throughout the rest of your living room. Try flanking your existing fireplace or feature wall with lighted wall sconces to add accent light without taking up your valuable table or floor space with lamps.

Go Bold

Bold color can really add focus to a room. Painting the ceiling a bold red color and then framing it with dark molding makes an instant focal point to a room that is otherwise unremarkable. If you choose your bold color on the ceiling, then make sure the lighting in your room can handle the dark color. You can add a strong chandelier to your living room to draw the eye upward and distinguish your ceiling as the focal point. If you go bold, keep the other patterns and colors in the entire living room at a minimum so there is no competition with the ceiling. If you use too many busy patterns or colors, your living room will make people overwhelmed.

Natural and Botanical

You can create a focal point of a single huge plant or a collection of smaller plants grouped together to draw the eye to them. Make certain you take into consideration the lighting you already have or add additional lighting so the plants will flourish. You wouldn't want your focal point to display damaged leaves, wilt or show neglect in any manner. Any of these items can help you to create a focal point in your living room with ease and at little expense. After all, it is the highlight of your space and when treated appropriately, you'll receive many positive remarks.