Our living rooms are where we relax with our families, entertain our friends and spend the majority of our time raising our children. They are there to welcome us in after a hard day at work, contain comfy corner sofas sick days in front of the television and are home to the humble sofa bed, which instantly creates a guestroom for your nearest and dearest. 

The living room is quite simply the heart of the home, so injecting some personality into it is essential; adding lush leather sofas, sparkling mosaic mirrors or daring black feature walls, whatever it takes to make a house a home.  

The literary lover

When books are a huge part of your life it seems a shame for them to be hidden away in cupboards, scattered on various bookshelves and stored in the attic. If reading is something you treasure, making a feature out of your collection can create an atmosphere which will instantly encourage you to relax. Books can also cause chaos so having a dedicated space for them will keep a room looking neat and tidy.

 

Opt for book cases which utilise a whole wall and reminisce as you fill them with some of your favourite reads. Choose a comfortable reading chair to nestle into an alcove and team it with a slim side table for a lamp and a hot drink. Simple shades, such as a dark cream wall colour, will keep the focus on the books and maintain an uncluttered feel. Add to this dark wooden furniture, deep red textiles and furnishings to deepen the mood. A light cream ruffle rug will balance and brighten the base of the room.

The high life at home

That toe-tingling sensation when you enter a hotel suite doesn’t have to be exclusive to fancy minibreaks and luxury holidays. Know the fundamentals to hotel room design and recreate the look at home: living areas in hotel accommodation are strikingly simple. Purchasing a corner sofa will help to structure your room and add an ideal area to place your carefully measured luxury rug. Select a coffee table, which will sit centrally (with the rug as a frame), and create a small display of magazines, flowers and a little box, or bowl, of chocolate truffles.

Although you want to keep furniture to a minimum, with the exclusion of a particularly nice seating area, ensure that you do not spare any expense when it comes to furnishings and accessories. Try to group items so that they become a feature; from ornaments to cushions, attempt to position these in multiples to give a luxurious layered effect. Décor needs to be confident: pick a base shade and use a colour wheel to select a complimenting and also a contrasting colour. Use these in blocks and ensure statement items around the room carry this theme.

A house in the country

The latest trend to have been reignited is definitely inspiring our interiors. The country is going crazy for everything homemade (Kirsty Allsop style): home-baked cupcake creations and home-grown veggies, pulled from your very own allotment. Sound right up your street? You are not alone. Frugal living has enticed many of us into embracing what was an old-fashioned way of surviving, only to make it bang on trend.

A must for country styling is floral patterns. Go for a flowery sofa; small prints usually work best, teamed with bold coloured cushions and a matching tasselled, cashmere throw. Use genuine wood furniture, oak will warm the room against coloured walls. To create contrast, paint panels in a light, neutral shade. Beams are also a fabulous feature of traditional country homes, so do not remove or detract from these if you are lucky enough to have them. Little co-ordinating vases filled with British blooms are the picture-perfect way to complete the look.