How to decorate with open and closed storage
The living room is one of the most multifunctional rooms in the home. It is a social space, a place for relaxation and even an area to work from home. So it's no surprise that it ends up filled with hundreds of items, and we often don't know where to put everything so that it doesn't look too cluttered.
Want some ideas for decorating and organising your living room? Don't miss out on these simple solutions and design a smart space thanks to different open and closed storage options. The result? A neat, practical living room with a much more relaxed atmosphere.
Shall we get started?
1. Find smart, multiuse furniture
Storing your living room items and organising the house is easier than you think. After tidying up and getting rid of objects you don't really want to keep, look for multifunctional furniture that will suit your needs.
Start by hiding things you don't want to be seen with closed storage systems, like a pair of base cabinets that can also serve as room dividers. The top surface is fully usable and could be used to store a small collection of books or a couple of plants, for example. This is a very simple and affordable way to tidy up, create different areas in one room and decorate it.
2. Display your favourite pieces
Just as closed storage helps neaten up your living room and enhance that sense of organisation and tidiness, open storage solutions, such as display cabinets, offer a decorative extra to any living room and help fill it with personality using our favourite pieces.
Put things you want to both display and protect in glass-door display cabinets. They are great if you want to show off your collections without the risk of fatal falls, or simply if you want to keep them away from pesky dust. Adjustable shelves also allow you to change the height of each level, so they're super adaptable.
One last idea, please! If you want your display cases to stand out both day and night, install some LED light strips inside to make your entire collection shine with a magical touch.
3. Use matching units
When decorating your living room with storage systems, make sure that all your furniture matches. In other words, make sure that all your furniture is the same shade to give the room a harmonious feel and ensure that you get the most appealing end result.
In this case, we have used several sets of black boxes to store office supplies. Like this idea? You can use them to store papers such as invoices, letters, stationery or other office supplies. Moreover, as they have wheels, you can move them easily, which helps every time you have to take out and put away things on the dining table. It's really handy!
4. Hide cluttered shelves
Even with the help of organising your items on a shelf, you may not want to constantly see the contents of every cluttered shelf, especially if you're trying to relax in the living room. So, if you don't have extra room to clear it out a little, we propose a very affordable and simple solution—deceive your senses with the power of a curtain.
Watch out though! This is no excuse for not having tidy shelves. It's simply a way to disguise objects to help clear the mind and decorate the space with another alternative. To do this, choose a colour scheme that is tone-on-tone. We've gone for shades of natural tones in contrast with dusty pink details. Textile layers also help create contrast and enhance the acoustics of your space. So, it's perfect for relaxing to a bit of quality music.
Hey! Before you go, we'll leave you with this video, which has some quick ideas you can pick up for decorating any of your shelf units. You'll see how good they look!
And in case you're looking for more ideas on home decor and organising your home, we've prepared some specially selected articles to keep you inspired. Enjoy!
We love it when customers use our products in a creative way. Why not try to do something new with them yourself? But do remember, any modifications or changes that you make to IKEA products will prevent them from being resold or used for their original purpose, thus invalidating IKEA product warranties and your right to return them.
