5 inspiring ideas for an elegant minimal-style living room
03.2022
Inspired by the growing trend towards minimalist décor, we’ve put together a guide to help you create a stylish contemporary living room
5 inspiring ideas for an elegant minimal-style living room
The living room is invariably not only the most lived-in room in a home, but also the space most on show, as it’s where we host visitors and entertain. Often, particularly in modern homes, it is part of an open plan layout that the front door opens directly onto, so furnishing a living room requires particular thought if we want to make it stylish, welcoming and practical.
Whereas in the past, living rooms would often be crammed full of furniture and accessories, the increase in minimal design trends over the past few years has seen a move away from that look. Modern living rooms tend to be sparsely furnished with a focus on functionality and muted, neutral colour palettes. Simplicity and minimalism are the key words, with simple, clean lines the order of the day and anything over-complicated to be avoided.
Today we take a look at how to achieve the perfect modern living room look, and we share 5 examples of elegant, minimal décors.
The 3 rules of minimalist design
The secret to creating a modern living room décor is to take a minimalist approach so that the beauty of the space is showcased. There are 3 main components to consider:
- Neutral colour
- Smooth, hardwearing materials
- Clean, simple shapes
The colour palette simply must be made up of neutral tones, with the most common being white, black, grey and cream.
Then, to help emphasise a sense of spaciousness and airiness, it is recommended that you choose hardwearing materials that are smooth to the touch as these create visual continuity throughout the space. For a lounge or living area, the perfect choices here are wood for its inherent warmth, natural stone for its timeless elegance and metal, although this is more often to be found in accessories, accents and finishing details.
All three materials are ideal for showcasing the clean, decisive lines that typify minimalist design. Simple, unfussy shapes and forms help delineate a space, which is why the few items of furniture that you select should respect the same principles, avoiding too much embellishment or unnecessary adornments.
With that said, let’s see principles in practice by taking a look at 5 examples of stylish, minimalist living rooms.
Minimalist style open plan living room
Open plan living is an increasingly popular design solution in homes, such as that adopted in this modern, elegant example where we have a living room that flows into the dining and kitchen areas, separated by a partial wall to create a nominal delineation between the two zones.
The crisp geometric lines of Stone Tatami are brought to life in the creamy tones of Crema d’Orcia, accented by dark brown Pietra d’Avola, which we also find in the fireplace and again in the kitchen island.
Each item of furniture has plenty of room to breathe so that we can appreciate it in its full beauty, with the sinuous curves of the Curl chaise longue repeating the Pietra d’Avola theme, and the perfect spot for enjoying the fire in winter or relaxing with a book. Adding to the elegant atmosphere is the Urano floor lamp, a flawless sphere of white marble.
Designer lights for a designer living room
Lighting is a fundamental element in any part of the home, but in the living room, not just the light, but the fitting itself, can become a key design element and that means that it deserves the same consideration and planning as your furniture.
As a general rule, you should choose one key piece that illuminates the entire space and then add secondary lights in particular corners or zones. This supremely stylish modern living area illustrates this to perfection, with the Silo contemporary chandelier taking centre stage, while an Urano floor lamp is positioned alongside the chairs.
In keeping with the principles of furnishing a modern living room in minimalist style, we have clean, geometric shapes, with the circular forms of the lights and Proiezioni table juxtaposed with the angular square form of the ‘Love me, Love not’ coffee table in inky black Noir St Laurent marble.
Less is more when it comes to choosing furniture
It may not be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about furnishing a home in minimalist chic, but a bookcase or shelving unit can be an interesting and stylish solution, as it can be positioned against the wall or in the middle of a large room if you want to break up the space.
The mini-split level layout of this example means the room is naturally divided into two zones, so in this case our Colonnata bookcase has been placed in the more traditional wall position, for a clean, uncluttered look. Care has also been taken with the arrangement of books and accessories which include a Gravity sphere and piece from our Kilos collection.
Respecting the rules of minimalist design, we not only have just a couple of carefully-selected items of furniture, but a textbook colour scheme with the pairing of cream and grey. Crema d’Orcia limestone is used in the classic honed finish on the side wall and in our Stone Parquet on the floor, while behind the bookcase, our Tratti texture combines Gris du Marais® marble with accents in gold-coloured metal for a touch of restrained bling.
Minimalism and comfort in harmony
This chic loft apartment living room oozes character and shows just how an artful arrangement of colours, shapes and textures can create a minimalist environment that combines comfort, practicality and design flair.
The original brick wall is painted white to provide a dramatic contrast with the dark floor in Pietra d’Avola Stone Parquet, setting the scene for the trio of coffee tables from the Dritto and ‘Love me, Love me not’ collections, mixing square and circular shapes in perfect unison, while the pair of long, low Pliss cabinets in Bianco Carrara marble provide a stylish storage solution.
As a counterpoint to the cool, elegance of natural stone, we have soft, inviting seating that creates a living room that embodies the principles of contemporary minimalist interior design, without becoming stark or uninviting.
The wall as a key design element
While a minimal design is all about “less is more”, that doesn’t mean the walls should be left unadorned. In fact, they take on additional importance and provide a counterpoint, ensuring the room doesn’t feel too empty or bare.
As always, of course, the trick is to choose the right pieces, and we are not only talking about art, although in this example, there is no doubt that the bold geometric patterns of the Intarsi panels in Bianco Carrara and Pietra d’Avola are an eye-catching feature.
Wall-mounted items of furniture are ideal if you are looking to create a contemporary, uncluttered look, not only because they free up the centre of the room, but also because they introduce a sense of lightness. On the functional side, they also make cleaning easier. Our configuration of Balnea modular drawers in this sophisticated modern living room illustrates the point to perfection. Made from Silk Georgette® limestone, they harmonise with the wall and floor for a wonderfully fluid look.
Adhering to the rules of minimalism, we have simple shapes and clean lines throughout, with a round Dritto side table paired with the solid square form of the Ta_Volo® low table, while the accessories follow suit with pieces such as our Mono vases, Omaggio a Morandi stone bottle and Pietra L11 scent diffuser.
“Were it not for shadow there would be no beauty” writes Japanese author Junichiro Tanizaki in his 1933 essay In Praise of Shadows.
London can be a pretty hectic place. Every day the Tube – the oldest metro system in the world – carries some five million people through tunnels deep underground; busses ferry about the same number through London’s streets. It is a city always on the move, and when you find yourself with some free time, it can be important to take life at a slower pace, though that doesn’t necessarily mean needing to head out of town.
