SFGate

Dar Eckert Looks like you have an overabundance of furniture. Take the tan chair out of the room or put it where you are standing to take this photo. A little empty space in a room is your friend. Empty space makes a small room appear larger. Remove wreath and small picture. Move the book case to the location where the chair is. Remove all except one item from the top hang the small picture above it.

prissy13 sorry. forgot to mention the pics with the blu pillows on the couch are the after photos. i originally had my small loveseat and chair on this long wall. can't move my chair. my living room opens up to my kitchen on the other end.

Dar Eckert I would remove the chair too crowded or you could float the love seat with back to kitchen so loveseat and sofa face each other. Then put the tan chair where the love seat is. Edit stuff off walls & extra stuff.

judyg I wouldn't spend a dime on new furniture until you rethink what you have now.
I am definitely a less is more person, so this is what I would do:

Remove: EVERYTHING but your sofas, chair(s) and the print over the sofa.. That means the rug, too. I would rather see the windows, so if you can, try the loveseat from where you took the picture and put the chair in that spot with the cute accordion table next to it.

Now you need end tables and lamps, a not so heavy coffee table.

prissy13 would you put a sectional? i have been debating about getting new sofas. we have two young kids and they are always fighting to sit with us on the couch but we never have enough space. was thinking of these two options.

Dar Eckert With all the doors and windows in your living room, you would have to float the sectional in center of the room so you could walk behind. I'm thinking your better with sofa and love seat so many more options for arrangements.

judyg I really would not spend the money until you try to rearrange and weed out. In truth, with a sofa and loveseat, you almost have a sectional. You sit on one sofa and your hubby can sit on the other. When the kids get older that is when I would spend my money on a new sofa. Both Dar and I think you have so much stuff going on in this room.

decoenthusiaste Your space is very well filled up already, without a sectional. Edit, edit, edit. Start the new year with a big clean out project. Box up everything you can move (pillows, books, throws, baskets, pictures. small furniture) into categorized boxes labeled "I don't want," "warm season," and "cool season" based on use and color. You don't have to use items just because you have them. I would limit the decor above the sofa to the one large picture, centered about 5" above the sofa back. I'm guessing the bookcase would probably fit nicely where you have the tree now. I would consider placing it where there is room for the light chair and floor lamp - a reading nook. Loosen your drapery to fall freely to the floor. Take the shelf decorating tutorial here at Houzz and then open the box of current season decor items and put what you learn into practice as you pull your room together. When the season changes and it is spring cleaning time, you'll have a new box of items to switch out for a fresh warm season look.

prissy13 ok ladies. took your advice but now am stuck. here are a few pics of the room without all the furniture. but I feel like the loveseat looks weird by itself facing away from the kitchen and the sofas can't face each other unless the larger one is not centered on the wall. Help please

judyg First off, this is the first time we have seen a fireplace and the t v. Could you take another shot with your back at the windows where the tree is? Also, where is the front door? What are we seeing from that angle.

I really, really like the room without the rug. Looks so much bigger and brighter without all the other pieces of furniture. The little table and the chair paired look nice.

Using the sofa and love seat (pretending that it is a sectional) if you did indeed purchase the sectional how would you position it? Try it with the two pieces.

The pix that I posted above with the back of the love seat to the kitchen and the sofa at right angle, would that arrangement work?

Karen Emmons I agree. Remove pillows, rug and all the pictures from the walls. Remove some of the books from the bookshelf and add small unique items in the empty spaces. Remove the small table and lamp and place the floor lamp in its spot. Use the gold mirror as a tray for the coffee table. (Make sure there isn't anything left on the back to scratch it.) Replace the magaizinebasket with something larger, so you don't actually see the contents sticking out. You will have the "p" barn style your looking for without the price.

prissy13 Yes, i like it without the rug too. The reason we have it is because we have speakers with wired that go behind the couches and the sires get hidden under the rug. The front door is opposite the windows. Then when you come in there is the fireplace and tv to your left and the long tall wall to your right. I will attach two pics. That long wall is the problem so i always figured an L shapes would work best with sofas angled across the windows and along the tall wall. TV has to stay where it is because of the cable hookup.

Interiors International, Inc. I love the idea of a sectional.

janishill Judyg is right. Position the two large pieces as though they were a sectional floating out in the room facing the fireplace/TV wall.

judyg When you come into the living room, can the love seat go perpindicular to the long wall? It is so hard to judge your room from the pictures.

Also, do you have a dining room? Or another room for your living room? Maybe this one should be your dining room.

If that is one of the speakers on the floor, have you considered a Bose system instead? How Cow, you could use that for a drink table :>)

eastlake You have many good elements, but need to pare down. Move bookcase to right of sofa to balance lamp. Leave only the print over the sofa and bring it down a few inches. The drapes look better hanging straight down, not pulled back. Can the blinds be pulled up and out of the way? There is too much going on over by the windows. Also, remove basket with magazines to another place in the house. Also, the white on the table could be replaced with a nice wooden tray.
Good luck.

prissy13 nope. this our only living space. It's an open concept so it opens up to the kitchen and small dining area. you basically come in the front door and have to walk through the living room to get to the kitchen and dining area and the backyard access. see attached photo.

decoenthusiaste Love to see someone get serious and move furniture - playing around is the best way to come out with the results you want. Yes, that rug wasn't working. Because this is an open concept area, you may have to "float" the main seating. As this is our first time to see some angles, we will have to rethink some previous suggestions. If the long sofa were centered on the wall to the left of the entry/foyer (facing the windows,) and the small one in an "L" with it, would both see the TV and FP? I'm trying to relate where the floor lamp is (a stationary object that hasn't moved) in relation to the entry? I'm assuming two walls - one opposite the windows and one perpendicular to them. opposite the kitchen.

prissy13 that is my dilemma. there are only two main walls (the one with the two windows and the long one when you walk in on the RHS. the other small wall houses the tv and fireplace which cant be moved. i always have such a hard time with this room and never like the layout no matter how much i move the furniture.

joanpeddie I think the tub chair should be on the other side of the room......it is hiding the Christmas tree and it is too close to the loveseat.....it looks misplaced......dangling.....

janishill It doesn't have to be a good drawing, but can you sketch the floor plan with doors and windows?

MAlps room looks a bit cluttered. the 3 pictures on the wall have no set up or relevance one to the next

decoenthusiaste Your picture above is working well except for the chair. Is there space for it in the master or guest bedroom? Where did the bookcase go? A bedroom may be the spot for the reading nook. I think once the seasonal trim and decorations are down, you'll have an easier time of it. Once that is done you might have room to leave 18" between the sofa and window for a straight walkway to the kitchen from the bedroom. Your table lamp is a bit skimpy - maybe you could hit the current sales for a larger one with a bit of metal for some bling.

prissy13 ok. so i tried to reposition the furniture into a conversation grouping near the windows. But, this leaves an empty space by the front entry way. Attached is my bets layout for the room. Really appreciate everyone's advice.

Dar Eckert This is a good arrangement just move everything away from the windows a little so you can walk behind the furniture to reach the door. I would also center the chair in front of the coffee table. Also removing wall hangings is much better.

decoenthusiaste I like the "L" better with an 18" walkway by the windows once the seasonal items are removed.

tennisanyone I like the "L" also. Maybe get two ottomans and put them in front of the fireplace for more seating.