Three Stunning Modern Living Room Design Inspirations

The living room is one of the most important rooms in the entire house. If you only could choose one space in your home to put your heart and soul into designing, we are sure you would choose the living room to be at the top of your list. It is the first room that your guests see and should set the tone for your entire decorating scheme throughout your home.

There are many decorating styles that you can choose from, and the most popular are traditional, country, contemporary, and transitional. Whichever style you choose, make sure that you create a space stays true to your aesthetic and reflects your own personal style.

Among the four styles, modern or contemporary design is one of the hottest trends these days especially for those people whose main focus is the function of their home. Aside from that, the clean look of modern interiors make home owners love this type of concept which is clutter free and stress free.

Depending on the layout of your house, your contemporary living space can serve a multitude of functions, a formal sitting area, a space for relaxation, or for entertaining guests and spending time with family. Here are three fresh design inspirations to help you modernise your living room interior:

Luminette Privacy Sheers

If what you like to create is a quiet, relaxing and enjoyable living room, white is the colour of choice. White gives a living room a very light appearance, particularly if combined with a good choice of furniture. The huge windows also give natural light to this modern living room, making it look more inviting.

Luxaflex Silhouette Shadings with PowerRise Platinum Technology

The combination of grey, black and white in their correct doses, easily transforms any room into a more modern and elegant environment. It does not need to be loaded with a lot of colours, rather a simple grey matched with perfectly contrasting textiles and sophisticated décor creates a contemporary twist. You also don’t really need to use a single colour for your furniture, choosing a different colour can act as an accent that ties the room together and takes it to a whole new level.  

Luxaflex Roller Blinds with Atmosphere fabric

A monochromatic scheme is another good option for decorating a modern living room. Off-white, earthy tones and some subtle accents are all that is needed to create an elegant, warm and welcoming living room. A unique mixture of materials and the use of fine lines from the combination of roller blinds and curtains creates a clean and cosy ambiance.

Interior Design Insights: It's a Point of View

Written by Lynn Malone, exclusively for Luxaflex

On the outlook
Not every window is situated to provide its viewer with an idealistic perspective looking outward.  In many instances there are detractions that are preferably visually eliminated or at least minimised. No doubt most of us have experienced this dilemma – a less than pleasant outlook from a kitchen, a hotel guest room or an office window.  On the other hand, there are windows with picture perfect postcard views that entice you to capture the vistas as mementos – either stored in your memory bank, or as snap shots loaded and Facebook shared.

Inside and out; good view or bad; or somewhere in between – Luxaflex have window covering solutions to match the situation. Here are a few window-viewing scenarios we’ve probably all encountered at some point! Needless to say, Luxaflex comes to the rescue.

Hello neighbours!

Scenario: With a growing number of Australian families residing in apartments located in densely populated suburbs and apartment buildings that share window walls – privacy between adjacent apartments presents a challenge. As much as you may want to get to know the new neighbours, peering into one another’s apartment is probably not what you had in mind.

To the rescue
Duette Shades in Top Down/Bottom Up design option allows privacy control for select window areas while leaving other areas of the windows unrestricted allowing sunlight and airflow.

Duette Architella Shades - Top-Down-Bottom-Up

Wow

Scenario:  What about when the views from your home are knockout for about 80% of the time?  It is just that 20% exception when a window covering is required for sunlight control, keeping the warmth or cool inside or for privacy, as examples. On the Australian eastern seaboard, northern light is preferable – add an unencumbered water view and it has the making of a dream location. In this situation, the optimal window treatment is off the window and concealed until it is called to action – then easily operable to fulfill its purpose.

To the rescue
Luxaflex Qmotion roller blinds using either a translucent fabric or a blockout fabric does the trick. The internal roller is fitted with an operational mechanism powered by a battery (with a 5-year lifetime) to open and close the blind using the remote or simply controlling it by hand. With addition of the Qsync device and the Qmotion app you can also control the blinds via a smartphone or tablet. For my apartment, I selected Temple in a translucent fabric.

Luxaflex Qmotion Roller Blinds in Temple Translucent Fabric

The windswept look

Scenario:  As a sustainable energy solution to home heating and cooling, cross ventilation is a viable option. Open more doors and windows to maximise the breeze in the summer and vice versa in the winter – it’s simple. But how about the wear and tear on the window coverings as they blow in the wind?

To the rescue
Luxaflex Newstyle Polyresin Shutters – the shutters have multiple configurations from single panel, hinged for smaller windows; multi-panel hinged bi-fold systems for larger windows; or bi-fold track systems for doors with up to eight panels – all have hand-adjustable blades to control airflow and sunlight. Don’t worry if the shutters get wet, they have a 20-year warranty against sunlight and water damage. The shutters are available in three shades of white finishes – my favourite is the whitest of the whites.

Luxaflex Newstyle Polyresin Shutters

Get out

Scenario: With a climate that affords enjoying the outdoors almost year-round, many Australian homes take advantage of indoor/outdoor living and countless weekends are spent with friends and families outside entertaining, cooking on the barbeque and kids playing in the pool.  But along comes an afternoon storm during the middle of a Sunday barbeque – what to do?

To the rescue
Luxaflex Sunrain Awning – here comes the rain, out comes the retractable awning. Sunrain PVC fabrics are rain proof and selected to complement the exterior finish of your home. Optional infrared heaters may be added for increased comfort during the cooler months.

Luxaflex Sunrain Awning with optional heating - Entertain all year-round

Interior Design Insights: Art Attack

... Or a beginner's guide to starting an art collection.

Written by Lynn Malone, exclusively for Luxaflex with expert art adviser, Brenda Colahan of Brenda Colahan Fine Art.

Street walking for art
Entry to many London galleries and museums is free including the Tate Modern. Without question Tate Modern is steeped in history and its collection of modern and contemporary art is extraordinary; however, my interests were in the streets. Finding London street art and commercial galleries was equally intriguing and time well spent visiting... Here are my picks.  Happy trails.

Hebru Brantley Six, 2014. Courtesy of Mead Carney Fine Art, London

Mead Carney
meadcarney.com
Representing megastar artists Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst, Mead Carney are on top of their game when it comes to identifying artists who have potential to be highly collectible and purchase prices to soar. Hebru Brantley is one of those handpicked by Mead Carney and the Gallery hosted his first international exhibition. Brantley’s work first came to attention at Art Basel in Miami when hip-hopping zillionaire, Jay Z acquired several pieces.

David Zwirner Contemporary
davidzwirner.com
Fostering the careers of some of the most influential working artists today and estates of internationally acclaimed artists, David Zwirner Contemporary Gallery is one not to miss. While the Gallery represents a wealth of talent, my selection as an emerging artist to watch comes closer to home and is Matt Glenn, a London-based, Australian-born visual artist and coincidently the David Zwirner gallery assistant manager. Glenn is represented in Sydney and Berlin by Michael Reid Gallery.

Matt Glenn, Green screen for an action film, 2011. With permission of the artist.

Street Art London
streetartlondon.co.uk
Here today and gone tomorrow literally describes London’s street art scene with the city council removing artworks often before the paint dries or artists painting over redundant works and viewing the works becomes a moveable visual feast – if you know where to look. East London is the most prolific precinct with Street Art London operating private and group walkabouts. Their guides know where to find the best pieces and in many instances, is one of the artists whose work is viewed.

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Your art starts now

When it comes to starting an art collection – there are seemingly endless choices of galleries, artists, genres and media and the process may prove daunting. Brenda Colahan of Brenda Colahan Fine Art and a Sydney-based professional art consultant, shares her expertise on how to start an art collection:

1. Visit leading galleries
By extensively viewing new and emerging talent at leading galleries way before you purchase you will understand the genres of contemporary art that appeal to you and what you can expect to pay for artworks.

2. Seek professional advice
The ever-changing art world is a confusing place for many, particularly the novice collector. More than ever I recommend that professional advice or second opinions be sought, from gallerists, consultants and art dealers. Ask a lot of questions!

3. Buy what you like
The idea of art as investment has been around for a long time, but with markets changing rapidly it’s hard to pick, even for the experts. It’s important to choose what you relate to and will enjoy having on your walls.

4. Subscribe
Knowing the trends, featured artists, prizewinners and whose works are included in leading public galleries are essential reading for the collector. There are fantastic fine art journals to subscribe to and art books galore at gallery bookshops.

5. A personal journey
Make your collection a personal one by choosing art which you love and which speaks to you. Your collection will become your own self-portrait as you look back on how it has formed, expanded and matured.