After 14 months of a global pandemic spent largely indoors, noses pressed against the window and fingertips drumming on the table impatiently, it’s safe to say that we’re feeling a little uninspired.
Whether you share your house with a pet, partner or a larger family, there are only so many times you can ask what everyone fancies for dinner or debate which Tory gives the worst daily briefing (clue: it begins with a P). Yep, free-flowing, casual conversation has been left wanting in recent months, but with the UK opening up, we can only pray that trips to Primark and the pub beer garden might provide some new material.
Alternatively, you could look to interior design for inspiration. No, seriously. By increasing the conviviality of your living room through a few simple, affordable additions, you can bring about a fresh enthusiasm in the family for spending time at home. In doing so, you might actually entice your partner, daughter, sister or father back from the pub once in a while this summer!
With that in mind, here are 7 features to inspire sociability in your living room for summer.
COFFEE TABLE
Whilst offices have the ‘water cooler’, where colleagues naturally gravitate to engage in salacious gossip and discussion of last night’s TV, so the family home has the living room coffee table.
Low slung, central tables in the living room, such as coffee tables, act as a focal point where cuppas are shared and conversation, both heavy and light hearted, takes place. Stack the table with magazines, flowers, ornaments and other points of visual intrigue to further enhance your coffee table’s magnetic appeal, and watch the family flock round as soon as they hear the kettle boiling.
BRIGHT, OPEN WINDOWS
If your living room is dark, it’s likely that it will look uninviting. And with the appeal of sunny days spent on the beach and in the park so strong after a lengthy lockdown, who is ever going to choose a dimly lit space instead?
Indeed, a bright open space is much more welcoming. If your curtains or blinds are limiting the natural light that enters your living room, you might want to consider taking them down for summer or replacing them with something lighter which allows more light in. Roller blinds tend to allow for the most visibility when inactive, whilst Venetians afford residents some privacy whilst still letting light in. When compared to heavy, winter-friendly curtains, such blinds will make your living room a far more sociable place to spend time.
DRINKS TROLLEY
Once a staple in homes across the country in the 1970s, drinks trolleys are back in vogue. We think every home should have one – they add some fun and implore those nearby to let the sociable, good times begin! The great thing about a drinks trolley is that everyone can help themselves. Simply load it with bottles, mixers and glasses and you’re all set for an exuberant time filled with lively conversation.
SOFT FURNISHINGS
A cosy-looking living room is one that is most inviting. On the flip side, hard chairs and a lack of soft features might make your living room look uncomfortable and insufficiently sociable to keep the family unit together.
So, prioritise throws, blankets, and cushions that will make the room and its seating options more comfortable. If you’re keen for your living room to be a sociable space this summer, instead of laying empty, make sure the soft furnishings are super comfortable.
To go the extra mile, you could add soft bean bags style chairs for extra guests to sit on. If you have a hard wooden or concrete floor, adding a tactile, thick rug might help insulate the room better and make it more inviting, too.
TASK, MOOD & AMBIENT LIGHTING
Natural light doesn’t last all day, and if you’re keen to keep the family together in the evening, rather than it fracturing into disparate units once night falls, you’ll want to think about the evening lighting in your living room, too.
Bright lights may will likely lead to a clinical, functional feel, which is the opposite of what you should be channeling. Instead, consider a mixture of task, mood and ambient lighting for best results:
- Mood lighting helps to set the mood in a room. This type of lighting tends to be low-light and warm, often creating shadows and pockets of intrigue.
- Task lighting helps you to perform a specific task, such as a desk lamp illuminating a surface from which you write/illustrate/compose your masterpieces. It gives light to your workspace and provides a very specific job. It isn’t meant to light a whole room and instead creates focal point in one specific, designated space.
- Ambient lighting is meant to be used throughout the home so that you can move from room to room without a transition too stark. It can replace sunlight during the evening hours, which means it should be bright enough to stand its ground in darker periods. Ambient lights tend to be wall or ceiling mounted.
WALL ART
If you’re looking for a conversation starter, then hanging some thought provoking art in your living room might inspire sociability. Of course, it needs to fit the overall aesthetic of both the room and your house as a whole, but a few flourishes of artistic flair can make your room feel funky, fashionable and most importantly, friendly.
Read: 8 tips for choosing the IDEAL artwork for your living room.
SEE SOME SCENTS
We hope this article has helped you see sense regarding your living room’s sociability. But before you leave us, let’s see some scents, too. Or rather, let’s smell them.
If you want a room to feel inviting, don’t underestimate the power of aroma. Scents such as vanilla or cashmere, in particular, are known to ignite a feeling of warmth which can attract people in.
The living room is a place most people go to relax in, after all, so a soothing and calming scent is ideal. A warm aroma with soft furnishings and mood lighting are all great features to make your living room the ultimate cosy spot in the house.
If you want to use the living room for more social occasions, an uplifting and fresh fragrance may be the best choice. Scents such as citrus fruits or fresh linen are good choices to make a room smell fresh and uplifting.
Moreover, the soft flickering of a few well-placed scented candles can instantly make your living room feel welcoming – talk about seeing some scents!
And if you’re keen to use your nose further, check out these 5 IDEAL scenes to transform your mood.