Family Room Ideas: The Evolution of a Relaxing but Stylish Family Room
In this post: The perfect family room is both relaxing and stylish. See how our space has evolved over time and be inspired by these family room ideas. ⇒
I’ve never been one to decorate a room from top to bottom and then leave it that way for 20 years.
My rooms tend to evolve over time, which not only takes pressure off my budget from the outset, but also lends the spaces a collected look. It makes it easier to incorporate favored trends as they emerge, and move on from looks that become tired and dated.
The best rooms evolve in very subtle ways so that you only notice how far they’ve come when you take a look back. A room’s decor should be pliable and flexible, rather than rigidly chiseled into a time and place.
Family Room Ideas
The evolution of a room often happens naturally as the years pass. What may have started with bare bones furnishings like seating and a couple of tables, becomes gradually layered with accent pieces including artwork, rugs and other decorative objects.
Yet evolving a space isn’t just about adding layers and is just as often about paring back and streamlining. It should include honing your pieces to reflect your personality and taste, while enhancing the functionality and comfort of your home.
In todays post I’m sharing the evolution of our family room with my best tips for editing and perfecting an existing space.
This is the beginning of a new series with Ann from On Sutton Place, and Yvonne from StoneGable, as each of us has recently moved into an empty nester home. We will be highlighting how we’re adapting our homes to our current lifestyles, as our needs change and our evolving goals come into focus.
Be sure to visit Yvonne and Ann’s posts, linked at the bottom of this one.
Tip #1: Evolving a space is not about adding clutter, but is rather about refining.
To really grasp just how far our family room has come, it’s helpful to see, in the photo above, what it looked like when we first moved in. This was only a handful of years ago, but the initial changes were quite impactful and set the tone for what it looks like to this day.
The very first things we did were:
- Paint the walls a light color
- Remove the heavy window coverings
- Replace the ordinary fireplace mantel with something more striking
The photo above reveals the first generation of room decor in this space. At that early stage, I committed to a large sectional for comfort and to accommodate family gatherings, despite the fact that a separate sofa and chairs would offer a prettier and more classic layout. While I still struggle with the asymmetry, I stand by the decision.
This defining move was prompted by the choice to put TV on the wall opposite the windows, creating a second focal point (in addition to the fireplace). I preferred not to place the TV over the mantel, but it does mean the room has to be oriented in this L-shaped fashion.
With such a dominant piece of furniture, there wasn’t room for much else. I added a bergère chair for softness and brought over some accessories from our prior home. We had plantation shutters installed to allow as much light in as possible, yet to provide privacy when needed. Next came the rug for warmth and then I moved on to the other rooms.
I knew pretty quickly that I hadn’t quite nailed this room. It had a weird mix of clashing components and I’m not a big fan of stark contrasts. To be sure, I very much love mixing varied elements but they must blend in a gentle way to be appealing.
While I was going for relaxed elegance, it felt like the relaxed aspects were fighting with the grander ones.
Most offensive was the clunky pine coffee table, a throwback to the early years of our marriage. It’s time had long passed and it had to go.
I added the lovely Gustavian coffee table and a little side table under the window, both graced with a charming patina. Some of the harshness was beginning to subside.
Tip #2: Work to establish your design style and get the big picture right first.
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The next incarnation was curiously among the most minor of the changes and yet it was here that the room began to come closer to the look that it has today. I simply replaced the multi-hued pillows with neutral ones and it afforded the space an immediate tonal update.
While the furniture and textiles were now cream and beige, it wasn’t until I painted over the pale yellow walls that the room truly became neutral. The wall color went from Benjamin Moore Mannequin Cream to Tapestry Beige, a wonderful greige wall color that I have in most of my rooms.
With a truly neutral palette, I am now able to bring in accent colors as the mood strikes me, with the simple addition of flowers, a throw blanket and decorative objects. This gives me complete flexibility and versatility.
Tip #3: Neutral rooms allow the most flexibility in personal expression.
And that brings us back to today. The character of my current family room is a good reflection of where I’m at stylistically. What started as traditional French Country is now better described as rustic chic, vintage inspired, or perhaps French influenced. It comprises a mix of rustic elements like the rattan blanket basket and the crumbling altar candlesticks, and juxtaposes them with an ornate but timeworn gilded mirror.
The bergère has been supplanted by an imposing tufted wingback with deconstructed detailing, and the room is peppered with aged decorative relics.
Perhaps the most significant recent update is yet another new coffee table.
I still love the old one, which has been moved into the living room, but this one is sized more appropriately for the room. It’s both lower and longer, servicing more people seated on the couch.
The finish is also just a tad warmer in tone, so while still very neutral, it lends a more relaxed air to the space. Additionally, it works beautifully with the aged stone and wood trinkets scattered on the surface.
Tip #4: Don’t be afraid to move pieces into other rooms where they might work better.
The pillows have also been updated, one of the easiest ways to alter the character of a living space. I opted for laundered and textured linens to underscore the casual vibe I want the space to embody. The nubby throw blanket drives this point home even further and pairs well with the patina of the new coffee table.
The space now has a cohesive feeling, despite including elements that mix varying degrees of formality. The gilded mirror is still present yet it bears its own patina, keeping it from getting too precious and overly opulent.
This balanced inflection is bolstered by the presence of distressed vessels and chippy urns, among the pieces that add personality to the decor.
Quite possibly the single best example of the defining style and tone of the space is the pair of 18th century altar candlesticks. At once regal in their ornate carving yet humbled by their crumbling stature, they depict the essence of casual elegance. They sit comfortably amid the organic, if not primitive, pieces around them, while highlighting a respect for the past that I so love in my rooms.
Tip #5: Add at least one unique or one-of-a-kind item to every room.
If there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s that I will never be done with our family room, along with any of the rooms in our home. But that’s part of the joy of decorating a home.
Each year, as our lifestyle evolves, so does the decor in our rooms. Like any piece of art, it can never be truly finished. You either hone and refine or you abandon it.
Resource Guide
To get the look, click on the items below for direct links to the products. Where actual items were no longer available, I’ve provided similar options. If an item is out of stock but may be restocked, I left it on the list.
(This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.)
Please enjoy Ann and Yvonne’s evolution of their living room posts below!
On Sutton Place | How Our Neutral Great Room Has Evolved
StoneGable | The Evolution of a Living Room
I am in love with your coffee table…and the whole room. So relaxing and calm. And so you. 🙂
Aww thanks, my friend!! 🙂
I love your room, especially both coffee tables and your fireplace. Everything is styled to perfection. Was the fireplace a custom piece? It’s eye candy.
Thank you, Lizzy! The fireplace is the Lewisburg Mantel. It was ordered from The Mantel Shoppe but the measurements were made to order.
https://www.emantel.com/collections/chateau/the-lewisburg-mantel.html
Thank you!
Do you remember which finish you selected?
What an amazing transformation! I love seeing rooms that evolve over time, that is what gives a home its soul. And your explanations were so well written. My home is my “playhouse” and something is tweaked or moved (even a few inches!) almost daily! It gives me so much pleasure.
Thank you for your sweet words! It sounds like we think very much alike… 🙂