How to Decorate a Long Narrow Living Room

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We see photos online of beautifully decorated long narrow living rooms and think, 'oh that's easy to do', until we're actually face to face with our own blank space to fill.

Long narrow living rooms provide a number of challenges.

Here's a list of the Do's and Don'ts when it comes to planning the furniture layout for your skinny space:

DON'T:  Don't jam all the furniture against the walls.

You're not alone in thinking that placing furniture up against a wall will make a room seem larger, however it's the opposite ... furniture jammed against the wall all around a long narrow space will merely add to the 'bowling ball feel'.

DO: Pull furniture away from the wall on at least one side. As an example, do you have a love seat or couch that can be pulled away from the wall?

If your room's shape permits it, pull the sofa away from the wall by about a foot (or whatever distance your room permits) and place a long narrow table behind it featuring tall lamps and a photo collage that goes to the ceiling. By pulling the furniture away from the wall and adding the decorative table, you're able to create a cozier, inviting sitting area.

If the room doesn't allow for any furniture to be pulled away from the wall, then place a rug in front of the couch and position the complimentary chairs perpendicular to the couch. That way you still get the effect of a cozy sitting area.
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DON'T: Don't fill the room without thinking about the walkway through the space.

How will people get from one area to another. If there isn't a clear flow, the room will appear unbalanced and confusing.

DO: No matter how you position the furniture in your space, keep a clear path for people to walk from one part of the space to the other.

If you're wondering what a clear path means, it means design your layout so people don't have to zig and zag around things to get through the space.
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DON'T: Don't restrict yourself to using long regular sofas.

It's harder to create cozy seating arrangements when you do this. Not impossible, just harder as the sofa will take up more of the room.

DO: Perpendicular designs are a practical layout for long narrow living rooms, so try two love seats facing each other.

Again, use an area rug as their foundation and create a cozy seating area - if you can add a wall unit or cabinet to the wall that's perpendicular to the sofas, you'll achieve a tighter cozier feel.

Another tip, in very small spaces use smaller sized furniture with legs. The open bottoms help the room to feel that much more open.
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DON'T: Don't use just square boxy furniture and tables. This makes the space too linear.

DO: Add some round or oval accessories.

A round ottoman coffee table, or round wooden table will help to break up that back alley look. Try using round and oval shapes in other accessories such as lamp shades and vases.
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DON'T: Don't just think of space usage horizontally.

Keeping everything normal height on the walls can make a long narrow living room feel closed in.

DO: Go vertical with your design.

What does that mean? Position draperies where the wall meets the ceiling and have them drape down to the floor.

Or add a tall wall unit that reaches the ceiling, or gets close to it.

Or try a lovely wall photo collage that goes all the way up to the ceiling.

A narrow room always looks best when the person entering has their eyes drawn upward. So don't be afraid of patterned, vertically striped drapes.
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Most Important Tip:
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Divide the space up into two or three areas. Think about what your home needs and design your divided areas accordingly.

Do you need an office area? If so put the seating area at one end and the office area at the other. You can create the division between the space a number of ways; using area rugs or a small open-two-sided bookcase (that isn't imposing).

If an office or a dining area isn't in the cards, go ahead and create two sitting areas using area rugs to define them.

If there aren't a lot of windows or natural light in the room, it's best to keep the two rugs the same, or very close to the same ... or in the same color family, or complimentary.

One very cool trick when you're creating two sitting areas in an open space is to position a chaise or bench chaise so that it's accessible to both sides. Because the piece opens on both sides, it allows for people sitting on the bench to face either seating area.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words. Below You'll find a Growing Collection of Pins that Feature Long Narrow Living Room Designs, as well as Long Narrow Designs for Other Rooms in the Home:

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