When choosing furniture for the living room, we often give preference to spacious and functional items. The problem of organizing storage space in an ordinary apartment forces us to abandon decorative solutions in favor of practicality.
But today, designers and manufacturers are striving to change the prevailing opinion and prove that even the most stylish models can be functional. One of these is the white wall in the living room - an extraordinary solution for most interiors.
Subtleties of white living room design
The stages of decorating a hall in light colors have their own characteristics. The first thing you need to pay attention to is the wall decoration. They are wallpapered, painted, plastered or covered with special panels.
A vertical stripe pattern visually increases the height of the room.
One of the walls is often used as an accent wall. Usually it has the same color as the others, but is decorated with a pattern or photo print. The main thing is that it does not contradict the general style. The same goes for the ceiling. Tensile and suspended structures are suitable.
The flooring can also be light or white. However, as the designers note, this solution is impractical, since then dust and dirt are visible on the floor. Therefore, it is better if it is dark.
A white living room can resemble a hospital ward. To avoid this, you need to focus on one of the interior details. A good option is a houseplant in a large pot, a carpet, curtains and drapes of a different shade.
White wall for the living room in the interior: photo selection
In the photo there is a white wall in the living room in a modern style.
Many owners are afraid to choose white furniture because they consider it a brand. In fact, manufacturers have already resolved this issue a long time ago and have protected surfaces as much as possible from the possibility of contamination. Modern headsets do not absorb odors and moisture and are easily wiped off from dust. This reduces cleaning time and simplifies solving household issues. Therefore, you can safely choose white walls for halls in a variety of styles, because such furniture will always be relevant - in any design and design. You can see this in the presented photographs of completed projects.
Advantages and disadvantages
White color is suitable for living rooms in a classic or modern style. It is neutral and does not evoke the emotions that bright colors do. In addition, it goes well with any other shades.
Decorating a living room in white has many advantages:
- Visually the room seems larger and higher.
- A light background makes it possible to highlight part of the interior.
- During the renovation process, there will be no problems with purchasing finishing materials.
- The living room can be decorated in any style you like.
- White never goes out of style. It is found in national interiors and is also popular among modern designers.
Despite the positive properties, such a living room also has two disadvantages. First, there is a risk of overdoing it. An abundance of white and a complete absence of bright accents will make the room cold and dull. Secondly, it is difficult to maintain cleanliness and order in a bright room, since the color is too easily soiled.
Pros and cons of glossy walls in the living room
White furniture has only recently become very popular, and this is deservedly so. The following advantages of using white furniture, including walls, can be highlighted:
- Style. White furniture is a classic and versatile option that will always remain stylish. A snow-white wall will transform even a small and inconspicuous living room, because its color is associated with lightness, cleanliness and freshness, and it looks elegant and even sophisticated.
- Cosiness. Although white is considered a cold color, snow-white furniture is excellent at bringing coziness to a room. This is explained by the lightness and airiness that are inherent even in large-sized walls. This will create a relaxing, perhaps even serene atmosphere in the living room.
- Reflection of light. White furniture makes the room brighter due to the ability of its surface to reflect the sun's rays. This effect is especially noticeable when using a glossy wall. This feature will allow you to maintain a sufficient amount of light in the living room even on cloudy days.
- Visual expansion of space. A white wall, especially a glossy one, can very noticeably create the illusion of expanding space and increasing the height of the ceiling. In this case, the gloss acts like a mirror. This effect can be enhanced by adding a few more white objects to the interior.
- Versatility. Thanks to its neutrality, white color goes well with any other color, as well as looks good in almost any style. Also, a snow-white wall is practical, because in case of renovation it can be preserved, since it will certainly fit into any interior.
White furniture combines beautifully with bright accents.
To increase the practicality of the wall, you should choose MDF as the material for the white glossy surface, as it is easy to clean and does not require special care.
White shades are especially relevant for small rooms
The effect of shine and reflection allows you to visually increase the space of the living room
A white glossy wall can transform the interior so much that the atmosphere of the living room will promote relaxation and lift your spirits. However, one cannot fail to note some of its disadvantages, namely:
- The need for careful and regular care. Dust is hard to see on a white surface, but various chips, scratches and dirt are very noticeable. This is especially true for glossy surfaces, on which abrasions appear much faster and more clearly.
- The impossibility of decorating the interior in light colors. Snow-white furniture against a light background, and especially white, will simply get lost. This color combination is possible only in one case - when the entire room is made in monochrome.
A monochromatic interior can always be diluted with a bright accent
Choosing a style
White color can be used in any living room. And its shades are suitable for all styles.
Classic
In such an interior, anything can be white, from the walls, ceiling and ending with curtains. Often this style uses white ceiling plinths, baguettes, columns, figurines and other decorative elements.
In classic living rooms, white is diluted with other shades. The combination with brown, green, cherry, gray, and blue looks beautiful.
The classic style uses symmetry and strict lines of natural materials, naturally soft lighting, and a large number of accessories in the form of pillows, clocks, vases, and candlesticks.
Modern
It is practical. Natural materials, modular furniture and new technology are used in the design.
As with the classics, in a modern living room both the walls and ceiling, as well as decorative elements, decorations, upholstery and textiles can be painted white.
Scandinavian
Ideal for small living rooms. Allows you to create a laconic interior close to nature. The main features are white walls with bright accents, wooden floors, and furniture in neutral shades.
It is worth noting that in the Scandinavian style, white is considered a priority.
Provence
Reminds me of the hot Mediterranean sun and lavender fields. The interior uses exclusively neutral shades. In this case, white is the main one. It can be diluted with green, turquoise, olive and brown.
Provence is characterized by:
- artificially aged furniture made from natural materials;
- a large number of fresh flowers;
- wicker furniture;
- mirrors in antique frames, chests.
There are also a lot of metal elements in the interior. Most often they are made of copper, silver and brass.
Loft
The unity of classics and modernity, a harmonious combination of metal, brick, glass and plaster, all this is a loft. White color is ideal for a loft, since this style requires a large space.
There can be no low ceilings, partitions or small windows here. Light furniture and other interior details visually increase the space.
High tech
It is distinguished by the absence of frills and luxury, restraint in color design, practicality and functionality.
The white living room in this modern style looks like this:
- the presence of metal and glass elements that visually expand the space;
- white, plastered or painted walls;
- tiles or laminate on the floor;
- light plastic or glass furniture;
- a plain carpet that adds warmth to a cold interior.
Decorate the room with sofa cushions or paintings. There should be a minimum of decorative elements.
Minimalism
The design of a living room with white furniture in minimalism must meet several requirements:
- The walls are decorated in the same color scheme. It's better if they are plain. Plaster or paint is used for finishing.
- Laminate, parquet, and cork are suitable floor coverings for minimalism.
- The ceiling is white and smooth. You can decorate with a chandelier or original lamps.
- Large windows are covered with light curtains or blinds.
For a living room in a minimalist style, only natural materials are suitable. An exception may be their high-quality imitation.
White living room furniture in classic style
Classic white furniture in the living room is not at all uncommon. Of course, if the concept is strictly followed, white color is not possible; only very light wood is allowed. However, strict adherence to the canon has long been out of fashion.
Furniture items are made in accordance with style requirements. Strict classics are white furniture with clear geometric shapes, modestly decorated with carvings, and with excellent polishing. In Baroque and Renaissance, carving is used much more readily; facades are decorated with gilded moldings and fittings. In the Empire style, gilding is no longer allowed, but there are many carved elements.
- To obtain white color, wood is painted . Paints with very good hiding power are used, so that the wood grain is almost invisible. In the classics, facades are covered with matte or translucent varnish. In other styles, the use of shiny and glossy varnishes is allowed.
- For a living room in a classic style, furniture is selected with maximum glazing . Firstly, the combination of white wood and glass looks very impressive, and secondly, due to the shape and decorations, cabinets, chests of drawers and cabinets look somewhat bulky. The combination with glass compensates for this effect.
It is undesirable to assemble something like a wall from classical furniture. Unlike modern options with flat facades, it does not create the impression of a single surface.
Important! In a modern living room, classic furniture can be combined with white sofas of the most modern look.
How to correctly arrange shades of white
In the interior, designers often use not pure white, but its derivatives. This technique is called off-white, which literally means “off-white.” In a living room of this type, this shade is the basic one.
In some places it is diluted with baked milk, beige, gray, etc. When light hits such surfaces, the effect of hidden white is obtained. The sun's rays from different angles create unusual accents.
The most popular derivative shades are rightfully considered beige and cream. They look good on natural materials, including linen, cotton, wood and wild stone.
Both white itself and similar tones can be combined with absolutely any color. The main thing is that the interior looks harmonious. The most successful example is combination with black. This is an opportunity to visually enlarge a small room and adjust an overly large room.
It is recommended to add warm shades in tandem with these two colors. Thanks to this, the living room will become lively and conducive to relaxation.
Furniture selection
The sofa, wall and all other elements must fit harmoniously into the interior. There are several features of their design:
- White furniture often blends into the decor. Therefore, designers recommend choosing related shades. Case products can be a couple of shades darker than the base, for example, beige or cream. Coffee and sand tones look good.
- It is better to choose upholstered furniture with leather rather than fabric upholstery. If space allows, you can add a couple of armchairs to the sofa. In a small room, they will be replaced by a matching ottoman.
- The coffee table and accessories should be one tone darker than the main set.
Generally speaking, the choice of furniture for a white living room directly depends on its size.
Tips for wall placement in living room design
Before you start arranging furniture, you should make a plan on paper or in a special program. In this case, it is necessary to create comfortable and sufficiently spacious passages between the elements. So, if the wall has hinged doors, then the distance around it must be calculated taking them into account. Likewise, if placed near doors, you need to make sure that these elements do not interfere with each other.
The dimensions of the wall for the living room depend on the dimensions of the room
White gloss looks deeper and brighter against a contrasting wall
Do not forget about the rule of proportionality: the size of the furniture should increase in proportion to the size of the room. That is, using a massive wall in a small living room is extremely undesirable. If no other option is possible, then it should be placed at the far end of the room, away from windows and doors.
Glossy objects look good in the interior either if they are dispersed around the room in the form of small accents, or as the center of the composition. That is, when installing a white glossy wall, you should not place additional objects with a similar finish in the room.
The location of the wall next to the TV has already become classic. Modern liquid crystal screens do not produce glare, and therefore such a proximity would be quite appropriate. In addition, both the wall and the TV claim to be the central element in the living room, so combining them or placing them close together will look good.
Classic placement of the TV in a niche created by cabinet furniture
If desired, the TV can be hidden behind sliding doors
Glossy wall with built-in fireplace
Successful accommodation options with photo examples
How harmonious and cozy a room decorated in light colors will look depends on many factors. It's not just its design, but also its size, lighting and furniture placement.
White furniture for a small room
If the living room is not large, it is better to give preference to multifunctional products, in particular, folding tables and sofas, shelves with additional drawers, poufs with space for storing useful little things.
For a living room with high ceilings
The best option for such a room is a design in a classic style. This is austerity, natural materials and white color and its derivatives. But, if the height spoils the appearance of the room, it can be reduced using special design techniques.
Minimum furniture
All items must have a laconic appearance. Attention should be paid to sofas and armchairs. It is better if they are rectangular. Shapeless objects have no place here. Preference should be given to functional or multi-tiered furniture with additional compartments for storing things.
A white living room never goes out of style. The color itself and its derivatives have always been considered a sign of nobility and wealth. You can experiment with white color, visually adjust the size of the room and make it lighter.
White living room walls
Most often, snow-white walls are chosen for the living room, made in the same palette. The result is a monochromatic interior, in which you simply need to use a few other touches. These can be black surfaces in the details of a furniture set, bright accessories on shelves, or decor directly on the furniture facades.
The choice depends on the design style.
- In classic rooms, white furniture is designed to express the solemnity of the design, so it will be decorated with gilded monograms, moldings, and carvings . In such a room, choose an appropriate wall - one that attracts attention, has a noble design, is elegant and refined. Among the retro solutions are living rooms in white enamel, which was used to decorate wooden products. Such models may also contain inserts with paintings that are also harmonious in country, Provence, and shabby chic styles.
- In modern furniture design, pure function is assigned, to which both form and color are subordinated . Here the set most often merges with the wall decoration, visually freeing up space. But this is not necessarily matte furniture: a “white gloss” wall for the living room will reflect light, thereby visually expanding the room. At the same time, the furniture itself does not receive attention at all - it becomes part of the decoration.
- White living room furniture from Ikea in Scandinavian style is used in a similar way . But models with details in natural wood color are often presented here. Usually these are light-colored sets that emphasize the character of such an interior - it should be light, warm, and comfortable.
- In minimalism and high-tech style, glossy products would be appropriate: a “white varnish” living room can be ultra-technological - without fittings, any other inserts or decor. Then the furniture will also blend in with the decoration if it is also made in a snow-white palette.
Sometimes the owners put first place not the design of the furniture, but the materials in order to create a favorable climate in the room.
To do this, choose natural wooden products that will be painted. Moreover, they can be either matte or varnished. Preserving the natural texture of wood will be organic in such design directions as Provence, country, loft, and classic. Often there is a question of choosing the shape and geometry of furniture. It is important to take into account both the area and features of the living room, as well as style. For example, white and combined corner walls will increase the functionality of the decor, but visually take up a certain area, since they will not go unnoticed.
But straight models in the color of the walls will help to enlarge the room and make the space free. And the choice depends on what goal the designer sets - to make the furniture an accent or an exclusively functional element of the composition.
