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May 28, 2020 · 22 Comments

How to Decorate A Long, Narrow Living Room

Decorating

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Decorating a long narrow living room can be tough. Check out how I’ve decorated my living room space for the best layout ever!

Neutral colored living room that is long.

The most challenging part of my home is that it is very long. It almost looks like a townhome because of its narrowness. I would love to have a different floor layout but with houses in our area being the highest in the country (my little home is worth nearly $2 mil!), I’m just grateful that I own a piece of property in Vancouver.

How can you decorate a challenging long living space? Let me show you how I’ve done it.

To begin with, let’s take a look at the original floorplan of my house.

As you can see below, the living room and dining room were one space before the renovation. We turned the family room into the new dining to make one larger living room.

The original floorplan before renovations

Original floorplan of a house.

The kitchen became larger. The eating area and kitchen became one large kitchen with one large island. We added more cabinets (on the left) as well that extended out into the old dining room just up to the window.

The living room now had more space but the challenge was now how to decorate it.

the challenging new floorplan

Here is the new floorplan of my main floor.

3D Renders

I also created some 3D renderings of my main floorplan for fun.

3D render of main floor.
3D render of main floorplan.

The couch is not directly in front of the fireplace as you can see in the floorplan so the TV and cabinet went to the left side of the fireplace. I liked that anyway as I don’t like TVs above fireplaces. We had a TV over one of our fireplaces in our old house and it’s too high for viewing, in my opinion.

Long living room with white walls and wood floors and grey couch.

I wanted to create another seating area to break up the space and to also have another spot to relax away from the TV. I had a chandelier hung in front of the window area to differentiate that space.

Beaded chandelier with vintage chair and painted cabinet.

how I decorated the living room previously

In the past, I’ve always had two arm chairs in this area.

Here is what this area looked like with the two chairs previously.

before

Two armchairs in front of large window in living room.

BEFORE

The sectional was in front of the TV and it tucked into that corner where the wall juts out so it has only one space to sit.

That wall houses a lot of essential wires and our sewer line to the ensuite bathroom so it could not be moved in the renovation (believe me, I tried to convince my contractor).

Sectional couch grey with marble coffee table and large brown vase with eucalyptus.

Here’s the floorplan again to show you how that short wall juts out.

The cabinet that used to be on that short wall has now switched spots with an armchair.

BEFORE

Painted cabinet behind grey couch and large wicker trunk.

opening up the space

The chair now extends the living room area and there isn’t some awkward sectional part that lands in direct line with the TV (which made it awkward for anyone sitting on that end of the couch to watch TV).

This really opens up the whole space! The living room now looks larger instead of stopping half way in the middle of the room.

Deconstructed chair with linen fabric and grey couch.

We removed that corner section of the sectional and moved the section on the right with the rest of the sofa so now it looks like a regular sofa/couch instead of a sectional.

Removed the corner section of sectional to turn into a couch.

You can see that split/line between the two furniture pieces of the couch but for now it works for us before we invest in a new couch for the living room.

Grey couch with vintage looking Restoration Hardware armchair.

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And where is the corner section? Unfortunately, it’s in the newly renovated garage! We have to keep it so we can sell it all as one unit in the near future.

I think this layout is the best layout for this long, narrow living room space, don’t you think?

Sources:

  • wall color – Simply White by Benjamin Moore
  • Cameron Roll Armed couch with slipcovers in Premium Performance Basketweave
  • gold and marble coffee table
  • deconstructed armchair
  • artwork – Morning Mist
  • vintage rug – Pacific Rug Gallery
  • throw pillows
  • TV/entertainment cabinet – smaller version of this

Make sure to pin it for later!

How to Decorate a Long Narrow Living Room.

click in case you missed:

How to Add Texture to Complete a Room

How to Use a Color Wheel for Decorating

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Martha B. Higgins says

    May 28, 2020 at 1:29 pm

    It’s much better balances with this arrangement. It’s curious why the fireplace was located where it is.

    Reply
    • Martha B. Higgins says

      May 28, 2020 at 1:29 pm

      Balanced, not balances. Oops.

      Reply
    • Jamie says

      May 28, 2020 at 4:03 pm

      Thanks Martha. I know, so odd, right? I have no idea why they put the fireplace where they did. I think I finally found a layout that works!
      Hugs, Jamie

      Reply
    • Shelby says

      August 9, 2020 at 10:11 am

      …. I get it, about the fireplace. My rental has a fireplace totally in the wrong area. it makes me wonder why people don’t think about things like arrangements of furniture, when putting in a fireplace….. And often times it’s already there you can’t move it.. .

      Reply
  2. Marie says

    May 28, 2020 at 1:58 pm

    Wow! Your original floor plan is one of the most awkward and unusable floor plans I’ve ever seen. Good for you for making it workable – and inviting! I’m sure your family loves it.

    Reply
    • Jamie says

      May 28, 2020 at 4:05 pm

      Hi Marie,
      I know, such a weird floorplan. And thank you! It’s a more usable space for sure.
      Hugs, Jamie

      Reply
  3. Martha B. Higgins says

    May 28, 2020 at 4:53 pm

    Who is Marie?

    Reply
    • Jamie says

      May 28, 2020 at 5:16 pm

      You might have accidentally clicked the box that said ‘notify me when new comments are added’. I responded to another reader named Marie and it might have come to your inbox.

      Reply
  4. Jennifer says

    May 28, 2020 at 7:25 pm

    It looks like you maximized the usage in the space. I also had to deal with a very narrow house when we lived in Pittsburgh. It was a challenge, but I think that’s when we’re most creative. You have a beautiful home!

    Reply
    • Jamie says

      May 29, 2020 at 8:54 pm

      I totally agree, Jennifer! I’ve had to think of different ways to decorate than I would have in a ‘regular’ space.
      Hugs, Jamie

      Reply
  5. Margaret says

    May 29, 2020 at 5:34 am

    What a lovely, light , inviting room. I understand the frustrations and struggles with a narrow room as mine is quite similar though narrower at 10 ft 9ins and shorter with dining area. Where your short wall is are my stairs! I could scream sometimes trying to find suitable furniture arrangements. I shall be revisiting your room for ideas. So thank you and well done

    Reply
    • Jamie says

      May 29, 2020 at 8:54 pm

      Oh I feel your frustration, Margaret! So basically my original floor plan with the dining room is what your space is like. It’s definitely a challenging space to decorate, it’s making me become a minimalist!
      Hugs, Jamie

      Reply
  6. Faye says

    May 29, 2020 at 5:38 am

    It looks great! I also love your carpet – can you share where it’s from? Or is it on your blog somewhere?
    Also, I’m wondering if you will be offering e-design. We moved not too long ago into a 100 year old home. I need help! Thanks!

    Reply
    • Jamie says

      May 29, 2020 at 5:49 pm

      Hi Faye,
      Thank you! The rug is from a local rug shop here in North Vancouver called Pacific Rug Gallery. And yes, I’ll be doing e-design! I should be ready to start mid June.
      Hugs, Jamie

      Reply
  7. Md Cifelli says

    May 29, 2020 at 3:18 pm

    Really dislike. Looks more like a walk through instead of being in the space. Too many chakas— takes away from the space it can become.

    Reply
    • Jamie says

      May 29, 2020 at 5:51 pm

      Oh interesting. I’d love to hear how you’d decorate this long space differently. And what are chakas?

      Reply
      • Martha says

        May 29, 2020 at 6:46 pm

        Probably means tchotchkes, decorative doodads.

        Reply
        • Jamie says

          May 29, 2020 at 8:52 pm

          Right. I just have 5 book, one floral display and two mini vases on the mantel. I thought it was pretty minimal for decor.

          Reply
          • Martha B. Higgins says

            May 29, 2020 at 9:11 pm

            Yes, I agree, and find your space very restrained, with very few tchotchkes, if that’s what Md Cifelli meant by chakas. Unfortunately, I am of the “more is more” persuasion, not a minimalist at all. Wish I were happy that way, there would be so many fewer things to dust!

  8. vicky says

    January 1, 2021 at 5:29 pm

    I noticed that when you changed your floor plan that the closet by the garage door was eliminated. Is it now in the laundry room?

    Reply
    • Jamie says

      January 4, 2021 at 4:15 pm

      Hi Vicky,
      Yes we moved the walls that made up that small closet and made it into one bigger laundry room.
      You can see more of it here: https://somuchbetterwithage.com/12-essentials-when-renovating-a-tiny-mudroom-while-keeping-it-pretty/
      Hugs, Jamie

      Reply
  9. Paris says

    February 1, 2021 at 11:59 am

    I love it! I have the worst lounge ever….. Long with a protruding fireplace and a door either side of it! I’m finding it impossible to decorate

    Reply

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