After pondering tranquil bedrooms, it feels natural to turn to timeless living rooms that feel sanctuary-like too. While I don’t have exact paint colors for every inspiring interior in the mix, I’ll make suggestions based on a whole lotta experience choosing paint colors for my projects and for others. What makes these spaces timeless? Timeless is certainly a subjective matter and maybe in the eye of the beholder. But think: sophisticated, storied, untrendy, and un-TikTok-y. Living rooms that won’t feel dated in a decade. That don’t shout I’M FRENCH AND FARMY or I’M TOTALLY MOD AND THERE’S NOTHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT or BUTTER MY BISCUIT, I’M DAYGUM COUNTRY. Ya know? You might be able to tease out the antique from the contemporary in the space or see various eras represented, but their harmony is working.
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Timeless Living Rooms & Paint Colors
Designer Jill Egan strikes just the right timeless chord for my ears.
Capturing a timeless look isn’t about choosing the proper paint color and buying a particular suite of furniture for the space.
It’s more a spirit of creating a balanced mood reflective of your interests, history, and delights.
Time flows ever forward, and there’s no capturing it in a bottle so why should a room be confined to the current whims that are bound to grow stagnant?
How Does Timeless Style Vary from Classic or Traditional Design?
An interior that feels timeless has the advantage of not feeling stuck in an era or design style or mood.
It can feel evocative, imaginative, and even otherworldly.
Those adjectives don’t necessarily spring to mind when we’re describing a classic or strictly traditional space which can feel calming and comforting.
Yet classic lines, proportions, architecture, and sensibilities play important parts in a timeless scheme.
Traditional elements and an understanding of tradition inform a space that has enduring appeal.
Oh that we could GET THE LOOK of a timeless space by tapping links in a mood board. Hahahaha. It takes a little more thought than buying a collection of things online.
Psst. Who says you can’t plant a sofa smack dab in front of windows as the two living spaces above?
Elegance, Romance, and Luxury in Timeless Interiors
Sometimes timeless designs take time, and sometimes they demand a hefty budget.
For all of its sophisticated timeless simplicity, a room like the one above and below includes rare and expensive antique furnishings from Europe.
There are no paint colors to divulge for those spaces above where plaster or a plaster-like finish was applied to walls, requiring no paint at all.
Timeless spaces have an elegance all their own as well. Imagine how the interior above would feel less elegant were the ceiling beams left rustic or stained dark brown.
Contemporary Accessories & Touches in Timeless Spaces
Can you still place modern lighting or trending accessories in a living space when you’re after a timeless style? Sure. If a certain texture (like fluffy sherpa right now) happens to be calling your name and happens also to be popular, have fun with it in your space.
It is when everything reads “this year” that the look falls short of timeless.
Less Fussy Timeless Schemes I Love
So often a room is *this close* to being fabulous and simply needs subtraction rather than addition. Objects carry energy and weight, and removing the right proportion can elevate the whole vibe.
An unfussy, less busy look is always what I’m after since I am easily overstimulated. There’s a level of luxury that can emerge too when there is less visual stimulation.
Need suggestions for a warm white paint color, GO HERE.
Linen slipcovered furniture is an example of what I consider laid back luxury. If you’re the type who needs your upholstery without wrinkles, it’s not a look for you.
But it can be inviting and sumptuous if you’re after a space where you can actually live and not just look.
When a Living Room Feels Atmospheric
There are various ways to capture a look that defies time. Think about color combinations that feel transcendent to you. Designer Michael Del Piero has always engaged my senses with her innovative, otherworldly combinations.
Mixing rich textures and pieces with history that are full of character can also create such drama and soul.
Some designers go in with a strict plan where every detail has been pre-arranged.
Others take a more relaxed approach and think at some point in the final days of completion: “think I’ll massage the walls in old coffee I’ve been saving” a la Leanne Ford!
While the space above may technically be a dining space, it just lends itself to living and living well, yes?
Living With White
Maybe because they are suggestive of living on a cloud and can wash a room with purity, white walls often work as a smart beginning for a room where you’re after a timeless mood.
White can feel modern or historical and won’t be pigeon-holed. It doesn’t care if it makes the latest list of trending paint colors for which everyone will be reaching.
Tone on tone can feel sophisticated even with a mix of ingredients that won’t break the budget.
But don’t rule out dark and moody with colorful happy pops of rose and marigold!
Easiest way to see if a paint color will work? Order samples with Samplize and have them delivered straight to your door.
Time to Tweak a New Living Room
While we’re in the very messy middle of our bedroom suite DIY renovation, I’m already thinking about how I will tweak our little sitting room. In our former home, I went with rustic Belgian minimal style that worked perfectly for how we live. I never felt like I had to change it while we lived there.
Here’s where are current living room started about a year ago when I commissioned my husband to build a wall between the sunken living room and the formal entry:
Without the wall, I would have been completely lost as to how to arrange furniture or use the room. In fact, I know I would never have used the room even if I threw a lot of money into decor and aesthetics. Function meant a lot of construction and labor were necessary. Here’s the wall now:
Not that this console (RH, made from reclaimed wood) is necessarily staying put. I feel like I can make the space cozier and might change the wall color too. Cozy? Check out this glorious little Brooklyn apartment tour:
Also check out timeless bedroom inspiration here. Hope all of these inspiring glimpses get your wheels turning and provides any nudge you may need.
I independently selected products in this post—if you buy from one of my links, I may earn a commission.
Peace to you right where you are.
-michele
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