Storage systems for the living room - 100 variations on the theme
Any homeowner expects that his living room will not only be a comfortable and convenient place for gathering the whole family and receiving guests, but will also perform additional functions, for example, will become a zone for installing a spacious storage system. Even a living room of a very modest size can accommodate storage systems made in the form of open shelves and hanging cabinets, and even in a spacious room you can not limit the possibilities and install a full-fledged home library.
An original facade or an unusual color choice, modern decor or the use of non-standard materials - to create a non-trivial storage system, one of the items is enough. It is difficult to imagine the living room of our days without a modular storage system, even taking into account the desire of modern style for minimalism - such furniture is a must. Just over time, the so-called walls lose their decor, are simplified in designs, but do not lose in quality of execution. But modern modular solutions can boast high functionality, attractive appearance and ergonomic designs.
No one will argue with the fact that a modular storage system in the living room is necessary. But if it is impossible to do without it, then why at the expense of this piece of furniture not to bring diversity, originality and creativity into the interior of the room? And here is how an extraordinary storage system differs from a typical wall, you can learn from our impressive selection of design projects of modern living rooms. We hope that from the variety of storage systems presented, everyone will be able to find their own model, which adapts perfectly to the existing interior or will be initially incorporated into the design of the room.
One of the main conditions for creating a non-trivial model of the wall is the presence of a twist in the design or appearance of the furniture. This can be an extraordinary choice of color, an original coating of the material, an atypical design - broken lines, beveled elements, non-linear shelves. Carved facade, varnished surfaces, glass inserts, built-in lighting - for the originality of the models, all possible design techniques are used.
But in addition to aesthetic data, it is important that your storage system meets practical needs. For beautiful dishes and collectibles, cabinets with glass doors or open shelves are suitable. For a home library, even of modest size, it is better to give preference to a shelf or separately suspended shelves. Modern modular systems are most suitable for placing a video zone, which are most often presented in a combined version - both open shelves and cabinets with facades.
Storage systems for the living room with fireplace
Many owners of private houses and even apartments associate the living room, first of all, with the warmth of the family hearth. Typically, a fireplace is installed in the center of one of the walls, it would be logical to use the remaining space for installing storage systems. A similar composition brings symmetry and balance to the interior of the room. Especially if the video zone is located above the fireplace - the TV is attached to the surface of the chimney, and speakers and other equipment can be placed in an adjacent modular storage system.
Depending on the size of the room and the location of the fireplace, you can use an asymmetric arrangement of storage systems. A video zone helps establish a balance between functional segments.
Illumination in open shelves of modular systems is possible when organizing a built-in ensemble. Of course, built-in lighting devices need to be thought out at the planning stage of repairs, and not the construction of storage systems, in order to hide all communication systems.
Library or living room - effective combination of functional areas
If the living room space allows, then why not place a home library in it, especially since there is an impressive collection in the house or apartment. The same situation can arise with discs, plates and other collectibles, which are most conveniently stored on open shelving.
If you can afford to give the whole wall to the location of the storage systems for your home library, it will be more rational to use not only open shelves for books and all kinds of small things, but also closed cabinets in the lower tier. It can be either modules with swing doors or drawers of various modifications.
Low Modules - A Popular Type of Storage
Low storage modules are ideal for modest rooms with low ceilings. Small pieces of furniture integrate perfectly into living rooms with a simple and concise interior, not devoid of brightness and originality.
Very modern look low modular systems located under the TV along the entire wall. Smooth facades, strict forms and lines - everything works to create a modern and practical living room interior.
If the storage systems, consisting of the lower tier of the cabinets, are made in white, then against the background of a similar finish they can practically dissolve in space. It is up to you to decide whether to make the facades smooth, without fittings, or to attract attention with original handles, holders, and decor.
Small squat storage systems fit perfectly into the minimalist style of the living room. Also, such furniture will organically fit into the design of the room, made in oriental style.
We use space rationally
As a rule, one of the walls is allotted for the storage systems in the living room, in which a video zone, a fireplace, or both are already located. But in many rooms there are still quite unused corners and blind spots in which small modules for storage could be placed. For example, the space under the window can be used for storage systems, which, among other things, act as seats. Of course, this option is suitable for rooms in which heating radiators are not located under the windows.
Another way of rational use of space is the use of shelving as interior partitions. If in any case you need to zone the space with the help of a partition, then why not equip a composition of open or combined storage systems in this place.
If your living room plays the role of a home theater, then it is obvious that all the attention to the design of the room will be focused on the location of the video zone and the installation of comfortable furniture for a comfortable location in front of the TV. For storage systems in this case, a secondary role is assigned and the appearance of the furniture ensemble should be appropriate, not distracting from the focal center of the space.
One of the methods of rational use of the living room’s useful space is to integrate the workplace into the storage area. To organize a small home office, you need quite a bit - a small console or any other surface imitating a desk on which you can place a computer and a comfortable chair or mini-chair set next to it.
Color solutions - a variety of options
Only at first glance it may seem that the choice of color palette for the execution of storage systems is small. Not only various natural shades of wood can be a color scheme for the design and its facades. Painted material, glossy film coating and even fabric facades - all this is found in modern furniture collections.
Snow-white shelving has long been included in the familiar routine of homeowners around the world. Bright facades and open shelves were loved by designers and do not lose their popularity for several reasons:
- even large-scale designs look lighter, weightless in snow-white performance;
- it is easier to care for light surfaces - dust and fingerprints are practically invisible on white shelves;
- white color goes well with any decoration and furniture of the living room;
- white storage systems can create a light and light image of the entire living room.
Bright storage systems are suitable for living rooms, in the interior of which bright colors are actively used - for the execution of upholstered furniture, textile decoration or space decoration.
In white, not only the storage system in a modern style can be represented. Originality and exclusivity in the interior of the living room will bring the so-called wall with carved elements, possibly even with scuffs and preservation of the old decor.
Nothing brings natural warmth to the interior of a room like wooden surfaces. Whether your storage system will be made of wood or made of a material that successfully imitates it, the effect of the presence of natural materials is always amazing. In modern design projects of living rooms you can often find storage systems, the material of which repeats the decoration of floors - laminate, parquet or floor wooden boards.
Gray color and all its shades are incredibly popular lately. Neutral and unpretentious, gray color is able to ennoble the image of the living room, to give it the image of stability and dimensionality. Dark gray storage systems in various versions look great against a light background of decoration.
The light gray tone of the storage systems goes well with modern interior elements - lighting fixtures with chrome surfaces, mirrored coffee tables and inserts, and accessories for additional furniture.
Original solutions for modular systems - combine colors
A non-trivial appearance of storage systems can be achieved by applying a very simple but effective design method - a combination of two or more colors in the performance of furniture. You can use two options for the same color - a dark and light shade. Or go ahead and apply painted surfaces together with wooden elements.
One of the most cardinal colors combinatorics for wall execution in the living room is shades of white and black. To visually increase the room’s height, it’s more logical to use black for the lower tier of cabinets, and white for the upper level of the rack or separately located open shelves.
White color can be combined with surfaces of any shade. Depending on the intensity and color depth, a contrasting, dynamic version, as well as a gentle combination of pastel colors, can be obtained.
The original color choice is a purple hue for the facade and a natural woody pattern for the interior decoration of the rack. If lilac and lilac shades are used in the design of the living room, the image will turn out to be original, expressive, non-trivial.
Modular storage systems can combine not only colors, but also materials. For example, glass in a wooden or MDF ensemble can be used to create transparent doors or open shelves.