The ground is thawing, the birds are singing and—SOS!—the living room is in a state of absolute chaos. Don’t stress: By making use of these seven simple tips, you’ll be able to tackle the clutter, elevate your decor scheme and enter the season with the fresh outlook you’ve been waiting for all winter.
7 Genius Tips to Organize Your Living Room This Spring
‘float’ Your Furniture
By moving furniture away from walls and into the center of the room, you’ll create an intimate, high-end floor plan—with extra space for extra storage. For example, that credenza you’ve had in the garage since Y2K? It now fits snugly in the nook behind your sofa.
Give Your Bookshelves A System
We firmly believe “the more books the merrier.” (Sorry, Marie Kondo.) But what’s the fun in a bountiful book collection if you can’t find Pride and Prejudice when you feel like reading it again? There’s no time like the present to (finally) give those bookshelves a functional system, whether that’s alphabetical, by genre or color-coded.
Change Your Approach To Everyday Essentials
Just because something is functional doesn’t mean it has to look like it. Take the new Glade® Plugins® air fresheners, for example. With an updated design and layered scents like the Clean Linen® fragrance that you can easily adjust to the size of your space, it's a no-brainer. Not to mention it lasts 50 days, so you can relish in your newly organized home as long as you like—no eyesores in sight.
Wrangle Your Wires
Tangled webs of electrical wires are a) a safety hazard and b) a big, honkin’ eyesore. For lighting wires (table lamps, floor lamps, etc.) try discreet cord clips, which you can tack to your walls or down the backs of your furniture. For bulkier wires (looking at you, television set), cord covers work wonders.
Use Trays To Create Vignettes
The difference between a random object grouping and a deliberate design moment? A tray, of course! Whether defining a mini bar, highlighting a prized tchotchke collection or even elegantly corralling a handful of remote controls, everything looks better in a tray.
Invest In A Woven Basket (or Three)
The cardinal rule of an organized home? Every last item must have a designated place. And when it comes to free-floating living room miscellanea (see: reading materials, kids toys, firewood, throw blankets), there’s no better fix than a woven basket. These versatile, functional pieces also add serious warmth and style.
Reevaluate Your Coffee Table
This is central command for your living room, so it needs to work double-duty. We love a two-tier or trunk-as-table option, but if you want a more traditional look, at least consider using the clearance space beneath as a spot to tuck those aforementioned baskets.