Another blank slate living room, I will appreciate any comments or ideas

I have a blank slate to post to the forum and would greatly appreciate any thoughts on decorating a living room with H&M furniture.

The predominant decorating style where I live is the "the more is more" look with lots of lamps, window treatments, etc. The few exceptions tend to be too avant-garde and with too little talent. My wife and I gravitate toward a more open decorating style, i.e. "less is more" using a combination of traditional and transitional styles of furniture.

So far, we like the aesthetics of the following Hancock and Moore chairs and found them to be comfortable:
Grayson Recliner #1054,
Grayson Lounger# 1053,
Neko Chair #5460.

Since the H&M chairs we found to be comfortable have inside depths of 20.5 inches or 21.5 inches, we focused on sofas with similar inside depths. Aesthetically, we like the H&M sofas, Todd Sofa# 4521 and The Tides Sofa #4377, but have never had the opportunity to sit on either sofa. As for colors, we were leaning towards brown leathers, but after viewing several of the pictures Duane posted from High Point over the last few years, we are now leaning towards deep blues, greens, reds, and creams as well as rich browns.

I attached two diagrams of living room layouts that we are considering, and both are drawn to scale. One diagram uses two sofas and one or two chairs as the living room seating. The other diagram uses one sofa and four chairs. I included photos of the room empty (except TV console) and also with paper patterns representing either a sofa (83 inch x 37.5) or chairs (32 x 37.5). We are planning to move the TV console to another room which will allow for 36 inches of space between the south wall and the furniture and between the north wall and the furniture. The clearance between the east wall and the furniture will be 48 inches. The ottoman in the diagrams is a placeholder since we are considering a custom built coffee table.

The dimensions of the living room are 23 feet 4 inches wide by 18 feet 9 inches deep. If you look at the pictures, the southern wall has the two large windows with double plantation shutters (each shutter needs 23 inches of clearance to open). The west wall has the fireplace and the two tall windows with single plantation shutters (each shutter needs 25 inches of clearance to open). The north wall currently has a TV console but as noted we plan to remove it, and the flat screen will be mounted on the wall. The entrance to the living room from the foyer (northeast corner) is 48 inches wide. The opening in the east wall is the breakfast room. Depending upon the furniture we purchase, the area rug may stay in the living room or will be moved to another room in the house.

Deliveries will not be a problem since the front door is 35 inch wide, there is not change in grade fro the driveway to the front door, and the entrance to living room is 48 inches wide.

Any thoughts or comments on either of the attached room layouts or an alternative layout will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Kevin

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I think the key to this layout is "How important is being orientated to the Flat Screen in the Room going to be?" That's going to drive the layout more than anything else. If the TV is a primary part of the room use, then the room needs to be set up for comfortable watching. If you prefer to have the room designed around human conversation and the TV is secondary, then different configurations would apply. I don't particularly care for the (4) chairs (1) sofa schematic - it looks like a Doctor's Office!

Duane,

This is an "after" shot of the living room. The H&M sofa and chairs are extremely comfortable and everyone loves John's tables. The trim and wainscoting took longer than I originally planned but it turned into a new hobby. I suspect the blue walls may be too much for some, probably most, but I enjoy bright colors. I really appreciate all of your advice on how to purchase quality furniture and introducing me to the concept of commissioning custom furniture.

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That looks great! Better than a lot of Decorators could do. I like your balance of colors and not overfilling the room, no clutter. Blue works because you didn’t overdo it and bracketed with the white. First rate job!