You and your family spend a significant amount of time in the living room. Whether you are enjoying a movie together in the evening or just simply hanging out in the afternoon, the living room is the place in your home where you can all gather together and enjoy some quality time.

Because this space is so essential, the design elements that you choose to incorporate are essential too. They should reflect your personal style but also be comfortable enough for everyone to enjoy. Achieve your vision for your perfect living room can be challenging at times, though. Décor and furnishings can be expensive, so you want to make sure that the things you purchase are all functional and suit your personal taste.

Here are three things that will help you in your quest to design and create the perfect living room for you and your family.

1. Opt for Custom Pieces

It might sound like more of an investment than is necessary, but once you realize how beneficial it can be to design your own furniture for your living room you won’t ever want to go back to standard floor models from a store again. Not only can designing your pieces allow you to incorporate the fabrics and colors that you dream of, but this is the only true way to ensure that everything fits perfectly.

Design your sofa, for instance, to provide comfortable seating for all your family while voiding an overcrowded space. By choosing the colors for yourself, you won’t end up with any surprise mismatches in your final results.

2. Go for a Single Focal Point

One of the biggest mistakes that you can make when you are designing any room in your home is that of accidentally creating a busy look.

This can happen when you are unable to clearly define a single focal point. You might have gotten excited about multiple standout pieces or design elements while you were in the planning process. However, by doing too much with the space that you are limited to, you will end up with an overcrowded feeling in your living room.

Try to single out the element that is most appealing for you and then center the rest of your design on that. Whether you want your fireplace to be center stage or a fantastic accent piece of furniture, you should be careful not to incorporate anything else that might compete with it.

3. Don’t Neglect Flooring

It is essential to consider the flooring in your living room before purchasing or adding anything else. If you can have new flooring installed, that can be a great way to build your design from the ground up. However, if new floors aren’t in the cards, you should be mindful of how your other design elements will work with your existing flooring.

You might also consider adding in an area rug to give your floors a new look. This can be an interesting way to develop a new design when new floors are out of the question.