You have a very neutral palette. Some of those dissolving design rugs are beautiful. Make sure you can fit all of the front legs of the couch on the rug..sometimes the larger rug is better than a "postage stamp" size in a room. Yes, some lovely artwork behind the couch. Some lovely shears right up to the ceiling will give a sense of softness and height to the space. You could also consider some wallpaper, even something light with a contemporary pattern will make the space very stylish. Grasscloth wallpaper can make the space look luxurious. You have a nice space to bring up to the next level.. good luck.

If you can find this article on Houzz it's a good read with good examples for you.. I'm unsure how I send you a link to a story on house?

Seems redundant to have a rug in a carpeted room. I'd go for patterns on scatter cushions and large artwork for the walls to create a bit of wow. It's the lack of wall dressing which is making the room seem bare.

Thank you Kim for your advice 😊

Would you think a neutral-coloured (such as cream white), long pile rug may suit our living room well?

We were not sure about what size we should pick for the rug but it makes a complete sense that the rug should fit the couch...and thank you for pointing that out!:)

Since our living room is not large, we want to make it "look" more expansive by using white/cream as the dominant colour (couch and walls) and black as the secondary colour (TV and speakers). We haven't decided on the accent colour but we are thinking to apply it for cushions and the part of artwork above the couch.

Wallpaper may be beautiful but since we are renting we'll save the idea till we get our own place...😊
We are thinking to place a large artwork above the couch, which has dark tones to balance out with the black TV and speakers in front.

Do you think it'll work? If you have any suggestions that'll be helpful.

thanks 😊
lili

Thank for your advice, Austere!

It is a good idea to choose the artwork first.We kept thinking since the rug occupies the larger surface of the room it should be picked first, but a large, statement artwork will also change the impression of the room😊

Do you have any suggestions on the colour theme for the artwork, given the living room has a neutral colours?

@Kim, thank you & yes, I got the article and it's very insightful!
Coffee table too small - we tick that one too🤭

Love the use of textures in this pic, still staying with creams etc, shag pile rug

@ Irene, the living room in the pic is so pretty...looks so cozy with indoor plants and candles. The rug is subtle yet it creates a warm feeling.

Thanks for sharing :)

If it was my place , I'd do a red shaggy rug , either 120-150cm round , or 120 x 200 rectangular . Adds some colour . If you want to dial it back a bit , you can get that style of rug with a black or silver fleck through it , so its not quite as red , and even though Austere thinks its redundant ( and it is ! ) to me it's 'floor art' -- plain and minimilist without being too boring , nor too pretentious .

And yes , a large abstract artwork too is deperately needed , and I also envisage a light coffee brown colour for 'heavy' drapes -- I suspect it feels a bit too open , particularly at night .

Thanks for your suggestion Pottsy!

Yes, our living room feels bit too open and empty especially at night (with no view..), and now I know it was because of the blank space behind the couch😊

Especially since it is getting cold lately, a shaggy rug is such a good idea and it'll make the space look so cozy!

We are thinking to first pick a large artwork behind the couch to set the tone of the living room.
We can then hopefully pick the cushions and consider a rug (currently thinking a silver/light grey/ black/or chocolate colour, to link to the colour of the artwork)

Thanks for sharing your ideas, they are so helpful!

If you have other suggestions, we'd love to hear too 😊

Thanks again!

Art very personal so buy something that you love.
The rug is an investment piece which you will have for a long time. A white cream shaggy will look good initially but will definitely show dirt over time, not that I'm trying to deter you as it will lift the space. Think about the colours you like to wear and no doubt these are the colours you are drawn towards. It would be nice to find something that has a texture or pattern to create a bit of movement in the space rather than lots of block colours everywhere. Cream rug and a stark white tv unit may not look very good side by side.
I do love your little side tables as they are very portable around the room. I would go for a nice large square feather pillows for a luxurious feel. Take your time looking as it really is a chipping away process and doesn't happen overnight. Good luck.

Inspiration - rug/furniture artwork placement..

I'm not sure if I agree with your statement Kim about favourite colours being what you wear . In my house I like brighter co-ordinated colours ( mainly reds , oranges , yellows , burgundy , and similar ) , polished natural woods , charcoals , stainless , brighter abstract art and similar .

Being a straight male , my clothes are boring in comparison -- blue or black jeans , blue or black dress trousers , sneakers or shoes generally black or grey or blue , and even my shirts are blue , blue and blue stripes , blue and white stripes , white with black patterns , a couple are red with white stripes , jumpers in similar colours , jackets mainly black .

My vehicles are different again -- I have some 70's classic vehicles , and they are bright orange or red or metallicblue or white with red and blue stripes , but my personal vehicles tend to be black with dark tints and the biggest shiniest wheels I can fit -- although a couple have had custom interiors done , mostly black or grey leather , but with orange or red inserts in seats , red or orange 'piping' on seats and doors , even stitched diamond patterns with stitching in red or orange on perforated black leather !

Thanks Kim and pottsy for sharing your ideas!

@ Kim, I thought white colour will usually make the space look more expansive, but after hearing your comment that it'd lift the space, I googled some living room photos with a white rug and it's so true!
I am also hoping to have a low maintenance living room - and I can imagine even a small stain, dart, even my hair.. will look so apparent on a white rug. So, even though a white, fluffy rug sounds so attractive especially in winter like now, I'll think twice. It'll be an investment piece we'd like to appreciate it for a long time. Instead, we can probably put fluffy pillows to create a warm winter look for a limited time:)

l love the photo of the living room you shared. It gives me a comfortable and warm feeling, and I am particularly impressed about the use of the colours in the artwork and cushions. They go so well together, without showing too much effort/calculation (that's the pro...🥂).

@ pottsy, thank you for reminding me that it's okay to be little bit playful in dressing up our favourite rooms. We also tend to choose simple, "boring" colours for our clothes (and we also own a couples of tops with stripes with combinations of colours from grey/navy/black and white), though I do like various colours (blue, green, light pink etc...). Like what you shared and also suggested by Kim, it's such a good idea to use some colours we are truely drawn towards (the issue with me is that there are a lot - in your case it seems to be warm colours?😊), because when we are surrounded by our favourite colours - rooms or cars - they give us energy.

Thank you again for Kim and pottsy for keep sharing your great ideas and inspirations to help me shape my idea😊

Hi Lili, I love neutral colours it adds a serene feel to a room, I would go with a textured rug , some gorgeous cushions, a beautiful throw, have fun with your artwork, by framing your artwork in identical frames this will add a very stylish modern look to your lovely room