We are happy whenever we meet clients that knows exactly what they want and prepare their budget prior to contacting interior professionals. This is exactly what happened on this project. We designed and planned, implemented and managed the whole project to completion.

The wall between this room and the kitchen has been demolished and the open kitchen now effectively makes this living space appear larger. Across this set-up is a TV wall unit with storage for gadgets and shelves to display curios picked up across travels.

Inspiration for a large midcentury living room in Other with brown walls, porcelain floors, a wood stove, a stone fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv and grey floor.

Design by Coxist Studio General Contractor by Soledad Builder's Photo by Patrick Yu-wen Wong
Inspiration for a mid-sized midcentury open concept living room in Austin with beige walls, porcelain floors, a hanging fireplace and a tile fireplace surround.

Photography by ABODE IMAGE
Mid-sized midcentury open concept living room in Other with white walls, porcelain floors, a standard fireplace, a tile fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv, grey floor and wood.

An 8 ft. simple teak wood finish main door gives way to a cozy living room doused in natural light streaming from a large window and a cute-as-a-button balconette. The wall between this room and the kitchen has been demolished and the open kitchen now effectively makes this living space appear larger. We laid wooden look tiles on the floor, pre-cut into 4 pieces and organized in the herringbone pattern. This is not only spread across the studio but also seeps up the living room main wall. Upon this wall, hangs an artwork specially commissioned to a young artist to be evocative yet flaunt the yellow and blue that ties the otherwise somber colours together. Below this is a long chesterfield sofa in electric blue, an armchair upholstered in hounds-tooth with a gold, black and wooden frame. A wood and black glass center table set and a yellow and wooden side table set complete the seating set up. A custom rug in colours of our choice brings a touch of elegance to the room. Beside this is a white and wood console table with a round gold and wood finish mirror. A black skirting flows throughout the walls with a wood detailing as an added design detail.

Design ideas for a mid-sized midcentury formal open concept living room in Los Angeles with white walls, porcelain floors, a standard fireplace, a concrete fireplace surround and no tv.

Photo of a midcentury open concept living room in Dallas with white walls, porcelain floors, a ribbon fireplace and a tile fireplace surround.

Photo of a midcentury living room in Other with grey walls, porcelain floors and grey floor.

Inspiration for a mid-sized midcentury open concept living room in Phoenix with porcelain floors and a two-sided fireplace.

Living Room Lance Gerber, Nuvue Interactive, LLC
Expansive midcentury open concept living room in Other with white walls, porcelain floors, a standard fireplace, a tile fireplace surround and a wall-mounted tv.

Photo of a midcentury open concept living room in Sacramento with grey walls, porcelain floors, a corner fireplace, a tile fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv, grey floor and wood walls.

Houston Interior Designer Lisha Maxey took this Museum District condo from the dated, mirrored walls of the 1980s to Mid Century Modern with a gallery look featuring the client’s art collection. The place was covered with glued-down, floor-to-ceiling mirrors,” says Lisha Maxey, senior designer for Homescapes of Houston and principal at LGH Design Services in Houston. “When we took them off the walls, the walls came apart. We ended up taking them down to the studs." The makeover took six months to complete, primarily because of strict condo association rules that only gave the Houston interior designers very limited access to the elevator – through which all materials and team members had to go. “Monday through Friday, we could only be noisy from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and if we had to do something extra loud, like sawing or drilling, we had to schedule it with the management and they had to communicate that to the condo owners. So it was just a lot of coordination. But a lot of Inner City Loopers live in these kinds of buildings, so we’re used to handling that kind of thing.” The client, a child psychiatrist in her 60s, recently moved to Houston from northeast Texas to be with friends. After being widowed three years ago, she decided it was time to let go of the traditionally styled estate that wasn’t really her style anyway. An avid diver who has traveled around the world to pursue her passion, she has amassed a large collection of art from her travels. Downsizing to 1,600 feet and wanting to go more contemporary, she wanted the display – and the look – more streamlined. “She wanted clean lines and muted colors, with the main focus being her artwork,” says Maxey. “So we made the space a palette for that.” Enter the white, gallery-grade paint she chose for the walls: “It’s halfway between satin and flat,” explains Maxey. “It’s not glossy and it’s not chalky – just very smooth and clean." Adding to the gallery theme is the satin nickel track lighting with lamps aimed to highlight pieces of art. “This lighting has no wires,” notes Maxey. “It’s powered by a positive and negative conduit.” The new flooring throughout is a blended-grey porcelain tile that looks like wood planks. “It’s gorgeous, natural-looking and combines all the beauty of wood with the durability of tile,” says Maxey. “We used it throughout the condo to unify the space.” After Maxey started looking at the client’s bright, vibrant, colorful artwork, she felt the palette couldn’t stay as muted anymore. Hence the Mid Century Modern orange leather sofas from West Elm and bright green chairs from Joybird, plus the throw pillows in different textures, patterns and shades of gold, orange and green. The concave lines of the Danish-inspired chairs, she notes, help them look beautiful from all the way around – a key to designing spaces for loft living. “The table in the living room is very interesting,” notes Maxey. “It was handmade for the client in 1974 and has a signature on it from the artist. She was adamant about including the piece, which has all these hand-painted black-and-white art tiles on the top. I took one look at it and said ‘It’s not really going to go.’” However, after cutting 6 inches off the bottom and making it look a little distressed, the table ended up being the perfect complement to the sofas. The dining room table – from Design Within Reach – is a solid piece of mahogany, the chair upholstery a mix of grey velvet and leather and the legs a shiny brass. “The side chairs are leather and the end ones are velvet,” says Maxey. “It’s a nice textural mix that lends depth and texture.”The galley kitchen, meanwhile, has been lightened and brightened, with new, white contemporary cabinetry, quartz countertops mimicking the look of Carrara marble, stainless steel appliances and a velvet green bench seat for a punch of color.The two bathrooms have been updated with contemporary white vanities and vessel sinks and the master bath now features a walk-in shower tiled in Dolomite white marble (the floor is Bianco Carrara marble mosaic, done in a herringbone pattern).In the master bedroom, Homescapes of Houston knocked down a wall between two smaller closets with swing doors to make one large walk-in closet with pocket doors. The closet in the guest bedroom also came out 13 more inches.The client’s artwork throughout personalizes the space and tells the story of a life. There’s a huge bowl of shells from the client’s diving adventures, framed art from her child psychiatry patients and a 16th century wood carving from a monastery that’s been in her family forever. “Her collection is quite impressive,” says Maxey. “There’s even a framed piece of autographed songs written by John Lennon.” (You can see this black-framed piece of art on the wall in the photo above of two green chairs). “We’re extremely happy with how the project turned out, and so is the client,” says Maxey. “No expense was spared for her. It was a labor of love and we were excited to do it.”

Brad Peebles
Design ideas for a mid-sized midcentury open concept living room in Hawaii with porcelain floors and a freestanding tv.

Living room with built in bar.
Large midcentury open concept living room in Dallas with a library, white walls, porcelain floors, a ribbon fireplace, a stone fireplace surround, a built-in media wall and beige floor.

A custom walnut cabinet conceals the living room television. New floor-to-ceiling sliding window walls open the room to the adjacent patio. Sky-Frame sliding doors/windows via Dover Windows and Doors; Kolbe VistaLuxe fixed and casement windows via North American Windows and Doors; Element by Tech Lighting recessed lighting; Lea Ceramiche Waterfall porcelain stoneware tiles

Design ideas for a mid-sized midcentury formal open concept living room in San Francisco with white walls, porcelain floors and beige floor.

Inspiration for a mid-sized midcentury formal open concept living room in Salt Lake City with brown walls, porcelain floors, no fireplace, a freestanding tv and grey floor.

Our client works largely from home and had requested a large desk. The window, which we gave a black detailing to give the illusion of length, was the best place for it, capitalising on the natural light. A wooden desk was customised with yellow finish drawers on a side. Next to this corner hangs a custom-designed ceiling lamp in terrazzo.