47 Midcentury Modern Living Rooms That Get the Retro Balance Right
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Despite the ever-growing number of interior design trends we're seeing emerge this year, the popularity of midcentury modern design is still going strong. And for good reason—the warm tones, timelessly chic furniture silhouettes, and expert manufacturing quality still make us swoon whenever we see them in a space. These midcentury modern living room ideas showcase the best that '50s style has to offer in the 2020s.
Midcentury modern living rooms blend elements of Scandinavian warmth with modernism's industrial materials, reflecting the optimism of the space age and the postwar boom. If you want your home to capture the essence of this time, we think the room you likely spend the most time in—your living room—is the best place to start sourcing period-appropriate furniture. While midcentury-inspired knockoffs are everywhere on the market, we think the real thing is well worth it—luckily, finding affordable midcentury modern furniture isn't too difficult. Browse estate sales and online auctions, and you can score vintage gems that will make you the envy of your design-loving friends. Beyond that, there are certain colors and accents—like martini olive green and wood paneling—that will further reinforce the midcentury modern aesthetic in your home.
If names like Eames, Bertoia, and Wegner get you excited, scroll on to check out 47 chic midcentury modern living rooms that will persuade you to fully embrace the aesthetic. There's no reason not to—this design style isn't going anywhere.
Additional copy by Meghan Shouse.
Find more living room inspiration here:
Adorn the Ceiling
A subtle way to incorporate a midcentury modern touch is to use crown molding throughout the ceiling. Straight lines, geometric patterns, and a clean wash of color make this design detail pop without distracting from the rest of the room.
Embrace Wood Paneling
Wooden wall paneling, often seen as a dark and dated feature, can make a midcentury modern living room instantly moodier and cozier when used correctly. Pair with leather accents and a curved sofa to modernize this retro design statement.
Use Geometric Furniture
When in doubt, look to primary school geometry for your midcentury-inspired living room. A triangular coffee table and boxy sofa add 1950s flair to this cozy space by Wendy Labrum. Softer textiles and pastel hues help bring a feminine touch.
Use Moody Tones
Plaid, leather, and burl wood are all key elements of the midcentury era. But when paired together in the right scales and tones, like this Sarah Vaile-designed lounge, they can come together to form a masculine and sophisticated space.
Gild Your Accents
A bronzed, sculptural pendant light, a subtle nod to the midcentury modern design aesthetic, livens up this home's otherwise bare ceilings. Designer Elaine Santos uses subtle, neutral tones to let the piece shine.
Feature Authentic Pieces
Furniture items, like the Kangaroo chairs and B&B Italia sofa, add a distinct mid-century feeling to this Tina Ramchandani-designed living room. A high-gloss, cobalt blue color drench adds glamour to the period pieces.
Pair Colors Carefully
In Serena Dugan's Shelter Island home, warm textures like leather, rattan, and bamboo are paired with a light sage green, a palette straight out of the midcentury textbook—geometric patterns and a high-pile rug help to bring this lounge space into the current age.
Install a Unique Light Fixture
A large, geometric light fixture is the perfect main light source for a midcentury modern living room. Nina Garbiras drew attention to the industrial elements of this New York City loft with the ceiling light, then brought in contemporary furniture to complement it.
Embrace Contrasts
Midcentury modern design is all about geometric patterns and shapes, so pairing curved details, like this table lamp, with crisp lines, like those of this couch, is a way to capture the style without being too on the nose. Here, Nina Garbiras chose neutral furnishings "to highlight the architectural details and the view" and brought in the aesthetic in subtler ways.
Balance Modern and Traditional
Dane Austin's more contemporary take on midcentury modern, seen here in the couch, side table, and stool, balances the more traditional aspects of this 19th-century home. Their soft, organic shapes also make the space feel more livable and inviting.
Take Inspiration From the Greats
When in doubt, look to the past. This kidney-shaped couch was inspired by furniture designer Vladimir Kagan, who focused on contemporary styles like these starting in the 1940s. They do say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and Dane Austin's intentions by including this mohair velvet sofa are clear.
Choose an Earthy Color Palette
It's easy for midcentury modern items to feel like untouchable pieces of art because they're so sculptural, but you can make them more approachable by sticking to an earthy color palette. Blair Moore of Moore House Design had custom furnishings made for this home so her clients could get their desired styles in their desired color scheme.
Display Your Vinyl
A vast record collection is only appropriate for someone who loves midcentury modern living rooms, so be sure to own it and put your records on display. Moore called this room a "disco library lounge" and had it double as a lively, music-filled family room.
Keep the Decorations Simple
Sometimes a piece of decor is so good you can let it carry the whole room. Such is the case with this fireplace cover, with its soft curves and minimalist shape. Moore didn't need to add much else.
Mix Midcentury With Rustic
You might not think the classic log cabin look and midcentury modern aesthetic can work together, but Thom Filicia proves they do. The cluster of midcentury coffee tables doesn't compete with the warm wood and stone textures in the space. Instead, it's a cozy escape that feels clean and playful.
Bring in Bold Patterns
The curved shapes of a lot of midcentury modern furniture pair extremely well with bold patterns. Simply look at this space by Filicia: The curvy, wooden chair next to the heavily patterned sofa looks extremely warm and stylish.
Use Unexpected Materials
Revive your love of midcentury modern living rooms by sourcing pieces with classic, geometric silhouettes that are made from unexpected materials. Filicia perfectly captured a "midcentury cabin" aesthetic with these matching, light-wood coffee tables using that same philosophy.
Embrace Avocado Green
The light green color of these living room walls by Ashley Maddox brings in the midcentury modern spirit. It's a classic hue of the time, and paired with the same era furniture in this room, it really brings the whole space together.
Make It Cozy
Use plush textures and soft colors in combination with geometric midcentury modern furniture for a cozy balance. Susannah Charbin created this ideal napping space in her midcentury home using neutral tones that work with its clean lines.
Encourage Conversations
The conversation pit is a fixture in midcentury design, so adding a space to your living room that encourages human connection is essential to truly capture the aesthetic. This isn't technically a pit, but Rodney Lawrence mimicked one with this oversize sectional.
Layer Intriguing Pieces
Though it's a more modern interpretation, this part of the home still shows Robert Lawrence's midcentury inspiration in its layering of clean lines, from the hanging shelves to the geometric shapes of the side table.
Bring in Era-Appropriate Art
In this essentially wall-free midcentury modern living room, Raji Radhakrishnan brought in sculptural art to help capture the aesthetic. The pop-art Brillo boxes on the floor are at least heavily inspired by Andy Warhol—if not actual vintage pieces.
Bring in Some Humor
You wouldn't expect to see a 19th-century mural paired with a doghouse-shaped midcentury chair, but Raji Radhakrishnan wanted to bring in a little humor. "It's funny, a little off, but it puts a smile on your face," she explains. "It's the good kind of tension. If everything was the same, it would be so boring!"
Go for Luxury
Pair midcentury shapes with luxe finishes to make a more glamorous and dramatic living room. Cecilia Casagrande chose a dark green wall to contrast the bright gold velvet on the chairs to make the room feel moodier, then balanced out the heaviness of the finishings with lighter midcentury accessories.
Embrace Your Quirkiness
If you want to add a little bit of quirk, pair midcentury modern with an unexpected aesthetic. Casagrande's use of midcentury modern furniture combined with "unexpected nature motifs like bugs and birds in fabrics and wallpapers," says Liza Hunter, Casagrande's client, "lends a dignified quirkiness to her style." Sometimes things you think wouldn't work so well together can come in and add an eclectic quality to your home.
Choose a Monochromatic Color Scheme
On the sexier side of midcentury modern, a monochromatic color scheme can really create a dramatic lounging experience. Summer Thornton used this yellow, asymmetrical midcentury sofa in her clients' over-the-top gold room for the ideal hanging-out vibes: artistic, swanky, and completely decadent.
Pick a Statement Chair
If you're searching for a good way to start your style journey, add an iconic piece of midcentury modern furniture. Summer Thornton chose this vintage leather chair, and you can tell immediately by looking at it what era it comes from thanks to the clean lines and interesting stitching.
Supersize It
To make this small, bright room feel more intimate, Summer Thornton deployed this oversize midcentury couch. It's another way to encourage conversation, and you know what they say: Go big or go home.
Customize the Small Things
If you can't find exactly what you're looking for—and your budget allows—then get something custom-made. Melanie Turner made her clients' midcentury modern living room more aesthetically pleasing by incorporating of-the-time furniture and custom-bound family scrapbooks to give the library coordinated pops of color.
Choose Family-Friendly Decor
Midcentury modern style is truly so versatile because there are plenty of mature pieces that look like works of art, but there are also more family-friendly items you can choose from, like these egg chairs, for example. The founders of Kureck Jones, John Kureck and Doug Jones, were tasked with designing this kid-friendly beach house, and the shapely chairs paired with the futuristic light and vivid colors helped them meet that goal.
Add Pops of Color
Don't be afraid to bring in pops of color that seem more modern. When paired with the right details, like this midcentury chair and the paneling on the wall, the Kureck Jones designers were still able to give this living room the cool vibe their client wanted.
Choose an Unconventional Color Scheme
This ultrasuede sofa screams midcentury modern, even though the palette is usually a bit more moody with pops of brightness here and there. The team at Kureck Jones used the right silhouettes with the out-there colors for a living room that's playful and inviting.
Ditch the Couch
List your couch on Facebook Marketplace and opt for two chaise lounges instead. Philip Mitchell used these gorgeous midcentury seats in a couple's den, creating an interesting space just for them.
Take Advantage of Your Space
If you want to treat your midcentury modern furniture collection like artwork, use your living room as the ultimate display and layer as much as you can into the space. Philip Mitchell packed plenty of seating into this maximalist midcentury modern living room.
Mix True Vintage with Contemporary
The stark contrast between traditional vintage pieces and midcentury modern ones creates an interesting space that's difficult to replicate. Garrow Kedigian tapped into his clients' love of midcentury modern vintage and played around with traditional, ornate flea market chairs by pairing them with the curved loveseat and sharp table to mesh the two aesthetics.
Add Depth
To complement the clean lines of midcentury modern, add depth to your living room with a moodier paint color. Garrow Kedigian added a drop of black to Benjamin Moore paint in Lakeside Cabin to do just that, making this space look so lively.
Embrace the Structural Details
If you want a midcentury modern living room but your home has structural details that may not traditionally fit the aesthetic, don't get rid of them—work with them. In this Victorian cattle barn, the designers at McLaren.Excell brought in period furniture and embraced the wood-beam ceiling by sticking to a neutral palette and rustic textures. It definitely doesn't take away the contemporary vibe that some of the furnishings bring in.
Match Your Furniture to Your Art
Though it doesn't fit the traditional midcentury modern color scheme, the living room of this Hamptons home by Amy Lau definitely captures the aesthetic. Lau pulled a color from the modern art prints for the midcentury-esque chairs—the perfect way to bridge the gap between competing styles.
Add a Metallic Touch
Midcentury modern design often features chrome, but you can give it a contemporary interpretation by reaching for other metallic finishes. Amy Lau chose a custom kidney-shaped ottoman covered in iridescent leather for this living room, incorporating a hint of that iconic chrome finish.
Bring the Outdoors in
A mainstay of midcentury modern design is coziness. One way to channel it is with exterior elements, which can make the interior of your home feel warmer and more connected to nature. To turn up the warmth in this remote Utah ranch, Anik Pearson moved wall sconces from the exterior to the interior.
Put in Unique Shelves
The ebony wall paneling and Plexiglas shelves are original to this midcentury modern home, so they're the perfect model for your retro living room. As designer Everick Brown put it, "Everybody wanted to demo them, and I was like, 'No, you can't destroy that!'"
Make a Statement Wall
Another way to add a metallic touch to your midcentury modern living room is through a statement wall covered in steel. At least, that's how Everick Brown did it. The niche lined with contrasting wood gives this living room much-needed warmth and dimension.
Include Family Heirlooms
This iconic midcentury modern Hans Wegner Papa Bear chair once belonged to Cate Dunning's paternal grandfather. So it was only natural for her to work it into the design of her own home, which used to belong to her maternal grandparents. It adds such a playful pop of color to this already fun room and lets her honor both sets of her grandparents in a stylish way.
Install a Parquet Floor
Wood flooring was popular in the midcentury modern era. To take it a step further, bring in geometric shapes and play with symmetry by installing a parquet floor in a diamond motif. Atelier ND chose a striped loveseat to have even more fun with the lines in the space.
Soften With Curves
Balance too many harsh lines with a curved midcentury modern couch or loveseat, as Ana Claudia did here. "Even though the space had beautiful architectural detail, the room was rectangular, the mantle was rectangular, and there needed to be some balance," she explains. "Curved furniture softens the space."
Add Wood Panelling
We know: Wood paneling is polarizing. However, it's a characteristic of midcentury modern design that you should preserve when you come across it, as McLaren.Excell did here. The panels often mimic the natural wood outside the home, making them extremely unique and bringing the outdoors in.
Spotlight Special Pieces
Use highly saturated and contrasting colors to highlight the midcentury modern pieces you really want to show off. Jonathan Savage chose to paint the walls of the living room in the House Beautiful 2022 Whole Home in a rich gray-blue, which lets the bright yellow chair stand out and be the star.
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