How to design the perfect lilac living room

Lilac is the colour of spring and brings a sense of freshness to any space. It is that perfect, unassuming neutral. It’s a hue that’s versatile enough to pair with almost any colour scheme and pairing it with a variety of other colours will only highlight its positivity.

If you have lilac interiors or are planning to make your living room or home more lilac, here are some ideas on how to create the perfect lilac living room. It can be used sparingly or as an accent. 

Lilac is an understated neutral that works beautifully with almost any other colour. Perhaps because of this, designers have used it as inspiration for entire spaces. A lilac living room can be just what you need to bring a little warmth and freshness into your home – especially if you live in a cooler climate, where reds and greens seem more natural than blues and oranges. 

If you’re looking for inspiration on how best to use lilac in your home, here, we will explore different ways you can bring this fashionable hue into your living room with ease. Whether you are planning to repaint the walls or want to introduce some new accents in this room, our following guide will help you find the perfect balance between neutral and lilac.

1. Decide on your overall theme

While it’s important to be inspired by colour palettes, it’s also important to ensure that each colour has a purpose. Make sure that each colour stems from a common idea, whether it’s a colour that represents your personality, your favourite season, or a colour that you feel is most conducive to your lifestyle. 

If all the different shades of lilac inspire you at once, you can create an overarching theme based on that colour. A good theme takes your home to the next level, and it can help you achieve your desired look by providing you with a few guidelines. 

If you want to go with a more specific colour, such as lavender, blue-violet, or indigo, you can create an entirely new theme based on that colour. You can also mix and match a few different colour palettes and motifs if you want a room that’s a little more eclectic.

2. Choose a shade of lilac

Lavender, blue-violet, and indigo are all hues that fall under the lilac colour spectrum. While you can select any hue that you feel inspired by, it’s important to ensure that all other tones in your room fall in line with your selection. 

For example, if you like the idea of using a blue-violet hue, you can select a few complementary shades to use throughout your living room, such as light grey, beige, and bright purple accents. 

If you’re not sure which shade of lilac you want to go with, you can select a few different hues based on the different moods they create. For instance, warm lilac creates a cosy, welcoming vibe while cooler tones like lavender create a sense of freshness.

3. Start with the walls

The first thing that guests see when they enter your home is your living room walls. Start with your walls to create a theme that extends throughout your living room and into adjoining areas. If you want your walls to be a warm, inviting shade of lilac, consider going with a creamy, pale shade of the colour. 

You can add in a few blue-violet tones by painting one wall a darker shade of lilac and another wall a shade closer to blue. You can also create texture and depth by painting one wall with a pattern and another wall with a plain hue.

4. Add in light grey and beige tones

If your lilac living room is a warm shade of lilac, adding some light grey and beige tones will help you create a fresh, modern look. You can paint your walls with a few different light grey and beige tones, or you can incorporate them into your decor as well. 

Fabrics, couches, and other upholstered furniture can be painted in light grey and beige tones. You can also select light grey and beige tones for your accessories, such as your rugs, throw pillows, and decorations.

5. Incorporate bright purple accents

If you’ve created a warm, inviting space with a lilac wall hue and light grey and beige accessories, you can boost the freshness of your living room by incorporating a few bright purple accents. 

You can add bright purple accents to your walls by painting one wall a shade of purple that’s a little brighter than the rest of your lilac walls. You can also add bright purple accents with decorative items like wall art, throw pillows, and rugs.

6. Lilac seating area

As we’ve already mentioned, lilac is a soft and delicate hue that brings a sense of calm and relaxation. This being said, the perfect place to incorporate lilac is your seating area. 

Make your living room the centre of attention by repainting the chairs in this colour or adding pillows in bright lilac colours. You can also add a rug in a lilac hue to tie the whole seating area together. With a lilac rug, you can also add texture to the area by placing some coffee tables and side tables in the room.

7. Try a different shade of lilac

If you’ve selected a warm hue of lilac for your walls, you can create a fresh and inviting look by selecting a cooler shade of lilac for your walls. 

With a cooler shade of lilac, you can create a fresh living room if you’ve selected a warm lilac tone. You can also mix and match different hues of lilac by painting one wall a cooler, brighter shade of lilac and another wall a warmer shade of lilac.

8. Lilac art piece or wall hanging

If you decide on painting the walls with lilac, you can add a beautiful touch to the room by hanging a wall art piece with a lilac hue. You can choose between paintings, images or wall decals. Keep in mind that you don’t need to choose a floral image just because you are using lilac as an accent colour. 

When decorating with a lilac art piece, keep in mind that it should be the focal point of the room. This means that you shouldn’t overcrowd the space around it.

9. Incorporate wood and metal accents

Wood and metal are classic materials that complement a variety of different colour schemes. If you’ve chosen to incorporate a warmer or cooler shade of lilac in your living room, you can select wood and metal accents to bring your colour scheme together. 

Wood and metal add a rustic, inviting feel to your home, and they can help you achieve a modern, cosy look in your living room. You can incorporate wood and metal in your decor by selecting items that are made from these materials, such as your coffee table, decorative items, and ceiling lights.

10. Add soft furnishings

Soft furnishings like fabrics, cushions, and rugs can transform any room by adding texture, colour, and warmth. If you’ve chosen a warm hue of lilac for your walls, a cooler tone for the other walls, and wood and metal accents, you can create a cosy look by selecting warm, vibrant fabrics for your furniture and accessories. 

You can use warm hues in your cushions and rugs, such as oranges, yellows, and reds. For a fresh and inviting look in your living room, use cool blues and greens in your fabrics.

11. Include a few bold pieces

If your lilac living room is warm and inviting, you can add a few bold pieces to complement your colour scheme. You can select a bold wall art piece, an oversized couch, or a few large decorative pieces to add a bold touch to your living room. You can also select pieces that are textured or have interesting designs to add an interesting aesthetic to your living room.

12. Go for a light and airy vibe

If you’ve created a cool and refreshing living room, you can go for a light and airy vibe by selecting lighter shades of lilac and white. You can create a light and airy living room by selecting lighter shades of lilac for your walls. You can also add white accents to your living room to boost the light and airy vibe created by your lilac walls.

13. Don’t forget to include plants!

Creating a living and vibrant space is essential to truly make a room feel like home. Plants are an excellent way to do this; they’re a natural way to create a healthy and balanced indoor environment. 

Ensure that you choose the right plants for your space and remember to water them regularly for them to thrive. Lilacs are perfect for a living room space as they are readily available, relatively inexpensive and have lovely, fragrant blooms that last for many weeks. Other plants to consider for your living room space include ferns, palms, orchids or other flowering plants.

14. Neutralize with white: The key to using lilac in a living room

If you decide on decorating with one colour in your living room, you will need to make sure that it’s balanced out with neutrals. When decorating with lilac, try to avoid using other warm tones and instead add more neutral pieces in your room. This is a great way to keep the room from being too overwhelming and let the lilac accent shine through. You can add white curtains and furniture, as well as light walls or a white ceiling. This is a great way to create contrast in the room and let the lilac colour pop out.

15. Mixing different tones of lilac

If you’re not sure which hue to choose, you can also mix different tones of lilac, such as a dark wall colour with a bright accent colour. This is a great way to create a fun and bright atmosphere in the room without being too overwhelming. 

As an example, you could paint the walls in a dark lilac hue, and add a bright lilac accent colour in the form of a throw pillow or a lampshade.

Bottom line

Decorating with lilac is a great way to make your living room feel inviting, cosy and relaxing. This hue is perfect for spring and summer, but you can enjoy it all year round. When decorating with lilac, remember that this colour is bold and can easily overwhelm a room if you use too much of it. Mix it with neutrals and low-contrast colours to create a balanced environment.