Express yourself blending personality and function in the living room


May 26, 2025
The living room tells a story. And for the most part, it’s an autobiography; but its where your happily ever after can come true.
The living room is one of the most visible rooms of the home, and with the prevailing popularity of the open concept plan on the main floor, it’s easily the one where your personal style can make the most impact.
In the past, the living room had a more formal function. It was called a sitting room, or a parlour, where homeowners receive guests. Today, it’s a bit more informal – and is largely the spot in the home where the family can gather to have fun.
In fact, the living room - in a single-family home, at least – isn’t just necessarily on the main floor. The bonus room on the second floor, or the entertainment space in the basement can also be termed as living rooms and designed as such to take on this function for family fun.
“Today’s living room is the embodiment of functionality,” says Michelle Vant Erve, Senior Interior Designer at Partners Homes.
“Living rooms are no longer uptight and formal spaces - they have taken on a much more casual feel and their use has transitioned to blending time for relaxation and leisure, socializing and entertainment, technology, and self-expression. Living rooms have become rooms that are cozy and often eclectic spaces that have been curated with intent to meet the needs of each client,” she adds.
Showhome inspiration
If you want to be inspired in finding the living room design of your dreams, there’s no better way than visiting one of the showhomes. Those are always guaranteed to have the latest popular trends, but better than that they can give lessons in room composition.
For condos, townhomes or duplexes, Partners Homes’ showhomes can best give ideas on making the most of a more limited space. While for single-family homes, nowhere better to get inspiration than in a showhome from a 16-time Builder of the Year winner, Morrison Homes.
Design Trends
Vante Erve of Partners Homes says all their floorplans emphasize visual continuity, and this can be seen in any of their showhomes in Homestead in NE Calgary, Upper Greenwhich in the NW, Lawrie Park condos in Okotoks, and in the duplexes in Logan Landing in the SE.
“All our floor plans, whether Modern Brownstones, Townhomes, Condos or Paired homes, prioritize visual continuity,” she says. “We achieve this by repeating materials and maintaining consistency in our finishes and color palette. In our show homes, we take this one step further by using area carpets, lighting and furniture placement to delineate the living room, dining, and kitchens across a larger footprint. In our homes, we aim to optimize natural light and maintain flow and accessibility between these spaces.”
Morrison Homes employs a variety of style in their latest showhomes in Rockland Park in the NW, and in Sirocco at Pine Creek in the SW, and Legacy in the SE. Sierra Dunlop and Nikki Cole of Morrison Homes’ design team say there are so many options in creating style in the living room.
One thing they are noticing more of, is the demand for more built-in furniture in the living room.
“For example, in ourEncore showhome in Rockland Park, the living room features a built-in bench next to the fireplace and integrated into the hardwood stairs with led lighting below,” Dunlop says.
To extend visual continuity, Cole says the fireplace detail extends to the ceiling, half with textured tile and half painted drywall. “It also features an asymmetrical quartz hearth and oak floating shelves. Lastly, the open to above location has three separate hanging light fixtures at different heights creating a sense of balance and proportion within the space.”
Step-by-step design
Vante Erve says living rooms are all about self-expression and comfort, and that Partners’ showhomes use a guide that can help create buyers come up with their own indidualized style.
*Bold Color Palettes:
This year we are creating spaces that are leaning into bold and saturated colors – whether that be in fabrics/furniture, wallpaper, or paint. Jewel-tones rooms, color blocked sofas and painted cabinetry, molding and millwork.
*Layered Textures & Patterns:
In our open concept homes - Hardwood or Luxury vinyl flooring provides a neutral canvas that unify all zones. In our living rooms, we begin with an area carpet as our first layer which sets the tone for the room and grounds, defines, and anchors the space. We then build on this palette with a layering texture and pattern in our fabrics in our soft seating, grain in the woods and tone of our case goods, and then complete the room with intentional selection of accessories and art.
*Wallpaper as Art:
From removable murals to 3D-embossed papers, we’re using them on accent walls or enveloping entire rooms to elevate each space.
*Eclectic “Collected” Styling:
Creating rooms with personality and a touch of whimsy keeps the spaces fresh and unexpected. By pairing vintage finds with new and contemporary pieces, we create spaces that have been carefully curated and personalized.
Find out more about Partners’ showhomes at partnershomes.ca

Personality traits
Morrison Homes brings a nuanced touch in the design of their living rooms, personal style can rule the living room’s look but Cole and Dunlop have a few pointers they can share too.
- Texture is an important detail in the living room, this can include details such as fabrics, paneling, feature walls, different wood species, layering built-ins with lighting and art etc.
- We are seeing a lot less desire to have the TV in the main living area and often the TV is being placed in a secondary bonus room, or in a basement entertainment area.
- In some cases the TV is shifted in the Great Room or incorporated into built-ins. Our Cliffton Show home in Legacy is a prime example of this. We created a feature built in with an electric fireplace, but shifted the TV with decorative wall paneling behind it, almost integrating the TV with the design. This in turn creates visual interest while still accommodating a location for a TV.
Check out morrisonhomes.ca for more information on their showhomes.
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