What Is An Alcove?
Having an alcove in your home allows you to have many different design opportunities as they are unique and have great features.
Lots of people want alcoves as they feel like it provides them with more design opportunities, but what makes alcoves so desirable and what do they do?
As well as being incredibly practical, alcoves are great design features. You can fit lots of ornaments and features in an alcove as they provide more space in the room, but styling them is important.
You do not want to overpower the room as they are there to make a statement, but not be too overwhelming.
This article will explain what an alcove is and how you can design them in your living room. Find out more about alcoves below and the best ways to style them to make sure that they complement your living room.
What Is An Alcove?
An alcove is an opening in a room that is often found by a fireplace. The best way to describe an alcove is like a nook, and it is a very sought-after architectural feature.
Alcoves look like someone has cut sections out of a wall, leaving the fireplace protruding from the wall, while the alcoves are the parts of the wall on either side that are slightly behind.
They are very popular features as there are a lot of different designs for alcoves as they look incredibly unique and stylish. They are usually found on either side of a fireplace, but they can be in other areas of the room.
How To Style Your Living Room Alcove
Alcoves are very stylish and popular features, but how do you style them? Making the most of these spaces is important for maximizing their full potential, but you do not want them to overpower the space.
For ideas on how to style your living room alcove, you can find out more below!
Add Shelves
If you are unsure what to do with your alcove, you can turn it into a shelf to create more space in the room. It is a great way to emphasize the alcove and fit a bookshelf into your room without taking up too much space.
By painting the shelves the same color as the wall, you will have a great space that will strongly feature in the room and not take up space.
The bookshelf will look modern and you can play with textures on the shelves to create depth. Add some ornaments and different-sized books to create depth in the alcove and prevent it from looking too one-dimensional.
Create Office Space
This gives you your own private space to work and keeps your office space away from your relaxation space.
You can add shelving into the alcove to create storage space for your work items and utilize the space that you are given. You can also paint the alcove a different color or even a pattern as you will be facing it every day!
Use It As Storage
Alcoves are great to use for built-in storage, especially if you are running out of space in your living room. Using an alcove for storage can prevent your living room from looking cluttered and messy as the storage is hidden away in the wall.
This can keep valuables away from children and pets to stop them from becoming broken.
As alcoves add depth to the room, using them for storage space is important to prevent them from looking empty. You can enjoy a less cluttered room and utilize the great space in the walls to store things.
Frame A Mirror
Mirrors are great tools for making a smaller space look bigger than it is, so you can highlight an alcove by using a mirror.
This frames the mirror and creates an area for it to stand out, but it highlights the alcove and draws attention to it. It makes the room look larger and is the perfect snug area to position a couple of mirrors.
You can then add a cabinet displaying some photos, plants, or ornaments on it to prevent the alcove from looking empty, but make sure it doesn’t overpower the mirror.
If the mirror is a standout piece, try to tone down the area by using subtle colors and ornaments. The mirror will create light in the room and open it up.
Frame Furniture
Having a large alcove that isn’t framing a fireplace can be difficult to blend into your room, but framing furniture is perfect for connecting the whole room.
If you have a standout piece of furniture, like a sofa, allow the alcove to frame it to blend the whole room and create a dramatic effect.
Leaving a large alcove bare can create emptiness in the room, so allowing it to frame a sofa creates depth in the room and prevents it from looking bare.
You can frame a standout chair, but you need to consider the size of the alcove. If the alcove is too big for the chair, it will make the room look empty and highlight unused space.
Final Thoughts
To conclude, alcoves are spaces in the walls for you to use and they are very popular design features. You can use your alcove however you want, but it is important to utilize the space.
If you do not utilize the space, there is a risk that your room will look empty, so make the most of the extra storage space in the room.
Having an alcove makes your room feel less cluttered as you can create new storage space.
They are very popular design features that can change the shape of your room, so styling them the right way is important for ensuring that they stand out for the right reasons in your room!
