Do you have a favorite room on the internet? If so, have you ever wanted to replicate it, even slightly, so your home can feel the way you feel when you look at that photo? I think we design enthusiasts all suffer from a little design envy. We are bombarded with perfectly styled rooms daily which can be inspiring but perhaps at times, a little disheartening. I have definitely asked myself, “Why can’t my home look like that?” too many times to count which is of course AMAZING for my mental health :). If you have ever felt that way, now you know you are not alone.
If you’ve been following Emily for a while you probably recognized the above living room immediately. It is Emily’s Glendale home living room and one of it’s those spaces that is warm, calm, and inviting while still being eclectic and fun. It has been an EHD favorite for years and years and it’s not hard to see why. So today’s post is for anyone who has ever wanted to shop straight from this room – but on a budget. We scoured the internet for similar pieces that are also affordable so you can essentially replicate this exact room if you so please. Ready to see what’s in store?
Before we get to the shopping portion of this post, I think it is important to dissect what makes this living room so successful. The white walls and wood flooring lay a light, warm base for the furniture to remain neutral and inviting. In addition, with the focal point being this large natural and rustic-looking stone fireplace, the space could easily become overwhelming or confusing with brightly patterned furniture. To create a cohesive space, the furniture pieces are variations of gray, wood, and leather (but all have special details so they are anything but boring). With light tonal furniture in place, there is so much room for color and pattern to be layered in.
This living room is one of the best examples of mixing styles by sticking to a consistent and cohesive color palette. The colors are gray, blue, navy, white, and wood, with some hints of lighter-toned pinks and even some green and light coral accents. And you might notice that there are many different shades of blues and even pinks and that’s okay, because they are all tonal and calm. A bright pink pillow might look out of place, but a light and calm pink blends in effortlessly. The clean lines and neutral gray tone of the MCM-inspired sectional allow for ample color and pattern to be layered in with pillows and throws, in a way that is not visually overwhelming. While we are on the subject of sofa styling, always remember to mix different sizes, shapes, textures, patterns, and styles (again, in the same color palette).
You may have also noticed that the furniture styles are quite different. The sofa leans MCM, the vintage chair is more bohemian, the coffee table is rustic, and there is even a modern side table to top it all off. The key, as I said above, is that they are all neutral, inviting, and within the color palette so they don’t clash with each other. Instead, the mix of styles provides visual interest and personality to the space.
With all of these elements backed by gorgeous natural lighting, the result is an uber-inviting, warm, and lived-in room that has a ton of style.
Now are you ready to get the look?
1. Oliver 2-Piece Chaise Sectional: This is a great, affordable, and comfortable 2-piece chaise sectional that is 79″ wide. If you are looking for one a little bigger, we also love this one (that’s 112″ wide). If your budget allows, the original Burrand sectional Emily used is also still available!
2. Handmade Studio Leather Dorotheia Modern Leather Rug: This textural hide rug with scallop detail looks almost identical to the original one Emily used and comes in various sizes (the largest being 8’x10′).
3. Mid-Century Modern Walnut Dining Chair: This wood and gray dining chair could be a great accent chair for a small space.
4. Live Edge Coffee Table: Especially when mixed with straight Mid Century Modern lines, a live edge coffee table brings movement and warmth to a space.
5. Morrocan Pouf: This classic Morrocan pouf instantly adds a bohemian vibe.
6. Faux Fiddle Leaf Fig Plant in Pot: Fiddle leaf plants add so much vibrancy and movement to a room.
7. Bianca Striped Seagrass Tote Basket: We love putting potted plants in woven baskets for added warmth and texture.
8. Marla Vegan Leather Armchair: While Emily’s vintage safari chairs are obviously awesome, this vegan leather armchair is a great alternative (and also comes in black).
9. Marble Pedestal End Table: This black and marble side table brings in just the right amount of modern flair.
10. Grady 6 – Drawer Dresser: Adding a dresser to your living space provides extra storage and can exude a very relaxed and welcoming feel. Plus it’s a great place to display vases or other accessories.
1. Cozy Teddy Faux Fur Oversized Pillow Cover: This 30″x30″ boucle pillow cover would be a great companion to a gray sectional sofa.
2. Blue And Ivory Geometric Indoor Outdoor Throw Pillow: This blue patterned pillow is suitable for both indoors and outdoors.
3. Global Tufted Throw Blanket with Tassels: This is a nice, large (60″x80″), and affordable blanket with a lovely texture – not to mention it’s almost identical to the one in the Glendale living room.
4. Yucatan Terracotta Stripe Euro Sham: I love how Emily added so many colors to this room using throw pillows. This white and coral sham has such a pretty pattern and the soft orange hue blends beautifully with the blue, green, and pink colors throughout the space.
5. Vintage Blimp Aircraft Illustration Digital Art: Emily’s blimp art is an iconic piece that works with so many styles. If you are into the vintage drawing style art, this is a very cool one but please note it is a digital print so you would need to have it printed 🙂
6. Custom Frame: Once you have your art printed, you are going to need it framed. We love Framebridge for their quality and service.
7. Wood Coat Hooks: These wood coat hooks which are also perfect for hanging things like ceramic bells, will bring a warm, MCM flair to any space.
8. Stripy Ceramic Bell: We are forever fans of MQuan’s ceramic bells but if they’re out of your budget, these are great.
9. Pettini Vase: This is such a pretty vase that would add texture, movement, and color to your space.
10. Euro Woven Stripe Decorative Throw Pillow Blue: This is a high-quality pillow for the price and we love the grid pattern.
11. Sage Green Colorblock Pillow Cover: I love the calm sage green color of this handmade color block pillow cover.
12. Pink Pillow Cover: To complement the other pink hues in the space, this pillow cover is your guy.
13. Angeleta Woven Throw Blanket: This is a solid, affordable throw blanket that would work well with a variety of styles.
14. Onslow Tray: A woven tray will provide warmth and a hint of bohemian flair to your space. If you want, you can place it on the floor next to a chair (as Em did) to provide a place for extra magazines or books.
1. Saqqara Pillow Cover in Albatross: This playful pattern pillow cover is available in a wide range of sizes so you can tailor it to your specific needs.
2. Ivory and Grey Grid Pillow Cover: Mixing pattern scales is essential to styling your sofa like a pro. We love this grid pattern that pairs so well with smaller patterns.
3. Knitted Throw Blanket: This throw blanket will add a nice pop of blue to your sofa or chair.
4. Solid Cotton Fringe Throw Pillow: We love when a solid color pillow has a fringe hem that adds texture and style.
5. Oversized Cotton Striped Square Throw Pillow: A classic stripe pillow looks good in any room.
6. Ceramic Candlestick: This totem candlestick holder is a really solid piece for the price and we love the speckled off-white detail.
7. Brice Mid-Century Ivory Ceramic Table Lamp: We love the wood accents on this Midcentury-inspired lamp.
8. Turquoise Speckled Round Pottery Bowl: This is a one-of-a-kind turquoise pottery bowl that would look good styled on any shelf.
9. Handmade Japanese Bowl: How stunning is this handmade Japanese bowl? And you cannot beat the price!
10. Button Fern: This fairly low-maintenance plant is pet-friendly and comes in this gorgeous turquoise pot.
11. Bonnie Grey Pillow: It is so important to mix and match different size pillows. This one comes in various sizes and has a lovely woven texture.
12. Priya Throw Pillow: Here is another neutral pillow with a ton of texture.
13. Periwinkle Blue White Lumbar Throw Pillow Cover: I love the blue paint splatter pattern on this pillow cover.
14. Elsa Reversible Woven Striped Chenille Square Throw Pillow: This pretty pink pillow has a subtle and oh-so-lovely stripe pattern.
15. Faux Bradford Pear Branch 50″: We are big advocates for going outdoors and foraging for branches but if you want an easier route, you can also buy faux branches like this one.
16. Black Terracotta Vase: This vase ties in the other black accents in the room and grounds the space.
17. Styled: What’s a coffee table without a GREAT design book?
18. The New Design Rules: One design book is never enough. Have you picked up Emily’s new book yet?
19. Suzanne Kasler Gourd Lamp: To complement the other light blue tones in the room, we love this lamp.
And there you have it, folks. Please let us know if you enjoy this type of post, and if you would like us to start a series. If so, what room would you like to see next? xx
*Photos by Tessa Neustadt
What a great new series! I appreciate how the prices are on the graphic instead of having to click through. Looking forward to more! (Portland kitchen on my budget, lol)
Yesss! Makes is a lot easier.
I love this post! Inspiring to see how these rooms influenced trends and the more widespread availability of items from retailers at lower prices. It’s the cerulean blue sweater from Devil Wears Prada in action. Would love to see Emily’s previous houses done room by room!
I really love the idea of this series, and am wondering if you would do guest designers? (Although I’m not sure if the etiquette of asking for that or your team doing that). But I’m pretty obsessed with Meghan Eisenberg ever since you linked to her work on one of your Sunday house tours.
Sadly, literally everything she does is out of my budget.
This was great. Yes more of these please
I will respond to your question. I do not enjoy this kind of post because it is link fodder for so many other blogs and influencers. “The daily dupe” “the look for less” – it is just a tired format that encourages us to buy buy buy so that the influencer can keep making quick money. For the EHD crew, from whom we have many years of thoughtful design advice and design content, it feels off brand. So, if you make this a regular feature, I will just not be reading on those days… and that is fine! It just seems like the wrong direction.
I really like this idea, but the design of this room (while great) is starting to feel dated. Would love a more current version with rooms we are seeing launch now.
Okay, after some thought (it felt pretty crappy to be a downer about this)— I’d also love to see a twist on this idea for older designs: what 3-5 things would you CHANGE in the Glendale LR to shift it to a new style? In an effort to conserve and not waste, I think focusing on ways a room can be minimally updated to move toward new/changing tastes would be so helpful. Design content often pushes changing everything at once, but if I lived in this house and had grown out of my MCM/cali phase and wanted to bring in some cottage core warmth, or Japandi or even postmodern roundness, which few things would make the biggest difference on a budget? How can it morph gently without giving up on all the current investments? This feels like an EHD expertise opportunity!
Love this idea!
Love this idea! It reminds me of the old HGTV show with Sabrina Soto, which kind of lives on in HGTV Magazine as The High/Low List. My daughter and I love comparing the items and saying if we prefer the high or the low better! In terms of this series, I think I would really like it…but it would be great if it could also include thoughts on where you might want to save vs splurge within a particular look. “Affordable” is a different price point for many people – but I also would like to make sure I am not buying low quality items that will need frequent replacement (and fill up landfills.)
Yes I love the idea of “save” vs. “splurge” recommendations!
👍
I have that knockoff rug. Just a heads up to everyone, the quality is TERRIBLE. The little scallops are either badly sewn or badly glued, but I have at least four that are no longer flat / fully attached. It only lasted about 6 months before becoming an issue, and it’s not even a high traffic area.
Such a great series! And I love this room! So serene…at once airy and grounding. While I’m not in the market for home stuff, this captures the feeling I want to create in my clinic space. Thank you for the ideas, inspiration, and clear breakdown of “why it works.”
Wow! Very impressed that you included all the pillows and decor. I expected you to stop at furniture. Thanks for a great post!
Thank you! It was time-consuming for sure, but really fun to pull together 🙂
Love this new series! This living room was my favourite when I was trying to style my first space 🙂
I think this room works because the furniture *is* similar in that (with the exception of the Anthro table) it runs mid century even if the individual pieces aren’t matchy-matchy. Arne Norell might turn in his grave if he heard the Konitiki described as ‘boho’…scandi yes, mid century and modern yes, but boho…no no!
As for the series, I love it idea of it. I think I’d enjoy seeing this kind of post published straight after a reveal.
I’d also love a deep dive series that got into the nitty gritty of the foundational stuff in a design. Just one image. For example – on page 307 of Design Rules (Tyler Karu) what’s that specific wallpaper called and where was the pendant purchased? Why that headboard and that bedside table? It’s easy to recognise that the colour of the bedside table speaks to the corner of the headboard, and the pendant speaks to the pillow but I’d love to hear the thinking behind it.
That photo is the Diamante Wallpaper from Hygge & West in Gray, the Hazel Long Smooth Tube Pendant from Rejuvenation and the Four Hands Shagreen Bedside Table in Gray. Love her work!
Every. Single. Time.
Amazing! 😀
This, is great!
Affordable versions, yaaay!🤗
This will be a fabulous series. This post must have taken a ton of research by Ryann and the team, so thank you very much for doing it. I think any EHD room would be great. I’d especially love to see a similar post on the farmhouse family TV room.
I think this is really fun and if your budget is even tighter than this (which mine is), you can look for a lot of the accessory items and even furniture on Facebook Marketplace and thrift stores.
That was my favorite TV show when I was younger and now it’s my favorite blog series as an adult! SO READY FOR THIS. It’s just not in a lot of EHD fans’ budgets to purchase the higher end pieces. Don’t be afraid to throw in vintage finds that look like newer / pricier pieces, even if that means readers can’t pick up everything themselves. Thanks for starting this!
Next time please go for mega color! I really miss the color pops of many years ago, like Emily’s home before this one, or the Oh Joy collabs.
Love this!!! So fun! Thanks Ryann!
Does anyone know where the pink textured vase on the coffee table in Emily’s actual Glendale living room is from?
I’ve seen it more than once on the internet but have never been able to track it down.
Is this one close enough? https://www.chairish.com/product/5122386/textured-pink-pottery-vase
KJ – you are like an internet private detective!!! You can find ANYTHING! It is always so impressive. I want a series where readers ask you to hunt something specific down for them! Haha
WHOA Kj you are amazing – thank you!
I am 100% on board for Kj, Internet Detective series!
I really like this series! I love how you added so many more affordable options to still get the same look! Thanks for this. I really like the neutral colour living room style.
This is awesome!
Ooo! Love this idea for a series!!
Hellssssyes! My new favorite series!
Ulla Johnson’s home- family room!!!
Love this series idea! I’m excited to follow along!
Great info!! Wondering if you know whether some of the less familiar sites are legitimate ….I like ‘the Japanese bowls’, but the site looks a little sketchy.
Would I like you to do all the source work for a fabulous room? Ummm, yes, please!
I enjoy these types of posts with a caveat – shopping is just one small part of making a house special. I would love to see ideas to make inexpensive trim, tile, windows, materials in general look special. I don’t think loads of money should ever be a requirement for good design, but many of us lack the creativity to make a palette of materials limited to readily available, inexpensive options really sing.
This is a great idea! While I would never want to do an exact copy of anyone else’s room, I love reinforcing the idea that one can live with things that bring joy even within a more-reasonable-for-most-of us budget!
This topic isn’t that interesting to me … but so what? Even my handsome husband is only interesting 80% of the time! And who knows, you guys do things so well, maybe it’ll fascinate me to no end. Keep innovating! It’s like a fresh coat of paint!
I’m kind of torn, I love content that feels accessible. But I’m not a fan of looks for less or “dupe” type posts – maybe it’s because I’m an independent metalsmith. I hate the idea of someone slaving over a fabulous piece like some of the artisanal woodworkers you work with only for us to say this is the cheaper “copycat” you can get. I’m loving the idea that others have suggested about revisiting older designs though. How to continually update a space with a few impactful tweaks. Especially because that’s a more sustainable way to approach design and in line with what most people can do which is lots of changes over time rather than big remodels. As always I love the authenticity and work that the EHD team puts in and have been ready daily for years.
Love this series!