13 living room featured wall ideas to try today

Whether your living room is long and narrow, open plan, small and stuffy, or perfectly proportioned, you still want to make the space your own. 

While our furniture choices can do all the talking, especially when using colours like our teal, vine or brick sofas, walls are the perfect canvas to get creative.

There may be certain features in the room’s build that you want to highlight, or perhaps the room feels a little plain and boxy. No matter what the case is with your space, a living room accent wall is a great solution.

But what is a feature wall?

As the name suggests, a feature wall is simply a wall that you want to feature. It’s the focal point of the room and stands out from the rest of the other seemingly different walls.

Feature walls have often meant a bright and bold wallpaper while the other walls stand plain. (When you move into rented property, more often than not, the landlord has put in a brightly coloured, floral wallpaper that goes with absolutely none of your furniture…)

But despite what apprehensions you currently have on the ‘feature wall’ style, there are actually so many ways to highlight a specific segment of the room without settling for the first patterned wallpaper you see.

And that’s what today’s list is all about.

Which wall should be a feature wall in a living room?

There’s no specific right or wrong wall to choose as your feature wall. Knowing how you want to decorate the wall will likely highlight which makes the most sense. But, there are plenty of feature wall ideas for living rooms with fireplaces plus lots of living room TV feature wall design ideas out there.

Generally speaking, whichever wall is singled out will be the thing that catches everyone’s eye when they walk into the room.

What should I put on my feature wall?

Absolutely anything you fancy! And if you’re short for accent wall ideas, here’s 13 to get you started.

13 Living Room Accent Wall Ideas

Below are a variety of accent wall ideas for the living room.

Create a wall mural

If you’ve been gifted with creative flair, you could create your own wall mural.

Perfect for a rainy Sunday project, you can paint just about anything on your wall. Perhaps you want a sunny beach scape, or an autumnal woodland; maybe you fancy drawing a caricature of the whole family, or painting your favourite quote. Whatever you think of, remember to practise on paper first!

Textured wallpaper

If your living room walls are currently dark colours, and you don’t want to do a thousand coats of white paint, opt for wallpaper instead.

Textured wallpaper ideas for a living room feature wall would include smooth paper that looks textured like faux-bricks or books. Alternatively, you could choose an actually textured wallpaper to add dimension and character to the space.

Brick wallpaper and other stony textures are perfect for an industrial style. Pair with metal units and darker woods. Or, find more inspiration on our blog.

You might also find a textured wallpaper that’s perfect for painting. Paint over in your favourite colours to create the ideal feature wall for your space.

Paint a single wall

For those that are working with a blank canvas, a feature wall could be as simple as painting a single wall.

Dulux’s Colour Of The Year for 2022 is Bright Skies. So if you’re looking for blue feature wall living room ideas, this should be your go-to choice.

The light and airy shade offers a flash of hope for the New Year after a tumultuous few years.

Then, use bolder hues to coordinate the furniture. Like our Model 02 sofa in Teal.

Use panelling

One of the most popular living room accent wall ideas is panelling.

It became a trend a few years ago and shows no signs of stopping. But panelling doesn’t just have to be straight lines of MDF down the wall. You can create zig-zags, geometric shapes, grids and lots more.

Panelling is pretty easy to do, and can totally transform a plain, boxy room into something beautiful. If you’re in a new build, this could be the perfect way to bring some personality into your fresh canvas living room.

Hang up a gallery wall

Gallery walls are particularly good for anyone in rented accommodation. More often than not, short leases don’t allow you to get creative with paints and wallpaper. You can, however, decorate the room with your own prints, photos and art from independent artists.

Whether you used sticky tack, removable placeholders or a few nails is completely up to you. You can create your dream gallery wall using a variety of prints in different shapes and sizes, or keep things regimented with a select few perfectly positioned on the wall.

Showstopping wallpaper

If you’re a fan of maximalist prints, but don’t want to go too overboard, showstopper wallpaper in each alcove is one of the easiest feature wall ideas for living rooms with a fireplace.

The fireplace already creates a focal point in the room, so you might as well make the most of it!

Built in book storage (with perfectly organized books)

Not every wall in the house can be left open. There’s still a lot of stuff to store away somewhere.

Create a feature wall in the living room while also enhancing functionality by using built-in book storage. 

Shelving painted in the same colour as the rest of the room can be used to display books - which in itself becomes the feature. Of course, this might take a few attempts to get right, as the organisation of the books is key!

Add dimension by stacking books in a line in some areas, and on top of one another in other areas. Alternatively, organise your books into rainbow order for a colourful focal point.

Create a wall of mirrors

Whether you’re trying to make the space look bigger, or simply want something a little different, mirrors are a great way to decorate a feature wall.

Like a gallery wall, you can make a mirror wall by using a variety of different shaped and sized mirrors. Or, go all out with tiled mirrors to create a floor to ceiling mirror wall (perfect for selfie sessions). As nobody wants to spend all their free time cleaning and polishing a wall of mirrors, distressed glass might be the way forward…

Make it playful

For the family home, allow your feature wall to put the ‘fun’ back into functional. Use chalkboard paint for your feature wall and create a fun and quirky space for the whole family to try out their creative skills.

No longer will you have to stress about the kids drawing on the walls, and you’ll also always have somewhere to jot down reminders when you’re rushing around the house.

Make a focal point with shiplap

Even in a minimalist space, you can still add a textured feature wall. 

Shiplap is a great way to decorate a room whilst still maintaining a sleek and simple design.

It’s perfect for a Hamptons style or coastal retreat aesthetic too.

Natural wood cladding

Similar to shiplap or panelling, natural wood cladding makes a great accent wall.

Ideal for a neutral theme, sustainable snug or urban apartment, leaving the natural wood exposed offers a light and calming feel. Add a few indoor plants to the mix, and you’ve got yourself a beautiful sunroom set up.

Paint an arch

Not all homes have alcoves or fireplaces. If you want to create a focal point in the room, or to recreate the alcove style, you can paint an arch in a contrasting colour. This is perfect if you want to make a feature wall for the TV to hang on. It’s simple, quick and easy to change whenever you fancy.

Wall stickers

Another option for anyone that likes to swap and change their style is wall stickers. Removable wallpaper, wall decals, murals and simple polka dots are all available online and can help you really make the house a home. With very little effort needed to apply, these feature wall solutions are perfect for anyone in rented property, at uni or simply indecisive.

So, whether you’re renting, buying a new-build, doing up a small cottage or just looking for something new, this ultimate list of feature wall ideas should definitely have you covered! To go with your newly created wall, don’t forget to shop our sofas for the final finishing touch.