Are you a warm-weather fan? You don’t need to live in a tropical climate to capture the look and feel of summer at home year-round. This living room shows how to achieve a summery coastal-modern farmhouse style with thoughtful color choices, pattern play, and layered textures.
What better time to share the living room reveal from our beach condo than during the Summer Colors Home Tour hosted by my friend Jennifer Zuri from Town & Country Living? Several bloggers joined together to highlight favorite summer palettes and decorating ideas, and this room reflects how a few strategic updates can transform a space into a light, breezy retreat. Below you’ll find the reveal, design details, and tips you can use in your own home.
In case you’re new here, our condo sits on the North Carolina coast and we’ve been remodeling it with a modern farmhouse-meets-coastal approach that can work anywhere—not just at the beach. We’ve completed the kitchen, dining room, and the living room shown here. If you’d like to see the kitchen and dining room makeovers, those tours are available on the Worthing Court blog.
The “before” photo shows the room as it looked the day we toured the condo: dated furnishings, worn materials, and decor left over from its time as a vacation rental. It needed a fresh palette, new finishes, and a clearer design direction.
We began by painting the entire space, replacing the carpet with durable new flooring, adding an area rug, and bringing in neutral furniture. Keeping walls, floors, and large furnishings neutral and simple creates a versatile backdrop so the decor and accents can be swapped seasonally. Early in the project the previous owner’s draperies were still in place.
My goal was a modern farmhouse aesthetic with a subtle coastal influence—using color, texture, and art rather than kitschy seaside accessories. A few months later the living room felt bright, cohesive, and distinctly summery.
From the opposite end of the room you can see the open floor plan—this living room flows into the dining area and kitchen, so finishes and colors needed to coordinate across all three spaces for a unified look.
A pair of driftwood-finish bookcases sits behind two chairs to visually balance the height of the sliding glass doors and add texture at the far end of the room. Baskets on the tops add vertical interest, while the lower cabinets offer hidden storage—perfect for a small coastal condo.
A faux fiddle leaf fig fills an empty corner without the maintenance needs of a live plant—an ideal solution for a vacation property. It adds a touch of greenery and a more finished feel.
To add interest behind the TV, I mounted two salvaged bi-fold doors on the wall using D-rings. The doors introduce texture and scale to a large blank wall. My husband suggested painting them gray, but I appreciate their current warm patina—sometimes natural character is the best finish.
Another corner holds a smaller faux fiddle leaf in a modern planter, with a round flat wicker basket hung above. One of the original end tables remained from the previous owner; instead of replacing it I refreshed it with spray paint, added a drawer pull, and styled the bottom shelf with a basket.
Because we don’t occupy the condo full time, live plants aren’t practical. High-quality faux greenery keeps the space feeling fresh and “alive,” while requiring no upkeep—an excellent compromise for seasonal properties.
The room truly came together when I added DIY lined curtain panels. They mimic the look of pleated draperies but are made as simple flat panels that fold neatly when opened. If you’re interested in making similar panels, I’ve shared a step-by-step tutorial for professional-looking lined drapes on the blog.
This cozy corner, with its mix of patterns and layered blues and greens, captures the essence of summer—calm, inviting, and subtly coastal. It’s exactly the kind of space that makes you feel like you’re on a seaside retreat even when you’re not.
Thanks for stopping by to tour our summertime living room. I hope these ideas inspire you to bring light, texture, and a touch of coastal color into your own living space. Below is the Summer Colors Home Tour schedule so you can explore more seasonal decorating inspiration from other bloggers throughout the week.
Monday
Town and Country Living – Shabbyfufu – Sand and Sisal – On Sutton Place
Savvy Southern Style – Happy Happy Nester – Designthusiasm
Tuesday
Tammy Damore – Saw Nail and Paint – Finding Silver Pennies – Southern Hospitality
Duke Manor Farm – Shabby Art Boutique – Sincerely Marie Designs
Wednesday
A Burst of Beautiful – StoneGable – Maison de Cinq – The Wicker House
Worthing Court – My Soulful Home – Craftberry Bush – Housepitality Designs