Gray Living Room Accent Wall
TRIA GIOVAN
A charcoal gray paint color creates a natural focal point in this cozy living room. The dark paint color on the accent wall extends from the shiplap to the built-in cabinets and window trim for a dramatic effect, contrasting the room’s warm colors and materials.
Molding Accent Wall
CARSON DOWNING
Add molding to your wall and paint the entire surface a solid color for the ultimate accent that gives a traditional architectural feature a modern upgrade. This room's tangerine wall color is bright and unexpected, but the picture frame molding and gold accent lights keep the space grounded and traditional. Muted colors throughout the rest of the space allow the bright wall to have its deserved moment.
Cozy Corner Accent Wall
EDMUND BARR
An accent wall doesn’t necessarily need to be front and center. Take a more subtle approach, and create a cozy reading corner in your living room and define it with a wallpaper accent wall. A soft gray and white wallpaper anchors a comfy chaise, floor lamp, and gallery wall, turning this empty corner into a stylish and functional reading nook.
DIY Wood Accent Wall
This wood accent wall only looks like the work of a high-end designer. In fact, it's actually a DIY design made using regular plywood. The lighter stain and wide planks make this midcentury modern accent wall feel current and upscale, while the furniture and decor give an additional nod to the era. With a single trip to the hardware store, you can make a DIY wood accent wall in just one weekend.
Tiled Fireplace Accent Wall
CHAD R. MELLON
A monochrome tile extends from floor to ceiling for a sleek fireplace accent wall in this contemporary living room. The modern tile’s small-scale pattern contrasts the surrounding vertical shiplap and herringbone fireplace interior, showing that you don’t need lots of different colors to create visual interest—a limited color palette with carefully layered patterns makes for an understated yet striking design statement.
Black Shiplap Accent Wall
JOHN BESSLER
Take inspiration from this rustic living room and create a stunning accent wall with vertically arranged shiplap painted in a deep black paint color. It adds contrast and visual interest without departing from the room’s neutral color scheme and it creates a stunning backdrop for an elegant gallery wall.
Framed Mural
Make a massive impact with a large framed wall mural. Of course, you can paint the mural yourself if you're handy with a paintbrush, but an easy way to achieve a similar look is to frame a large sheet of wallpaper after it's adhered to the wall. Here, the mural is framed using molding pieces painted the same shade as the wall, which gives even more emphasis to the design inside. Adding some simple hooks for hanging bags, hats, or jackets makes this feel lived-in and approachable despite its scale.
Black Living Room Accent Wall
ANNIE SCHLECHTER
Go bold with a black accent wall in your living room, but take it a step further and instead of just painting the wall, extend the moody paint color to the crown molding, baseboards, and all decorative trim. This makes for a more immersive experience, luxurious feel, and dramatic effect.
Living Room Accent Wall with Built-Ins
JAY WILDE
A pair of built-in shelves painted in a beautiful dark olive green paint color flanks a large window in this open concept living room. The dark paint color highlights the custom shelves and continues the room’s nature-inspired aesthetic, creating a beautiful backdrop for layered area rugs, woven bamboo shades, natural wood furniture, and a cozy leather sectional.
Paneled Living Room Accent Wall
JULIE SOEFER
Traditional wall paneling with an elegant grid pattern adds a statement-making accent wall to this transitional living room. Wood paneling is a beautiful way to add visual interest and the type of stain you choose has the power to completely transform the room—a light stain will make the walls recede and create an open and airy feel, while a dark stain such as this one adds depth and historic charm.
Painted Accent Wall
JAY WILDE
Even if you don't consider yourself much of an artist, you might be surprised at what you can create with a paintbrush and a sample can of paint. Simple brushstrokes repeated in a pattern can easily form a living room accent wall. Here, dashes and chevron stripes create a bespoke design that reads almost like wallpaper at first glance. To keep your design uniform, tape straight lines on the wall to use as a guide, then remove the tape when you're done.
Fireplace Accent Wall
KIM CORNELISON
A fireplace creates a natural focal point in a living room, but to add emphasis, flank it with built-in bookshelves that serve both a visual and a practical purpose. They create a sense of symmetry that’s appealing to the eye, provide a surface to display books and decorative accents, and add hidden storage to minimize clutter.
Living Room Accent Wall with Curtains
ANNIE SCHLECHTER
When using a dark and moody paint color on a living room accent wall, match the color of the window treatments for added visual impact. In this maximalist living room, black floor-length curtain panels seamlessly blend in with the dark accent wall, creating subtle movement and a sophisticated layered effect.
Accent Wall Mural
Create the look of wallpaper without the expense (or the potential headache) of hanging it yourself with this DIY wall mural idea. These gorgeous blooms frame the couch in a simple yet eye-catching way. And if you think you don't have the artistic chops to pull this off, think again: Download the free template of this design and use a projector to project it onto the wall at whatever size works for you. Then, outline with a pencil and fill in with your choice of pink paint color.
Stone Living Room Accent Wall
ZEKE RUELAS
Instead of a contrasting paint color or bold wallpaper pattern, use a natural material such as whitewashed stone for a subtle yet gorgeous living room accent wall. In this chic space, the stone fireplace maintains the room’s tone-on-tone color palette while introducing a raw material and contrasting some of the more refined and clean-lined design elements.
DIY Painted Arches
Turn your accent wall into an on-trend piece of art by painting arches a few shades darker than the rest of the wall paint. Here, the charcoal arches look deep and rich against the slightly lighter gray walls. This color-blocked, Art Deco-inspired look lends dimension and interest to a room and serves as the perfect backdrop for a floating picture shelf.
Curtain Living Room Accent Wall
Emphasize ceiling height and create a dramatic accent wall with floor-to-ceiling curtain panels. Given that you expect to see curtains on windows, the surprising use makes for a memorable design moment and an eye-catching accent wall. Opt for solid colored curtains to prevent a cluttered look, but pick a luxurious material such as velvet or an interesting detail like a pinch-pleat top to make them look extra special.
Wood Accent Wall
STACY ZARIN GOLDBERG
Inject instant character with a wood accent wall that’ll turn your living room into a cozy rustic retreat. Here, rustic wood planks create depth and the raw material contrasts the room’s more delicate elements such as the white sectional and elegant wall sconces. To incorporate the accent wall into the overall room design, bring in other rustic wood accents such as a coffee table and side tables to tie the space together.
Deep Purple Accent Wall
ADAM ALBRIGHT
A classic design trick is to paint an accent wall that's a shade or two deeper than the rest of the walls. Here, most of the room is painted a lavender shade of paint, but the accent wall is a deeper eggplant color. Choosing an accent color in the same tones as the rest of the room ensures that the wall doesn't look out of place, and also makes it easier to style the rest of the room in a cohesive color palette.
A Geometric Mural
A busy geometric mural creates an eye-catching focal point in this living room. Different shades of blue painted triangles add dimension and interest, but the colors and the watercolor brush strokes create a calm feel. Keep in mind that a colorful mural doesn't mean you need to shy away from color in the rest of your space—just try to keep it to a streamlined palette. Here, the blue and blush tones look intentional and complementary.
Partial Accent Wall
KIM CORNELISON
A colorful accent wall doesn't have to cover the entire wall. This painted stripe is both unique and eye-catching. The cobalt-blue design behind the TV draws attention to the high, slanted ceiling. Plus, it creates an intentional divide between the two sets of floating shelves.
Built-In Shelves
BRIE WILLIAMS
A living room accent wall doesn't actually have to be a wall at all. Here, wall-to-wall built-in shelves pop against white walls. Black paint may feel daunting, but thanks to the luxe shine of glossy paint, this room looks large rather than dark and cramped. When styling a wall of shelves, give each item space to breathe. This will make the space look intentional and impactful without overcrowding the shelves.
Rustic Stone Accent Wall
DOMINIQUE VORILLON
Create an accent wall for a rustic living room by expanding a traditional stone fireplace surround across the entire wall. This neutral stone pairs well with farmhouse-style shiplap ceilings and light wood floors. And while a textured accent wall may seem busy, you don't have to shy away from art or other decor. Like layering jewelry, adding accent pieces and decor can look intentional and luxe.
Wood Paneling Living Room Accent Wall
MAX KIM-BEE
For a modern take on a wood paneled accent wall, opt for an ultra-dark stain. Here, it emphasizes the generous ceiling height and sets a rich backdrop for other saturated colors in the form of a fuchsia area rug and blue sectional. The dark accent wall contrasts the busyness of the eclectic living room and creates visual balance by providing a large surface where the eyes can rest.
Layered Accent Wall
MARTY BALDWIN
Go a step beyond a bright painted wall and add an art piece in the same color scheme to create a stunning focal point. Here, layered canvases are hung on top of each other, but you can create a similar look with a gallery wall of prints in the same color family.
Rustic Stone Accent Wall
KERRY KIRK
A stone accent wall warms up this elegant white living room, breaks up the solid wall color, and echoes the stone flooring. Along with the richly stained wood beams on the ceiling, the stone wall fills the space with rustic charm, highlighting the beautiful floor-to-ceiling windows and contrasting their clean-lined grid pattern.
Blue Accent Wall with Built-In Storage
JOHN GRANEN
A saturated blue paint color on this living room accent wall ties contrasting elements such as wall paneling, storage, and seating together. Using one color on a variety of built-ins has a unifying effect, which is a great little trick to keep in your design pocket. The blue color livens up the otherwise neutral space and pairs beautifully with matte black hardware, textured window shades, and patterned seat cushions.
Wallpaper Accent Wall
DUSTIN PECK
A book-themed wallpaper makes for a whimsical accent wall in this attic living room and creates the illusion of stacked shelves in the small space. Wallpaper lends itself well to accent walls—not only does it instantly draw the eyes, but it’s a cost-effective way to use the wall covering if you’re on a budget and don’t want to wallpaper all the walls.
Brick Fireplace Accent Wall
LAUREY GLENN
An accent wall can be as large or as small as you want it to be—extend it from wall to wall, or confine it to a smaller area such as a fireplace. In this modern farmhouse living room, a brick fireplace serves as a rustic accent whose warmth ties in the wood and leather furniture and contrasts the surrounding white shiplap walls.
Rustic Living Room Accent Wall
JAY WILDE
Wide planks of reclaimed wood cover an accent wall and vaulted ceiling in this charming rustic living room. The raw material gives the space a relaxed and comfortable feel, and along with layered area rugs, a cozy leather sofa, and plush throw pillows, it extends a warm welcome.
Framed Wallpaper Accent Wall
JAMES YOCHUM
Picture frame molding adds instant character and sophistication to a living room. Instead of simply adorning the walls with it, treat the molding as a frame for a mural wallpaper. In this elegant living room, an oversized wallpaper print featuring blossoming branches is framed with light blue walls and picture frame molding for a unique accent wall that doubles as artwork.
Beach-Inspired Living Room Accent Wall
DANE TASHIMA
This living room puts a contemporary spin on coastal style with an accent wall featuring a palm tree mural wallpaper. The oversized black and white image takes the place of hanging artwork and sets a cool backdrop for modern gray furniture and pale pastel accents for a laid back vibe.
Teal Living Room Accent Wall
JULIE SOEFER
Pick a rich jewel tone such as teal for a living room accent wall that makes a bold statement. Rather than assembling a gallery wall, hang one large piece of art and add a classic touch by highlighting it with two stylish wall sconces that also provide an additional, softer source of light.
Bay Window Living Room Accent Wall
ANNIE SCHLECHTER
Highlight a living room bay window and turn it into a sophisticated accent wall by painting the wall in a deep paint color. In this traditional space, the dark blue wall color contrasts the ornate window trim and allows the statement window to stand out.
Eclectic Living Room Accent Wall
DUSTIN PECK
A bold wallpaper surrounds a white fireplace for a vibrant accent wall in this eclectic living room. It embraces the maximalist “more is more” design approach and serves as the base pattern for other geometric, floral, and abstract patterns in the room.
Modern Art Accent Wall
This living room accent wall features a modern art piece made up of colorful hexagons whose three-dimensional effect adds depth to the solid colored wall. The black, white, and copper hexagons stand out against the teal paint color and add a cool decorative accent to the contemporary space.
Traditional Wood Accent Wall
BRIE WILLIAMS
An accent wall constructed from dark wood and featuring intricate millwork details serves as a warm and cozy backdrop for this traditional living room. It ties in the ceiling beams, window trim, and built-in shelves, lending the space a historic feel. To break up the wall of dark wood, an oversized mirror hangs above the mantel, brightening the room and bouncing light around.