8 min readWith couches, cozy chairs, daybeds, and even a pouf or two gathered around a coffee table, the most stunning living rooms from the House Beautiful archives were clearly designed for conversation. You can see it in the arrangement of the furniture, the way light filters through the window treatments, and even the art chosen to spark an unexpected discussion.
Being together—not side by side, silent and scrolling, but genuinely engaging with another person—is the whole point of a living room. To celebrate House Beautiful’s anniversary this year, I dug through the entire 130-year archive to find the most memorable living spaces ever featured—from Jackie Kennedy’s 1971 apartment to a ‘90s Frank Lloyd Wright-designed house. They’re all sure to inspire anyone to put down their phone, settle in, and stay awhile with someone they love.
The All-Tile Room That Still Feels Cozy (1951)
HB editors deemed this house “perfect and complete to the smallest detail… symbolizing what the average American now has or can reasonably expect to achieve by his own endeavors under the American democratic system.”
The Slipcovers That Changed With the Season (1968)
Fashion designer Norman Norell refreshed his New York City living room just as he might his wardrobe: Come summer, he removed the rug, put up cotton curtains, and draped matching slipcovers over the antique armchairs.
The Hayloft That Housed Design Royalty (1969)
Part of the Duck Harbor, Maine, retreat he shared with design partner Sister Parish, Albert Hadley’s hayloft-turned-vacation home doubled as both lounge and workspace.
The “Morning Room” With the Ultimate High-Low Blend (1969)
A formal library designed by Angelo Donghia of Burge-Donghia features high-end French chairs and a Portuguese rug paired with a modest Plexiglas coffee table.
The Whitewashed Greek Mansion With Pops of Color (1970)
British artist Teddy Millington-Drake, with the help of John Stefanidis, restored this historic home on the Greek island of Patmos; one of his own artworks brings color to the all-white living room.
The “Apartment House” That Made Manhattanites Jealous (1970)
Described by the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission as adding “unduplicated artistic and historical value to our city,” this eight-room duplex by architect Charles A. Platt is as grown-up as they come. When architect David Beer remodeled the home to suit his family of four, he outfitted a retro sunken living room with kid-friendly vinyl banquettes where they were “free to leap and jump and spill.”
The City Apartment That Looked Like a Garden (1971)
Marnie and John Moore called the bright, optimistic floral style of their Manhattan apartment “flower power.” Even John’s old piano was painted to match a patterned cotton on the upholstery in the intimate sitting room.
The Great Room That Redefined Suburbia (1971)
In this modestly sized St. Louis home, how did architect Paul Marti Jr. and his wife, Audrey, create a living room with such “majestic volume”? By trimming square footage in the primary bedroom upstairs and the dining room downstairs, they opened directly to this two-story space. It was a jumping-off point for what would become the still-popular open floor plan.
A Former First Lady’s City Escape (1971)
Jackie Kennedy Onassis invited HB readers into her New York City apartment for a feature on Bedford Stuyvesant Design Works, a Black-owned textile project she stewarded, and showed off the company’s “Large Feather” print used on a couch in the children’s library.
The Off-the-Grid Maine Retreat That Came Full Circle (1978)
The setup at this island home in Maine by David Kenneth Spectre is centered around a back-to-nature experience, so much so that there’s no electricity and no running water. Views are in ample supply though, so much so that the custom curved couch is oriented toward the A-frame floor-to-ceiling windows.
The Barn That Lived Countless Lives (1979)
Originally a hay barn above a carriage house, this family’s living room in the Pennsylvania countryside was also repurposed as a garage and an artist’s studio before they equipped it for everyday living.
The NYC Weekend House That Felt Like a World Away (1980)
Built on a barrier island not too far from New York City, this contemporary home by Charles Gwathmey and Robert Siegel features strategically placed windows that allow for both privacy and water views.
The One-Room Schoolhouse Turned Country Getaway (1981)
It took Hal and Laura Davis five years to transform this one-room schoolhouse in Dutchess County, New York—measuring just 16 x 22 feet in size—into a home. They expanded the footprint, but one original space was turned into Hal’s study.
The Super-Sunny House in Florida That Stayed Magically Cool (1981)
On two secluded acres near Miami, Charles Harrison Pawley transformed a tiny cottage into a 4,000-square-foot winter retreat, adding dramatic skylights that flooded the home with sunshine while solar film kept the heat at bay.
The IKEA-Enhanced Renovation That Was Ahead of Its Time (1989)
Spending just $4,424—a “bare-bones budget,” our editors noted—Peter Wheeler transformed his weekend house using IKEA pieces. A checkerboard fireplace, paneled walls, and a pale blue ceiling in the living room set the stage for the clean, simple pieces.
The “House of the ‘90s” Built by House Beautiful (1991)
A precursor to our Whole Home franchise, this house was built and decorated by the HB team to showcase what they expected to be the core trends, ideals, and design dreams of the coming decade. This octagonal room features ample windows and gilded stars on the ceiling.
The Gardening Writer’s Cottage (1991)
The upstate New York home of Louise Beebe Wilder, a famous 1900s gardening writer, fell into disrepair until David Easton snapped up the property in the late ‘80s and, using Wilder’s descriptions of the home from her books and even a plan she printed in Color in My Garden, recreated it. In the “big hall,” walls were covered with a “thick stucco-like paint, then glazed pale yellow.”
The Frank Lloyd Wright Project That Invited Everyone In (1992)
The first owners of the Pope-Leighey House, a Frank Lloyd Wright design in Virginia, recalled that visitors to their living room “found the place warm and filled with life.” Wright’s own furniture designs anchored a central sitting area next to open bookshelves.
The Symmetrical Library That Celebrated Colefax and Fowler (1992)
Order and precision define the Kent, England, home of Barrie McIntyre, a native New Zealander who fell in love with Colefax and Fowler on a business trip and used their fabrics and wallpapers all over his house.
The Living Room That Defined a “New Look in American Decorating” (1993)
Editors described Nancy Braithwaite’s house as gutsy, comfortable, and timeless. Decorative painter Linda Ridings used three layers of paint colors—gray over taupe over cream—to make the walls look “soft but aged.”
The Hearth That Was Inspired by a Temple (1995)
On the banks of the Ohio River, architect Hugh Newell Jacobsen built a house inspired by the Greek Revival tradition. In the entryway, visitors encounter a “cella,” the small, house-like structure found within ancient Greek temples. But instead of housing a shrine to a deity, this one contains a fireplace, powder room, and closets.
The House That the Desert Built (1998)
Renowned collector Emily Fisher Landau designed her New Mexico home, set on 4,000 acres, to respond to the desert environment and its indigenous cultures. “What I didn’t want was a Santa Fe house,” she told HB.
The Ultraminimalist Former Horse Stable (1998)
The more that Mariette Himes Gomez stripped down a pair of old barns and a stable while creating her country house, “the more it pleased her,” our editors wrote. All the walls are white, and she decorated with deliberately rustic, simple shapes to emphasize the grandeur of the architecture.
The Industrial Loft With a Soft Side (1999)
One part industrial, another luxurious. Jeffrey Bilhuber used oversize upholstery and a clever curtain divider to soften the living room of this Manhattan loft and create useful spaces.
The New Jersey Farm That Held a World of Antiques (1999)
As co-owner of Treillage, the storied garden shop, John Rosselli traveled the world in search of antiques with his future wife and business partner, Bunny Williams. The pieces that didn’t find their way to clients came home to the trio of farm buildings Rosselli inherited from his family.
The Brightest Tudor on the Block (2006)
“People tend to use deep, moody colors that are relatively lifeless and distract you from the real bones of a beautifully crafted structure like this one,” Jeffrey Bilhuber told our editors. “What you want to do is add lightness—a modern sensibility of life, movement, and color.” The family room, with its original beams, is historic but energizing.
The One-Room Manhattan Apartment That Was Worth It (2010)
Ellen O’Neil saw the ad for a one-room apartment by Emery Roth, overlooking NYC’s Gramercy Park, and pounced. Ingo Maurer’s Zettel’z 5 chandelier displays notes, lists, sketches, and even a hat overhead—she calls it her bulletin board.
The Pink Living Room Where Comfort Took Priority (2011)
After choosing a salmon-pink Brunschwig & Fils chintz for the upholstery in this East Hampton living room, Rob Southern decided to lean in and quilt all the pieces for an even more plush feel.
The Compact Den That Packed in Personality (2012)
To provide plenty of seating in the compact family room of this Venice, California, Craftsman bungalow, designers Todd Nickey and Amy Kehoe brought in a sectional of Kehoe’s own design (upholstered in Larsen Persuede by Cowtan & Tout), plus a storage ottoman to contain toys.
The One Where the TV Actually Disappeared (2012)
In this Manhattan apartment belonging to designers Bill Brockschmidt and Richard Dragisic, a gallery wall stretched across two jib doors painted in Benjamin Moore’s Mustard Olive, using color and art to disguise the seams and make the doors virtually disappear. The best part of the optical illusion? They opened to reveal a television.
The Sausalito Fisherman’s Cottage (2012)
Living with two papillons, Stephen Shubel needed furniture that could withstand an occasional wet pawprint—plus guests. The sofa is covered in Pindler Limeade Stripe, while two chairs are slipcovered in washable white linen.
The Palm Beach Maisonette That Set the Bar High (2013)
While small in size, this living room—belonging to Mimi McMakin of Kemble Interiors—featured a dramatic vaulted ceiling that makes it feel twice its size. The mantel was appliquéd with store-bought seashells.
The Color Combo That Broke the Mold (2014)
“People always say I am fearless with color, but if I see it in nature, I know it will work in a home,” Miles Redd told HB’s Next Wave designer Blake Brunson, of the living room he crafted for a family’s New York City apartment.
The Farmhouse That Was Completely Rebuilt (2018)
In revamping a Maryland farmhouse, Darryl Carter added reclaimed-wood beams and trusses, along with a console fashioned from salvaged beams that divides the living room into two distinct seating areas.
The Malibu House That Felt Like Bali (2018)
No stranger to a dramatic transformation, Martyn Lawrence Bullard collaborated with architect Robin Hayne to create this Balinese-inspired house in Malibu. The living room, bathed in light, is crowned with an Akari pendant by Isamu Noguchi and classic Philip Jeffries seagrass on the ceiling.
The Time-Worn Coastal Cottage That Was Actually New (2018)
With its shingled walls and sash windows, a seating area in the breakfast room of this Massachusetts house by Liliane Hart and Marc Appleton has all the trappings of an old house lovingly added onto over time. In fact, they designed it to look that way.
The Ballroom That Belonged to a Rockette (2019)
Located on the fifth floor of a townhouse once owned by a Radio City Rockette, this ballroom with 24-foot ceilings has seen some parties. Years later, the living room was revamped by Cortney and Robert Novogratz, who restored the crumbling building as a home for their nine-person family.
The Garden Room That Hinted at a Former Life (2023)
Corey Damen Jenkins expanded this sea captain’s cottage into a comfortable family home, nodding to the home’s erstwhile owner with a nautical Iskel mural on the Garden Room walls.
