How to mix different materials in your living room

Every material handles light in its own way. Glass lets it through, metal returns it, wood absorbs it, upholstery softens it. Composing a living room comes down to deciding how much light should move through the space, and across which surfaces.

Quill coffee table by Charles David

Start with the surfaces that catch light

Concrete and metal do not handle light the same way. One holds it, the other sends it back. The Quill coffee table by Charles David sets the two against each other: its natural concrete top keeps all the roughness of the material, with slight variations in colour and texture that make every piece unique, while a removable brushed antique brass tray adds warmth and a practical use. The Lisbon media console answers differently, in neutral tones lifted by brass, with a matte finish that absorbs light rather than bouncing it back. Two pieces, two ways of handling the same window.

Lisbon media console by Michael Amini

Then bring the warmth back

Reflective surfaces need softness around them, or the room turns cold. Solid wood does that better than anything: it absorbs light instead of returning it, and introduces an irregularity that neither glass nor metal has. The Limon armchair by Charles David rests on natural finish wooden legs that warm the base, while its Azalée Neige upholstery softens the seat and holds light rather than reflecting it. The Lenon sectional does the same job at a larger scale. It is the biggest surface in the room, and therefore the one that sets its overall temperature.

Limon armchair by Charles David

Balance is not matching

Three or four materials in one room is plenty. Beyond that, the eye stops resting. Keep one dominant, let a second support it, and reserve the rest for smaller gestures: a ceramic vase, a metal lamp base, the texture of a rug. A living room works not when everything matches, but when each material has a reason to be there. Come see them together, under the same light, at Casavogue in Montreal.