Let’s talk about your television for a moment, the pink elephant in the room of every interior design book… It is always there but please don’t look at it! I’m willing to bet that the rooms on websites and apps that you’re saving rarely show a TV – am I right? It’s just one of those things that stylists and photographers work hard to hide in photos, along with the other deadly sins of interior photography: most electronics and cords, oh the horror!

As you know, I’m one of these people who hide TV’s when I’m working on a styling assignment or producing content for my books or online content. But in my daily life, a TV is actually essential because I’m an American expat living in Germany since 2009; TV is a direct connection to my home country. If I had to live in Germany without access to American TV (Netflix?!), I’d be heartbroken. Seriously. I love hearing the latest American slang, seeing how people dress, overall trends (from wardrobe to set, theme, camera angles, etc.), and to simply feel like I’m still, “in the know” when it comes to my homeland and culture. It’s a bit of a portal for me to climb into whenever I need to. I also love watching music videos as much as I did when I binge-watched MTV as a teenager. Then there is YouTube, also a fun thing to lose yourself to now and then. I enjoy a good film and relaxing with my family and friends now and then too.

I thought that since I love TV but I'm also one of those people who hide TVs in the interior books that I write, that I should challenge myself and inspire all of you with a very uncommon partnership with one of my favorite electronics brands, Samsung.

I’ve owned a Samsung television for twelve years, I’m very brand loyal to electronics and cars, but never anything quite like the one the TV that Samsung sent over. Holy Smokes. It’s a beauty. I now live with a beautiful wall-mounted, flat-screen, 55” Samsung QLED! It’s nothing I care to hide in photos because it’s so slim and well-designed – and it looks really nice in my room. See for yourself...

INSTALLATION

Let's talk about installation before I get into my 8 tips for decorating around a flat screen. It was about 5 minutes to unpack and another 10 minutes to lay out all of the pieces for the back panel. Then we quickly put the easy wall mount piece on the back (a breeze!). After finding the right spot on the wall, then out came the drill and et voilà – finished. It was up and running within an hour after it arrived at our front door.

Here are some photos of it in my space along with 8 tips on how to decorate around a flat screen TV.

1. Mix It Up

The TV doesn’t have to be the only thing on the wall, add other pieces that fit the décor of your room around it, beneath, or above, on the sides. You an also paint the wall a dramatic color or use wallpaper. My walls are neutral, so I opted for adding in some unexpected pieces to the left of the television.

2. Experiment

I didn’t want to surround my TV with art because I think everyone does that and I wanted to try something different. I decided to work in an “L” shape so the eye could travel, and I wanted to rebel against symmetry.

3. Be Bold

When the TV is off, it’s a black rectangle on the wall for most of the day. Adding art that I already had in another room, the black rectangular TV becomes part of this graphic grouping and not the focus because the other art is black and bold, too.

4. Create Tension

I used one big art print about the size of the TV, only I installed it in a different direction (portrait vs. landscape TV), so there is some competition there, a little tension that works, along with the element of sameness that makes this coupling so successful.

5. Use Odd Numbers

I always like to work in odd numbers for groupings, for instance, groups of 3, 5, 7, etc. In this case, the TV was part of my grouping so I added 4 pieces to the wall for a total of 5. The odd number is great because then you are not automatically pairing groups of things, which is so common if you work with even numbers.

6. Add a Focal Point

I didn’t forget about the objects on the credenza or the entertainment unit owned by my husband that he can’t imagine not owning. (To be honest, after this photo shoot, his speakers and Playstation also came back out and are now on the credenza too.) I thought, “How can I make a cabinet full of black electronics stuff look stylish?”. This is always the “problem” isn’t it? Instead of removing the cabinet for the shoot (because that’s a bit unfair), I left it in and decided to tackle the problem head-on.

I decided the art and the things on top of the cabinet would become the focal point. I added a big white lacquered tray, stacks of books, candle holders and other favorite things all very neutral shades of white and beige, with black accents. This created a corner that, to me, suddenly looked very peaceful but also very stylish.

7. Add Texture

I worked in texture into the arrangement with a handmade art piece from Denmark. It softens the wall and the overall look because it’s made of cloth and wood and looks very inviting to touch. When electronics are involved, it’s nice to find something with texture to mix in. My next goal for this corner is to get an old piece of wood, measure to cut the length and width of the cabinet, and let the natural wood add more warmth and texture to this corner.

8. Include Additional Light Sources

I added additional light sources to this spot of the room because I want the corner to be cozy and nice at night when the TV is off. There are candles there and a gorgeous lamp, so the room will have an even balance of lighting when the television is not in use.

P.S.:

I’ve had this TV for over a month now and the clarity of the picture is unreal, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever owned before. The colors are vivid and the quality of the picture is the best ever. I also love the sound quality because the voices are very clear and easy to hear along with the sound effects. Bottom line, the picture gives you a true movie theater experience at home, especially in the 55” size. I also love the slim and beautiful remote.

It’s really fun to have a television like this one because it’s definitely top notch and from a pure aesthetics standpoint, it is so good-looking that I don’t want to hide it when I take photos of my space anymore.  It also has ONE cable, and it’s almost transparent, so it’s barely visible and so it’s nice to not have to deal with cord chaos or a cable duct to hide the cords. There is just a simple cable from the back of the unit running a few inches down the wall, disappearing behind my cabinet, and that’s it. I also want to note that I didn’t need to purchase anything in addition to the cable that came with the QLED because that was all that I needed.

I love the Samsung QLED and am so happy I got to share it with you today along with my tips on how to decorate with a TV. Have a nice day, everyone!

(This post is sponsored by Samsung Germany. All words and opinions are my own. Photography by Holly Becker for decor8. Thank you for supporting the brands who enable me to keep this blog running for over 12 years.)

[Photos, Text, Styling: Holly Becker. Location: Private Home of Holly Becker, Hannover, Germany. Model: Thorsten Becker]