This Is the Effective Living Room Setup You Need if You Can’t Afford Built-Ins

The apartment I live in overseas in Egypt came pre-furnished. Sadly, the dark wood furniture in the space isn’t exactly my style. While these pieces felt super-limiting at first, I encouraged myself to see them as an opportunity to get creative with what my husband and I were given. 

Sure, a fresh coat of paint brightened the walls up, but that wasn’t going to be enough to make things feel homey and more like “me.” We live in a spacious four-bedroom, and when we first moved in, the furnishings were spread out everywhere. I knew I’d have to play with the layout of each room to really figure out which spaces and pieces spoke to me. 

I started experimenting with the different furniture configurations I could set up with what we had. And instead of relegating my office space to its designated room — one that doesn’t get much natural light — I decided to move two bookshelves, a desk, and a console table into the living room to create a little work area there. 

In this common space, my husband and I prefer a projector over a television, and we collect a ton of books. Built-in shelving would be the ideal solution here, but since we don’t own the apartment — combined with the fact that custom millwork is pretty expensive — I decided to just push together a desk, a console, and two bookcases to frankenstein my own “built-in” together. These pieces of furniture sit along the focal wall, with the desk at the center, flanked by two tall bookshelves. 

This stylish, super-functional setup didn’t cost me a thing, and I can’t believe how well it works with how we use the space. Case in point: I was able to avoid having to put up a clunky projector screen because the area above the desk functions as one, displaying shows or movies without any obstruction (the bookcases frame out “the screen” so well!). 

On top of that, we couldn’t be happier that our library found a prominent place in our home, where the books can double as decor. Furthermore, in the center of it all, I added a chair and got an inspiring home office next to the largest windows in the apartment, which get plenty of sunlight. 

So, if you ever find yourself with a pair of matching bookshelves and a desk or two, know that you’ve hit the design jackpot. Don’t rush to split up the ensemble. Try setting them up along one wall for the most multifunctional arrangement you never knew you had. Even better — the pieces are endlessly reconfigurable. Now, what built-in can say that?