As a food and lifestyle blogger and YouTuber, my home often serves as the backdrop for photos and videos, so I wanted it to feel distinctly like me. I worked with Havenly to bring together my modern, minimalist, Scandinavian and SoCal-influenced style into one cohesive living room.
After months of planning and arranging furniture and decor, I’m excited to share the finished space. When I moved into this apartment it was a blank canvas with a single boxy living room. I’d returned from living overseas and only had the essentials, so creating a living room that felt warm, lived-in and stylish was a priority.
Watch the video to tour my modern and minimalist living room:
You can find a full video tour on my YouTube channel where I share the design process and reveal the final room.
I discovered Havenly, an online interior design service, and it made the process incredibly accessible. For a modest fee I was able to work with a professional designer, get a 3D rendering of the room, and collaborate on furniture and layout choices. I selected a designer whose aesthetic matched mine—modern and minimalist with Scandinavian touches—and the collaboration really guided the project.
Two pieces anchored the room: a long modern white sofa and a woven leather chair in warm camel tones. The sofa’s generous scale required a large, airy coffee table to balance it, so we chose a frame-style table that keeps the space feeling open. Throw pillows in complementary tones make the sofa inviting and cozy.
For rugs, we layered a plush champagne-colored rug with a warm beige cowhide on top. Layering rugs adds texture and visual interest while keeping the palette soft and neutral. The media unit eventually chosen has a mid-century modern look with brass detailing that brings in warmth without overwhelming the minimalist lines of the room.
On the dining side, I wanted a simple white table with clean Scandinavian lines to double as a backdrop for overhead food photography. Grey velvet dining chairs with brass legs add comfort and a touch of luxury. A couple of ceramic vases and a small local planter finish the tabletop without cluttering it.
Working with a designer taught me to be more adventurous about mixing metals, textures and finishes. The result is a curated but comfortable room that doesn’t feel overly matchy-matchy. The key was balancing clean modern lines with warm, tactile elements to keep the space inviting.
To bring a subtle SoCal influence into the room, we chose ocean-inspired artwork with turquoise accents. These pieces introduce color and a breezy coastal vibe while still fitting the modern, minimalist aesthetic.
Personal touches keep the room meaningful. I display a small kiwi bird figurine that reflects my New Zealand roots and a bronze seagulls sculpture that belonged to my grandmother—items that connect the space to family memories and coastal childhood days.
Plants were a must. I requested plenty of greenery from the start: a tall fiddle leaf fig, a schefflera, a philodendron, succulents and an orchid. Real plants add life, improve air quality, and soften the overall look. I used a mix of baskets and planters to introduce texture and warmth.
Other finishing pieces include an overarching floor lamp, a column table lamp, white linen drapes with simple hardware, and a new 55″ TV. Together these elements complete the living room while preserving the clean, airy feel I wanted.
Now that the living room is finished, I’m excited to move on to the bedroom and continue the same approach: calm, cozy, modern minimalism with a soft, warm palette. Working with a designer made the process approachable and helped me create a space that looks great on camera and feels like home.
A special thanks to Havenly for partnering on this living room design. Their guidance helped me create a modern, minimalist, Scandinavian and SoCal-inspired space that I love.