can we see all four walls. is this meant to be a living dining combo room?

A light colored area rug will make a big difference, even if it's a pattern with lighter colors than the current rug.

Assuming the dark sofas stay, I agree that a lighter rug will help lighten things up. Also end tables with lamps. Can the walls be painted? They look fairly light, but if you think they're making things drab, a lighter gray or a warm white might work.

With the black sofas you could go big city and use beige, white, and a little navy. So how about a beige and white floor length curtain on a white rod, a couple of beige throws for chilly evenings, navy and white throw pillows. And a bowl of fruit for the coffee table.

Rug and drape suggestions found on Houzz shopping.

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All from overstock.com

Put this lamp on end table on left of sofa

and this floor lamp in corner between 2 sofas behind end table

Get another chair to place on the left side of sofa across from loveseat and bring in some pattern and texture
or go to the wild side

Try turning the rug the other way for adding a chair.

Light rug. Probably would go with neutrals like light grey. Bring in just a small but bright pop of colour through some throw pillows. Some side tables as susan2494 suggested. add some pattern, larger simpler pattern in the rug and a smaller bit more busy pattern in a single chair. Curtains will depend on what you choose for the rest. Just keep it simple in a plain neutral or colour. your choice there. Also a floor lamp and table lamps around would lighten the space up.

Good luck!

Can't wait to see what it ends up looking like.

I like pretty much 80% of Paperwheels and Susan's ideas. The lamp with 3 lights would work wonders to "home up" the space and and the American Pillow would do wonders and for not that much money. Curtains are a little tricky since the one window is so high and so flat. I would hang a curtain rod, way higher and slightly farther out than the small window's frame and do a valance (a curtain across the top of the window). It will trick the eye into thinking you have bigger windows than you do. As for what looks like the slider doors, I would hang the curtain rod higher and wider out too, and do something simple, and cheap that you can take with you like tab curtains. Ikea sells them very inexpensively. And any guy art you have would work (Album covers, concert posters, funky retro art with something like 40's or 50's pin up girls and some American Flag themed things like those pillow, and you would have a very cool and yet portable man cave, still chic enough for a girl to love.

Grommet top or clip top drapes can be used for both the sliders & the high shallow window. Ikea has good ones for good prices & hang them from the top of the wall down to the floor for both applications. If he goes with an off-white color or color to match the walls they will be good in the next place he moves too. Grommet top are easy open/close for sliders as well. Place the rug under the front feet of the sitting area.

Add lamps, plants & mix wood is good for end tables. I love the example of the coffee table on industrial wheels too. Only he can choose his art. Art.com or Great Big Canvas are good places to look for inspirations & they often have 35 -50% off sales.

Fireplace on the wall

Is the owner of this thread still interested?

I have seen shutters hung underneath a narrow window to make it look longer, then curtains hung on either side. The room is currently too dark. Add the lamps and a lighter curtain, and choose other accents from the suggestions above. It will soon look like a home and not just a basement 'wreck room'

Modern, masculine and movable describe the selections I researched to transform rental place to a contemporary look.

I would move the sofa away from the wall under the high window (see floor plan attached), center the modern shelf underneath and frame with solid neutral panels. I sourced a bright-with-neutral highlights area rug under the two sofas and it works with existing wood-top coffee table.

Then I centered a contemporary ceiling-hung room divider over the slider doors, with two more of same taupe neutral drapery panels on each side. These are blackout drapes good for TV rooms. Simple, elegant and hope to have inspired you!

For a modern touch you could add a contemporary piece between the windows where the empty wall is. Check out this handmade, metal wall clock. It might just be the perfect addition to add excitement and intrigue to your space.

Titan by Jon Allen

There is also a neutral version featuring silver with fusions of jeweled earth tones titled 'Tectonic' -Or for more modern metal accents that would fit great in your space (and are easy to install and uninstall for your rental situation) check the website for inspiration. Statements2000 - Jon Allen Fine Metal Art

I feel a Sheer Carmel Color Drapery will work best .. Also Bring in some lighter colored pillows to the furniture to liven it up.

About something like this .

All the colors in this picture will work in this room.

It would "lighten up" that room if those sofas were moved INTO the room, off the walls. Nothing looks more stuffy to me than a room full of big furniture lining the walls. Create some open space and let that room breathe.

Wow, susan2494, can you shop for my house too??? I need your help - you are great!!

I'd like to suggest pulling the furniture and rug more toward the center of the room. I love house plants but have a fake plant here and there to soften corners, etc. You can put one in the corner between the sofa and love seat, add end tables and lamps. Also, you can add light colored stationary panels to the sides of the windows (it looks like you have miniblinds for privacy) and throw pillows to add some color.

@andi, if you need help start a new post here, there is lots of advice.

Thank you both for your service to our country.

If the big black sofas have to stay, lighten everything else including drapes and rug, and use multiple lighter-colored throw pillows to relieve the darkness of the sofas themselves. Use glass or metal end-and-accent tables because they will reflect light and do not use up visual space -- no wood, as it lends more heft to an already hefty look. Agree with other designers that the sofas will have an airier and lighter effect if moved away from the walls. Linda Wilson, Designer

First, in the corner where windows intersect, that's an excellent place for a large tree in a big warm colored pot (choose a color that's in the rug). Next, get some comfy throw pillows, again, bring in the colors in the rug. Don't cover the windows, looks like light is a must in that room, but blinds that are a light wood could provide a warmer feel than those white ones. Add some nice art work on the walls too. The coffee table is bare, think of things of interest and even food (a big bowl of apples they can snack on), some fun coasters for drinks, and favorite magazines.

Susan 2494--Can you tell me the maker of the floor lamp with three lights? Many thanks.

Love paper wheel's suggestion about a sisal rug. They can be cheap. light, take a lot of wear & provide sorely needed texture. Then go to Home Goods or Target & get a few throw pillows. Love the idea of a fabric ottoman with a huge tray on top. DONE!

What about a circular or oval area rug? So many rectangular shapes and straight lines ...

He needs a end table between couch and loveseat something tall like a lamp or a sculpture and a lighter colored area rug..

I didn't notice if anyone said this, but make sure you hang the curtains from the top of the wall to the bottom, not the top of the window. It will make your ceiling look higher and give the illusion of space. I made my daughter move hers up, she has windows like yours. She grumbled a bit, but was happier with the overall look even if she did have to patch a few holes. ;-)

Have you looked into our linen drapery collection on our store Barn & Willow

It's great quality and realistically priced. Here's our Houzz profile page: http://www.houzz.com/pro/barnandwillow/barn-and-willow

Consider "Genevieve" suggestions, they are modern, cool, masculine. Pls trim out your naked windows, update your baseboards. It really is not that hard. Go to Restoration Hardware and get ideas for new area rug. Between the two of you it will be a piece of cake:)

Since it appears your friend is in the Army, he'll want a room that is easy to keep looking goood. With the exception of the rug, his living room basically looks the same as my Army husband's living room looked when I met him. Black leather sofas that are extremely comfortable and a coffee table. I would not be surprised if everything came from the PX.

Forget sofa pillows. They will not stay on the leather furniture. Trust me, we had the same sofa, and I tried everything to keep pillow on it. If they don't end up on the floor, they end up lying flat on the seat.

It's tempting to go with really light curtains, but with the sofas and rug he's already chosen, you need darker curtains to pull the eye upward. I would suggest grommet panels in a medium gray. They are easy to open and close, and the color is strong enough to carry the rest of the dark accessories without making the room too dark. Also, since he has a large screen tv, he'll want blackout curtains so there won't be a glare on it. The blinds on the windows will not do that for him.

He also needs some artwork. Since his rug has shades of burgundy and I suggested gray curtains, he'll want something that has some of both colors in it. Something like this is masculine and modern with all the colors that would tie the room together.

Finally, he needs some end tables and lamps. When you're watching the game on a huge tv, you need a place to set your drink. Forget any kind of knick-knacks on the tables. Make sure the lamps are interesting. It would be tempting to go with something contemporary, but something like these, would bring some personality into the room.

Please thank him for his service. Good luck!

I do agree with most of the suggestions already submitted.
I would try the following given the limitations to this setting.
1. Lighter shaded but multi-toned rug.
2. End Tables (2-3) with table lamps / off white shades.
3. One tall floor lamp, modern style, placed in the far corner.
4. Several lighter but brighter colored throws & pillows on seats.
5. Add 1 or 2 greenery (real or artificial) depending on the preference. I prefer small natural, especially draping slightly from the windows. 1-3 other smaller decorative elements, such as books or visual objects if desired.
Finally, Good Luck & have fun redoing the space... should be a self-expression.

Thanks for the opportunity - Dynamo

Mini blinds is all the windows need for a short term rental -- wood look and different colors are available according to your friend's personal taste. White will visually "disappear" best if that is the objective.

Building a wooden cornice for each window would hide the tops of the mini blinds and could provide a shelf for displaying ... whatever your friend chooses to display.

A cornice would also hide the rods for curtains, with or without the mini blinds.

Consider a corner curio cabinet with glass shelves and glass doors and a light inside for between the windows.

If collecting larger pieces of furniture is not practical, consider a floor lamp with table/shelf for the corner or a large planter with a tall plant -- perhaps a rubber tree or snake plant.

Square foot lockers -- two or three -- could serve as end tables and come in a variety of looks and provide storage as well. They come in wood look and/or printed design and/or can be painted any color you prefer. Add tall lamps and if the shades match, the lamps don't necessarily need to.

You can usually find lamps cheap at the nearest Habitat for Humanity Restore Store. Very often find yourself a "stuff cabinet" at a reasonable price as well -- a curio cabinet, barrister's bookcase or china cabinet would do for that purpose. Also, don't forget to check out church and charity sponsored thrift stores for inexpensive furnishings you may need to resell or otherwise leave behind rather than bear the cost of moving them.

Everyone eventually needs a "stuff cabinet" with glass doors (to minimize dusting) for framed photos and nick knacks and mementos and those candy dishes and candle sticks and interesting vases not currently being used for their intended purpose and/or media related stuff and/or camera or hobby stuff -- stuff you value but don't want to dust. Behind the stuff in the cabinet next to the glass you might actually want seen you can crowd in everything else, changing what's next to the glass to be seen according to the season or your whim. Depending on the difficulty in getting that large a piece of furniture moved, however, that acquisition may be for another time.

I agree with the floor and window comments, but why not add a "that is so cool" focal element that physically lightens the atmosphere? Bring in a couple of leafless saplings sprayed to look like birch trees. Tall enough to wedge between the ceiling and floor and bend over your seating. Big statement, hit with your guests....and budget friendly.

FYI, large (minimum 18" square) down pillows are "crushable" and will stay in place on leather sofas! Foam-filled and regular batt-filled pillows tend to maintain their shape and don't conform to the sofa shape, sliding down onto the sofa seat as one of the advisers noted. Use down-filled throw pillows on leather. Linda Wilson, Designer

I think they would really enjoy a few limited edition prints by extremely popular Phil McKay. I have attached a few images here. To see more of Phil's work, please visit http://www.jam415.com/artist/artist-Philip-McKay-36.aspx