Disguising your TV when it's not in use is a game changer. This decor trick makes homes so much more beautiful

The thing about TVs is that yes, we’re all really addicted to them and very few of us would actually proactively choose to go without one. But for most, the problem still remains of them looking a bit dull. A big black rectangle in the middle of your beautifully designed, calming, sitting room, is not really ideal.  

There are brands, such as Samsung, who have picked up on this and have introduced the lifestyle TV Frame which when turned off, actually looks like a piece of artwork on your wall. Interior designers and architects, however, have found their own solutions to the living room TV problem, too. By designing innovative furniture that can simply hide your TV when you’re not using it. Imagine those secret doors camouflaged in bookcases that you’d see in detective movies, now covering a TV. 

I found one architecture office that has created a beautiful and very creative design that hides and reveals your TV as and when you need it. 

The solution to elegantly hide away your TV when not in use 

In a beautiful Park Avenue Duplex in Manhattan, PJC Architecture has designed an elegant living room. Perfectly aligned with the latest modern living room trends, the space is painted in a calming neutral color scheme, and furnished with a statement blue sofa and green armchairs, a pair of bookcase shelves sit beautifully left and right of the fireplace. 

What you would never suspect is that this room also incorporates a TV. Look closer, and you still won’t find it.

You’d have to be pointed toward the bookcases and shown that the custom-built-in shelves slide off into the wall to reveal the TV. The sliding shelving wall enables multiple uses for this room: a formal gathering space when closed, and a cozy entertainment room when open.  ‘We used the dead space behind the new fireplace to add a sliding portion of the bookshelf that reveals a concealed wall-mounted TV,’ explains Juliana Sorzano, LEED GA, Associate, PJCArchitecture.

Philip Consalvo, AIA, Principal at PJCArchitecture tells me the practice consistently proposes TV hiding solutions in living rooms, to create a space that does not revolve around the TV as the focal point. ‘By concealing the TV when not in use, we allow the room to retain its aesthetic appeal without a screen,’ he tells me.  

This is not the only project where the architecture firm has incorporated a hiding space for a TV.  Also located on Park Avenue, a similar sliding shelving unit encloses a television and a convertible desktop.  

‘The intention of this custom solution was to create a piece of millwork that is flexible in its design and can transform to serve different functions: fireplace, art display, TV, pull-out desk, and storage. Instead of creating several separate solutions, we consolidated them into one elegant object, a custom Birdseye maple unit with metal accents, that complements the modern aesthetic of the design,’ explains Philip. 

This is great for smaller homes where rooms need to be multi-functional 

While both these properties are absolutely luxurious, I can see this built-in bookcase being a great small apartment living room idea where one living space also needs to double up as a workspace or study, depending on the needs of those using it at one particular time. 

‘These solutions have become more of a necessity, particularly as a result of limited space in New York City, where our clients are asking for as much efficiency as possible,’ says Philip. 

Ideas like these really make the most out of our homes that now need to deliver more than ever before and show what clever design can deliver to enhance our lifestyle.