Successful room arranging makes your interior spaces comfortable to
be in, and can make an immediate impact to the overall feeling you have
when you are in the room.
There are several things to keep in mind
to make your room arranging successful, the first of which would be
establishing a focal point, a dramatic element your furniture arranging
can take their cue.
It could be an architectural feature in the
room such as a handsome fireplace, built in bookcases or a stunning
window with an awesome view. Or, if your room doesn't have a focal point
of its own, one can easily be created with a beautiful piece of
furniture such as a breakfront.
The focal point is usually the
first thing that is notice upon entering a room and is usually on the
wall most dominate. If the room is large there can be more than one
place of focus.
Once the focal point is established, you can then orient your room arranging around it.
The
second thing to consider is the traffic flow of the room. Is there just
the one entrance into the room? Or do you cut through this room to get
to another?
Obviously, you don't want to block the natural
pathways with a sofa or walk into a room to the back of one and have to
walk around it. Nor do you want people constantly walking in front of
the TV or interfere with the main seating.
But floating your
furniture in a room does add interest and gets away from the "waiting
room" look of lining up furniture along the walls, and can be a
desirable approach when you are not blocking the traffic flow or view.
This
along with the size and shape of your room will help you determine
where to place your furniture and in a lot of cases the room arranging
then becomes natural.
And remember, rooms don't always have to
conform to the way they were intended. If you feel what was originally a
dining room would work better for you as a family room then set it up
in that way.
It is a good idea to write down the function and the
needs of the room and play around with different ideas on paper before
you start the heavy lifting. This way you will gain ideas on what is
going to fit and what you hope to achieve with the style direction you
want for the room.
With that in mind here are some simple room arranging guidelines to think about. But don't be afraid to experiment.
- In a long and narrow room placing some pieces on an angle will shorten the room visually but only if your room allows.
Angled furniture takes up more space but works nicely if you are short on furnishings.
Create a "V" shape with your seating in front of your focal point.
- If your room is long, you can create two separate areas with different groupings of furniture.
- Add visual height to a room with low ceilings with the use of drapery panels or tall bookcases.
But
if you have the opposite room setting, of one with tall ceilings,
create an imaginary ceiling line at a "normal" height and don't allow
furnishings, draperies or art work to venture above this line.
The use of wide furniture pieces as oppose to high draws your attention away from the height.
- The use of area rugs will anchor your furnishings and the space.
- Placing furniture of an equal size and stature opposite from one another balances the room. (a dresser opposite the bed or the wall unit across from the sofa)
- Mix different shapes and textures for a pleasing arrangement with your room arranging,
(a
round coffee table with rectangular end tables and a boxy sofa, or the
use of draperies in a dining room where most of the furniture is going
to be wood or "hard."
- To comfortably reach and for ample leg room position any coffee table you are using 14-18" away from the sofa (or other seating)
- The seating opposite a TV should be three times the size of the screen, for example if your TV has a 30" screen, your seating needs to be 90" away for the best viewing.
- Allow for 32 -36" for seating depths at the dining room table. This allows enough room when seated at the table and to pull the chair out and to get up.
- A place setting at the table requires 24" per person and 32-36" of clearance between the table and the wall, but on the wall where you place your buffet or china, the clearance needs to be closer to 44".
- The minimum clearance between the edge of the bed and the wall should be 24". In addition allow, at least 36" between the edge of the bed and any door that opens into the room.
