Submitted by: Jesse Akre

Arranging living room furniture isn t an art. It s actually a bit of a science. The eyes like harmony and balance, but not so much that it creates boredom or complacency. Savvy designers know this, of course, mixing fabrics, colors, textures and sizes to create a welcoming space that feels homey but never boring.

Thankfully, you don t have to go to interior design school to learn the basics of arranging living room furniture for both form and functionality. The first thing you want to remember is that the living room needs to be livable. You should never do something that makes it look more like a showroom than a place to comfortably entertain family and friends. Start off by deciding what your living room is used for. For example, do you use it only when guests are over, or is it part of a great room concept that makes it multi-functional?

Traditional formal living rooms aren t as popular as they once were, primarily because the way we use our homes have changed. Today s families want to use all of the their space, eschewing formal for functional. Once you know how the living room fits into your lifestyle, it s time to pick a focal point. Often this is an architectural element, such as a large view window or a fireplace. It can also be a large screen TV or even a work of art. If you have an element that is dominant, arrange your future around it. Arranging living room furniture around a focal point is one of the easiest ways to make your room more inviting.

Start with the largest piece of furniture and face it toward the focal point. This could be a sofa, love seat, sectional or even two large chairs. It s up to you and there s no right or wrong. That said, everything doesn t have to be at a 90 degree angle to one another. This can create the boredom that you so desperately want to avoid. Play with the angles a bit until it feels right to you. Once you have the larger pieces in place, you can add a coffee table or end tables. But don t overdo it. Too much furniture can ruin the effect you re going for. While it s tempting to use every stick of furniture you own in a room, resist the temptation. Less is often more, and that goes for accessorizing as well, from the number of knickknacks to the art on the walls. A room should have breathing room.

While placement is important, so is access. You want to have a natural, open entry point to the seating area in the living room. This is made a lot easier if you don t over furnish. Still, you want to leave enough room between the furniture so that a visitor naturally knows how to enter the room. Try to keep at least three feet between furnishings in the main traffic corridor. However, also remember that the seating should not be more than eight feet apart. Even in today s larger homes, you don t want to make it hard to carry on a conversation without yelling across the room. In the secondary traffic patterns, eighteen inches to two feet will do. This includes the space between the sofa and the coffee table. Remember that some furnishings can pull the eye away from the focal point, even in a large room. This can include a large bookcase with lots of collectible books or a curio cabinet with fascinating objects in it. A grand piano is another offender. If you must have these in the living room, either integrate them into the main focal point or make sure they are visually separate. For example, in a great room you may want to create a music space that is away from the main furniture grouping so that each area can be its own focal point.

Once you have everything right where it belongs, start adding the small stuff. This includes the photos, vases, tabletop collectibles and other d cor that makes your home look like you live there, not someone else. There s no rush in finishing up the room. You may want to move the furniture first and put off the accessorizing until later. That way you can focus entirely on the focal point and how you arranged your furniture. If all the other stuff has been added, it may make it more difficult to objectively assess the layout and make any adjustments.

One of the great things about moving the furniture around is that it s free. Add in a fresh coat of paint to the walls while the furniture is in play and you may just take a so-so living room and make it amazing instead.

About the Author: Jesse Akre owns Edenvale Shoppes and hosts numerous furniture and furnishings for any home whether it be

end tables

or

teak furniture

styles and designs.

Source:

isnare.com

Permanent Link:

isnare.com/?aid=744301&ca=Home+Management