Furniture Placement Guidelines

Now that we are progressing well into the field of decorating, and have a solid grasp on getting a design brief, brainstorming for a style, using color well, making fabrics work for you and what to look for in home finishes, we will look at how to place the furniture into you cleverly decorated room. The furniture placement will further enhance all your good work you have done so far.

I will show you how to place your furniture by telling you what not to do!!

The most common error in furniture placement is to place all the
pieces around the walls, thinking that it will make the room look
larger. Unfortunately this theory is incorrect, and it does exactly
the opposite, it makes the room feel smaller and is less usable.

The next error is to group all the furniture around a focal piece, half right, except it is the television! Neglecting other features like a fireplace or a spectacular view.

A popular error for hoarders is to have so much furniture that they
have to stuff it all into one space, less is best when it comes to design, we don't want to go back to the Victorian style of decorating.

This isn't really a placement error, rather a purchasing, make sure
that the furniture is in proportion to the size of a room. A huge chunky sofa may be comfy, but if is the only thing that fits into the room, then it definitely is not in proportion. The same can be said for the heights of furniture, if you have a high stud then the space will look bigger automatically and you can have taller and more solid furniture. The other area here is that a large sofa and a small spindly side table will also look out of proportion, so think about how furniture will work together when you are purchasing or deciding which furniture to keep in your room if you are a hoarder!

So how do we go about making these spaces work?

Small Steps

Decide what you are going to do in the space, ie read, watch tv, sleep, exercise, relax, converse, play.

Then work out what you need to achieve these tasks. (do this for every room) For example the living room - the most difficult as it has to be very flexible to accommodate a whole family. You will need to allow furniture for watching TV - sofas, chairs and coffee table or side tables (to hold the remote controls obviously!), chairs, playing computer games - desk, office chairs, reading quietly - armchair with accompanying side table and lamp, play are for the small children - bean bags, cushions, toy chest, bookshelf. Do you start to see what we are trying to achieve?

Next step - if you can draught, you can plan out on paper how you
are going to fit all this furniture in, remembering to look at where people come and go from the room, you don't want them walking in front of the television every time they need to leave the room, orientate the furniture in another direction. If you can't draught, don't worry, good old graph paper will do, measure the size of the room, layout out the overall space on the paper, then measure the furniture and on another piece of graph paper, measure and draw using the graph paper to help you, a rough shape of the furniture, then cut them out and you can start placing them in the room. This is much easier than literally pushing the furniture around the room yourself. This way you can explore the numerous options until you feel that the space works.

Some tips:

Group sofas, chairs parallel to each other if you are wanting people to converse, in general keep you furniture parallel to the walls, this is the most pleasing on the eye. You can get away with angling a chair in a corner but apart from that parallel to the walls is best.

Define a specific area with a change in floor coverings, ie a rug under a dinging table, under a sofa and chairs, or as a way to protect your carpet and define where the children play in an area.

Keep all your electrical equipment in one area, TVs, Stereo, Video,
DVD etc, this way it reduces the cables lying around on the floor,
if possible use an entertainment unit and it can also store all your cds, dvds and videos out of sight, this makes a huge difference in a living room. If you are able, get your speakers wired into the walls and ceiling, this way you won't have to see them on the walls or on the floor.

Think about how you want to create the mood in the room, lighting
is where I'm going here. It is great to have your general lighting from the light switch, but to create different moods and effects, don't overlook the power of lamps, there are so many types available now that there is no excuse not to be able to find some to suit your scheme, some are sculptural, some are slim and almost invisible, others have the traditional lamp base and shade.

What they all do is create an extra zing to the room, and this will
show off all the hard work you have done.

Where do you place them? Tall up light lamps look best in corners as
they make the room look larger, small lamps work best on side tables next to chairs or sofas, as they provide light for you to read or do handiwork with, sculptural lamps can become a focal point, so they can go anywhere.

Focal points, I think I have overlooked explaining this and it is very important for furniture placement. Every room should have a focal point, this is how we succeed in decorating and design. We have something attractive that immediately draws the eye into the room and makes you want to be there. Some people are lucky and have an ever changing view from a window that does this naturally, but most of us have to work at it.

The most common ways to achieve a focal point is with the use of a
piece of artwork be it sculptural or a painting. Other ways include
a large decorative mirror, a fireplace, using a change in wall color with a feature wall, using a change in texture with a wallpaper or fabric to draw your eye. Sometimes a piece of furniture or a rug can be a focal point, but they aren't usually as obvious because you eye has to look down to see these, the best place for a focal point is at eye level. Don't forget to highlight the focal point with lighting.

Use these guidelines to work with the other rooms in the house.

How To Save Money On Your Home Remodeling Supplies

You've got a budget, and you've got a plan for your home remodeling project. What about your home remodeling supplies. Where are you going to get them? How much will they cost. What's the best way to purchase home remodeling supplies. Home remodeling supply can make or break your planed remodeling budget. Here are a few tips to make things a little easier for you:

Research Your Requirements

Before you start the home remodeling project do your research on everything you will need and want and most importantly the source from where you will get the needed supply. There are so many options, and contrary to what you might think, the "big box" stores aren't always the best.

Now, depending on the remodeling you have in mind, if it is a big job and you are planning to hire an architect, interior decorator or builder; or if it is a relatively small job and you will be doing it yourself, you will need supplies.

If you hire a contactor you need to specify clearly who will get the home remodeling supply. Sometimes contractors will supply the materials and if that is the case you also need to go through the cost and the type of supply that will be used. Specify everything clearly in detail; failing to do so will came back later to bite you when faced with supply quality or quantity issues. This will further bring additional costs, frustration and stress.

If you are in charge of providing the home remodeling supply you still have a lot of work to do; before you go to the store make a list with exactly what to need for each project. There are two reasons for this:

1. You will save money buying in bulk
2. You will save time not having to run two times for the same materials.

Planning Home Remodeling Supply

Planning is perhaps your most critical step. Without a good plan, you're doomed to pay far more than you can imagine. Take time to draw out a great plan. In construction, they'll figure that the planning process can take months, and (hopefully) they won't start until the plan is complete. A poor plan spells financial disaster every time.

Draw a plan with all details and material needed. Research online the availability of these supplies and the packages for the same. You will find that by doing your homework in the long run it will be rewarding.

When you have a good idea of what supplies you require for each project it will be hard for any contractor to trick you into getting poor quality material at high costs or even for any salesman to suggest what he/she wants to get rid of from the store.

Home remodeling supply will prove to save you a bunch of money in the end and still get the remodeling you dreamed of but, at the right cost and in the budget you had planned.

With a good plan and time for research, you can sometimes find great deals. On a recent bathroom remodel, for example, we found the perfect cabinet in a recycle center. It was brand new and in perfect condition. The contractor donated it because it didn't fit his client's project. Look around. Take your time. You'll be happier in the end.

What to Look for in Home

It is important to have an understanding of what interior finishes
are, what they are used for, when and where to use them and why.
The why is important, as you must always be able to justify WHY you
have selected a finish or a product to use. Because "I like the
look of it" is not enough. This is the part of Interior Decoration
that we get accessed on, as it is what people "see." It is a
complex process of continual questions that we need to ask to
ensure that the product will do what we expect of it.

The best way to gain knowledge of these products is by assessing
supplier and manufacturer's information and specifications. They
freely distribute these and some are happy to provide samples so
that you can physically compare different products. Be careful when
checking for flame resistance. I once naively put a match to a
small swatch of fabric to see if it could withstand flame. A split
second later I had a hot black gooey melted fabric over my finger.
It hurt and I came to the conclusion that the fabric was not what I
was looking for and it wasn't specified for the project. It pays to
read the back of the label for the properties and used their tried
and tested information.

Selecting products or finishes, as discussed requires accessing
their performance capabilities. The following items should be
considered:

Economic and budgetary issues. Does the budget allow for the
initial purchase cost of the material as well as the installation?

Does the product require long-term maintenance, which may impact on the weekly household budget?

Durability considerations. Will the product withstand daily wear
and tear -water spillage, foot traffic, pets, and children with
artistic flair, furniture movement? Is the product able to be
easily maintained? Is it easily broken, or scratched, prone to
changing temperatures?

Safety issues. Is it slippery when wet (flooring)? Is it a fire
hazard? Does it have hard or sharp edges? Does it provide a surface for glare? I.e. is it highly polished and reflective. Is the
product dull and dark and impede vision without the lights on?

Comfort and Aesthetic considerations. Does it look great? Does it fit in with your scheme, texturally, color wise, patterned items? Does it meet the acoustic and thermal insulation requirements of the local building authority? Do the tactile properties live up to the look? I.e. is it soft to touch, silky to run your fingers over, or cool underfoot?

Keeping all these items in mind, start visiting interior stores to
have your interior finishes and product knowledge increased. A way
to remember the product and its properties and functions is to
consider where you would put it and why, it helps to keep a
notebook of these observations until you become confident with
interior products and finishes available.

Always ask lots of questions to the sales staff, especially when
you are considering wet areas, or areas where humidity can be a
factor, for example cork is a wonderful flooring product, it is
warm underfoot, a natural product, economically priced, saves
glasses and crockery from breaking when dropped (most times), but
it is prone to damage with water. It is sealed with polyurethane,
but often moisture can get in around the edges and the tiles start
to lift off the floor and it really does look messy and is
dangerous, the conclusion there is, best not to use them in the
bathroom, kitchen or entrance ways.

Once again the finishes that you select come down to getting a good
clear brief of what you are going to be using the rooms or spaces
for, the style that you are trying to achieve, the color and
texture that fits these parameters and then obtaining the product
for the right cost to suit your budget.

Don't forget to touch and feel all the products, make sure they are
the best quality that you can afford, ensure that they will last to
your expectations, and of course the most obvious, that they look
good!