How To Place Furniture In Your Home

Space Planning is one of those tricky areas to design that some people struggle with.

Many people aren’t sure there are rules to follow in regards to placing furniture in a space and also so that it makes sense.

FIRST YOU NEED TO ESTABLISH A CENTER OF INTEREST...OR WHAT YOU HEAR A LOT AS THE FOCAL POINT.

First, you need to establish a center of interest... or what you hear a lot as the focal point. This can be the fireplace, a view out your window, a large piece of art. Whatever is the star of the show is in your room.

Your next thing to do is to figure out the flow of traffic into and through the room. Sketch up your room and make note which paths people typical take in your room. Do they cross through the room to go outside or to a bedroom? These obvious paths of travel will make it easier for you to figure out where to place furniture.

When you have figured out where you can fit your furniture in without placing an obstacle in the traffic path, your next goal will be to use scale and balance. You will balance the pieces of furniture in your room so not all the heavy pieces are on one side or grouped together. You want to balance heavy pieces with lighter pieces. You also don’t want to have a very large couch paired with a dinky side table or coffee table. Consider the sizes of the pieces and how they look next to each other.

IF YOU HAVE A LARGER ROOM WHERE IT CAN HAVE MORE THAN ONE PURPOSE, YOU SHOULD ARRANGE YOUR FURNITURE IN WAYS THAT THE AREAS OF THE ROOM ARE DEFINED.

You can have a conversation, a game, dining and reading area in separate and undisturbed areas.

Cutting out paper pieces to represent furniture and placing it on top of graph paper can be really helpful and a lot easier than lugging the actual furniture around the room till you find the best solution. Sketch the outlines of your room on the graph paper, including where the doors, windows, fireplaces, electrical outlets, etc. are. (TIP: When using graph paper, each square (1/4” square) is one foot/12 inches.) Then you make paper patterns of the furniture. Write the sizes of your furniture pieces on each piece of paper so you know what piece you are moving around.

Remember, there is a solution for every room that may not be evident right away, but if you continue to work for the solution, you’ll get it! Good Luck!

If you’re having a hard time with your space and you’re ready to take strategic action to create a one of a kind room, let’s talk! Drop me a line at michelle@ramakerinteriors.com

~Michelle