So you’ve moved into a place that has a small living room. It’s not the end of the world. In fact, some say that a smaller living room will feel a lot more inviting and comfortable than a larger one so, you see, you might actually be lucky. But you still have to deal with one tiny problem. Arranging all the furniture in this small living room.
There can be as many as 10 different layouts you can try in a space measuring only 100 square feet. Take this cozy seating area for example. All of these different configurations have a focal point around which everything else is organized and that can differ depending on the case. Several different combinations can be created using a series of furniture pieces such as a sofa, a couple of armchairs, a coffee table and, in some cases, a sectional.{found onapartmenttherapy}.
One option is to arrange all the seating units facing a focal point that can be pretty much anything. For example, it can be a bookcase, a fireplace, a TV, a fireplace or a painting. This way, no matter how you adapt the layout and rotate the chairs, everyone will be able to see the focal point you’ve provided.
Another option is to emphasize the conversation area. This means the furniture needs to be arranged in such a way to allow people to walk around and face each other when sitting down. You can group sofas and chairs together to make interaction easier.
If you want the living room to be visually balanced and to feel harmonious, then take a different approach. When arranging the furniture, think of how it will impact the décor and what the relationship will be with the other pieces. For example, if you place a sofa on one side of the room, you can put two armchairs across from it to establish balance.
Families with kids find it difficult to establish boundaries between their play area and the adult’s space, especially if the room is small. This is a type of layout that allows you to use simple partitions to delineate these areas. You can use a coffee table or a sofa for that.
The first thing you need to do, before starting to plan a layout for your living room, is to determine which are the essential pieces of furniture, the ones you absolutely must include in your design. Once you know what you need to work with you can start developing a plan. {found on blulabelbungalow}.
Arrange all these essential pieces of furniture by starting with the largest one. This would usually be the sofa. Then build your design around that piece. The armchairs can go on the opposite side and in between you can place a coffee table. Or maybe you prefer to place all the seats on one side so everyone can see the TV.{found onhomegrowninteriors}.
Experiment with different configurations. Sit down and analyze the situation. See whether or not everyone would feel comfortable in that particular configuration and, if not, make some changes. Usually, the furniture is organized either around the TV or the fireplace so decide if you want one of these elements to be the focal point.{found onctaylor}.
Once you’ve decided which element should be the focal point in your living room, highlight it by placing the seating units directly in front of it. This way, those sitting there can admire whatever it is you’ve chosen to highlight. {found on coddingtondesign}.
Don’t neglect the traffic in the area. People need to be able to move around freely. If you’ve created a conversation area, they should be able to move around it and not through it. Different configurations allow for different solutions to this issue.
Depending on the shape of your living room, you need to establish where the center point should be. This isn’t necessarily the center of the room. It’s usually where the coffee table is and you can easily change it according to your desires.
Balance is important so you need to get the size right for everything. Small living rooms can’t usually take large pieces of furniture. However, a large sofa can be a good addition to the space as long as the rest of the pieces don’t overwhelm the room.
Lighting is also really important. A small living room can seem even smaller if it’s dark and gloomy. So try to make it bright. If there are large windows you can use then you’re in luck. But you can also work with color to get the desired feeling.
Stefan
Written by: Stefan, owner of Homedit.com – he started the site back in November 2008, from his passion for interior design and decorations and since then the site went from being a simple blog to one of the most popular home design websites on the web right now.
http://www.homedit.com/how-to-arrange-furniture-in-a-small-living-room/