So let's see where we're at, shall we? So you've cleaned up and thouroughly purged your space, getting it down to the bare essentials and the things you genuinely like/love; you've taken stock of your flooring, the second biggest surface in your room, figuring out whether it's warm or cool, and how to work with it; you've chosen a wall colour, between warm and cool, light and dark; and you've made sure that you've got some furniture basics, namely seating for at least three adults, "landing zones" for that seating, and something to set a tv on. Ideally your room shouldn't be looking too bad, right about now. Afterall, if you've followed the previous steps, you now like/love the stuff that's in there, it's functional, you love the wall colour; things are coming along! Next up: let's figure out the plan for furniture.
At this point it's important to step back from the room and really assess what furniture will add to the space, and what would just be... there. Basically you want pieces that will balance out the room, and hopefully have some sort of practical application. The pieces typically up for consideration will be: extra seating, display shelving, additional tables.
Extra seating is almost always going to be your biggest expense in the room. It's also some of the bulkiest and it's more difficult to get home (you don't usually find an armchair in a flatpack from Ikea, you know?) The question you want to ask yourself is "Do I NEED extra seating?" Do you entertain often? How many people use the room regularly? Is it WORTH it? Even if the room seems a little empty, there are ways to deal with that without adding pieces that you don't use. Do NOT buy extra seating just to fill in space. Even in a large space, if you don't use it, don't buy it.
Alright so maybe you DO want/need it, what now? Well, now it's time to assess your layout. The fact is that most other pieces of furniture can either be tucked against a wall or in a corner, or are going to need to relate back to your seating. Where you put that seating really sets up the whole room. Now without seeing your home, I can't really give you a universal guide, but I'll try to give you a couple of common scenarios that might help.
Regardless of whose room I'm in, I try to keep three things in mind:
- What's the first impression of the room. In other words, what do you see right when you walk in?
- Where will the tv go? Even if it makes the most sense of paper, you need to make sure that a tv is NOT directly opposite a window since the glare is usually a deal breaker.
- What will people using the room see? Find "your spot" and take a seat. This is your point of view, so you might as well make sure it's pretty!
This room is laid out, to scale, as a small-ish 12ftx12ft space, one window, one door. This would be a SUPER basic layout for you, seating for 5, one table and a spot for the tv. You could easily swap out the two chairs for another couch or loveseat. One of the nice thing about two chairs is that it gives you more options down the road. They can stay together, they can be in opposite corners, you can keep one in this room and move one to a bedroom as an occasional chair, etc. One of the other things it does is provide more visual interest: more places for cushions, etc. That said, this is where taking into account how you use a room is important. If you're a family of 5, you might prefer a sectional for cuddling, for example. Or even if you're just two adults, you might both want a couch to sprawl out on. Buy what works FOR YOU.
The tv was placed to avoid the glare from the window, and to work with the seating. Like I said before, everything revolves around the seating.
Notice, too, that the little end table isn't shoved into the corner, but is placed in the nook between the couch and chair. There's no "rule" that says that all your furniture has to touch the walls and form a perfect square/rectangle. In fact most designers will often recommend setting pieces slightly away from the walls, if you've got the room. Place things where you NEED them.
From this point there are a few pieces you could start adding in: another end table, a coffee table, some shelving... What you add next should depend on what you NEED. If you NEED a coffee table, I would suggest one of three options: large square (proportionate to the width of the two chairs, not ANY smaller), long and narrow, set to face either the couch OR the chairs, NOT centered (if it was centered it wouldn't be functional for either), or a large square ottoman. Personally I'd go with the large square ottoman. It gives you some extra texture in the room, it can provide extra seating, and it won't suffer from having guests putting their feet up.
If you decide on a coffee table, do NOT settle for anything other than metal and/or real wood. Better yet, don't settle for real wood with a laminate or foil finish, either. The fact is, a solid wood coffee table will stand up to significant abuse. It can handle a hot coffee cup, a leaking sippy cup, or a beer. At worst the finish can be sanded down. Anything with a laminate or foil finish can NOT. And solid wood doesn't HAVE to be expensive! I'm personally a big fan of the Hemnes coffee table from Ikea. It comes in three finishes, has nice clean lines that suit most styles in a timeless way, and at $129 it is VERY reasonably priced. Full disclosure? I've got the white one; it's fabulous.
Don't be tempted to buy furniture JUST to fill up the space. See that corner, top right? Though it seems obvious when it's laid out like that, in real life you would almost ALWAYS see something crammed in there. And WHY? WHY, you guys?! Just leave it open! If you want to make your spaces feel open, you need to let SOME space alone. (Sorry, I got all CAPS-y there, didn't I?)
What would be nice in this room would be a row of shelves or a long low buffet on the wall opposite the window. If you decide to go with shelves, I would STRONGLY suggest getting something that mimics the style of your tv stand/dresser/thingy. It's the largest piece of hard furniture in the room right now, so it dictates the style. If it's chocolate brown, so should your shelves be. If it's sleek, same thing. A good bit of advice is to go as tall as you can afford. Taller shelves are often more
expensive, but they're worth it in the long run. They provide extra storage, visual impact, they make your ceilings look taller, AND you don't have to worry about what the heck you'll put above them. If you've got the room/funds, I'd try to go with two or three narrower sets that can be grouped together to form one unit. Much like having two chairs, narrow shelves can be used together, split up, moved to different rooms, etc. They can also work to bulk up existing kitchen cabinetry, or to flank your tv stand. If you like the Hemnes coffee table, the bookshelves are great, too. Get them in a matching finish and you'll never have to think about it again.
The other option I mentioned was something long and low. You could even use the same shelf/buffet/whatever that you used for a tv stand and just duplicate it on that wall. Just keep in mind that that will leave you with a BIG open space directly above it. On the one hand, it's a GREAT place to put a big piece of artwork, directly across from the window; the perfect way to add some colour and texture. On the other hand, a lot of people struggle with picking artwork out, never mind committing to a piece that would have to be around 4ft wide! If you fall into the "afraid to commit" camp, stick to the tall shelves.
The last little bit of furniture might be a couple of occasional/end tables. THIS is where you can break away from "matchy-matchy" if you feel comfortable with that. There are SO many neat options, usually for under $150. This is the perfect place to bring in a little texture, maybe a little shine. Any of these would be cute choices and can easily be found at your local Homesense (just be patient, since the stock changes all the time it might take a couple of trips to find "the one") Don't think you HAVE to have a little table in there, but it is nice to have a place for a lamp, make a pretty picture or two... I've actually used the 40% off coupons at Michaels and bought big lidded woven baskets and used those... in fact I STILL use them at the foot of our bed instead of a bench for magazines and spare blankets. With the coupon it ended up costing me about $50 for two end tables. Not too shabby if I do say so myself!
Images found at: allmodern.com, ikea.ca, myhousmyhome.blogspot.com, gaitinteriors.com, furniturevisit.org, and shopcandelabra.com
Ok cool. So you've figured out what extra pieces of furniture you'd like to add. Don't worry if this means you'll need some time to find them. Don't get distracted with cheaper options. You've figure out what'll work, stick to it! If you buy crap to fill in the blanks because you're impatient you'll just be back where you started. You can DO this. Next up? I'm thinking textiles and texture. See you next time, kids, and don't forget to check out the other parts in the series: Be Ruthless, Colour, & Furniture Basics. Want to go over the layout for YOUR room? Just let me know and we'll do it up!
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