Furniture Design is a field that blends art, engineering, social science, humanities and manufacturing to design and create a piece of furniture. It requires a thorough understanding of both the materials used and the manufacturing process, as well as a keen eye for aesthetics.
The arranging of furniture in a room is often the most challenging part of the design process, but it doesn’t have to be. There are a few basic guidelines that can help you get the job done right the first time.
Arrange your sofa, chairs and accent furniture in a way that makes sense for your space. Start with the largest piece of furniture and orient it toward the room’s most prominent feature, such as the TV, fireplace or gallery wall. Then, move to smaller seating options and fill in the rest of the furniture with ottomans (like this Better Homes & Gardens Round Tufted Storage Ottoman, $78, Walmart), coffee tables, end tables, and lamps.
Use color to accentuate your furniture and to tie the overall decor together. While neutral colors are often preferred, some boldly colored pieces can also look great in a living room. Make sure you choose colors that are appropriate for the season, and use a palette that works together with your furniture pieces.
When arranging your furniture, you should consider balance in the space as well as traffic flow. A balanced arrangement will ensure that everyone has a clear path to walk throughout the room without tripping over furniture or each other.
One way to determine balance in your space is to sketch out your furniture arrangements on a piece of graph paper. This can be done by using a ruler and pencil to mark the boundaries of the space, or you can also download an online floor plan. Once you have your paper layout, you can adjust it to fit the dimensions of your furniture pieces.
Another way to plan out your furniture is to draw scale models of the pieces you want to purchase. This will help you determine how big of a table or shelf you need, and which items you can actually place in the space. You can even get these virtual scale models of the furniture online, so you can see how it will fit before ordering it.
You can even use this tool to create an interactive floor plan for your room that will allow you to move furniture, change walls and add or delete features. All you have to do is enter the SKU numbers of the pieces that you’re thinking about acquiring, and the tool will give you a visual representation of how your new furniture will fit in your space.
Before you order any new furniture, you should map out your furniture arrangement on a piece of graph paper or on the floor. This will ensure that your new furniture will fit in the space that you’ve designed and that it will look the way that you envision it in your mind.