Help! I Need to Rearrange My Furniture!
Arranging someone else’s furniture is like poking your fork in someone else’s plate: You have to know them really well. I have a friend — let’s call her Karen since that’s her name — who will occasionally leap up in the middle of a conversation at my house and move my furniture around. Sometimes she just tweaks the angle of a chair so that it looks caddywanpus to me until I get used to it. Sometimes we do The Harlem Shuffle, complete with oaths and grunting. She always improves both the room’s look and functionality.
I was born without the grouping gene. My criteria is whether my dog can see out the window and whether I can read without squinting. Once it’s settled, I leave objects in their places as if by decree. When Karen suggested turning my long dining room table sideways, I gaped at her as his fellow astronomers must have when Copernicus hinted that the Earth might not be the center of the universe.
Now that the winter doldrums have set in, though, my dried flowers are looking tacky and it strikes me that the stiff antique loveseat I was once so proud of is not bottom-friendly at all. There is a fine line, dear reader, between comfort and a rut. I crossed it during the Bush administation. Time to call Karen!
Readers, how often do you rearrange the furniture? How do you go about it? Diagrams, trial and error, instinct? Please share your photos, websites and tips.
Categories: Home, Interior designers, makeovers | Tags: furniture arranging winter doldrums
4 Comments
4 Responses to “Help! I Need to Rearrange My Furniture!”
February 9, 2010 at 9:06 pm, by Marji K. California
I’m stunned that no one wrote about moving adventures! I fairly itch to move the furniture in a room that would be better served by rearranging. Yet, I admit this can be heavy duty because I rarely draw it out on paper (unless there is a new purchase to be added or a long distance to shove a sofa!)
Now if I could just get Karen over here to make the most of setting out accessories….
March 4, 2010 at 10:50 am, by Jodie Classen
Aaaah…getting the perfect arrangement can pose a bit of a challenge. Perhaps this strategy can help simplify it. Your foremost goal is to create a grouping that functions for you. Form always follows function–always! What is the function of your room? Viewing television, reading, seating for gatherings or a cozy spot to enjoy a hot cup of tea with a cherished friend? Priorities in place, let’s move further. (Pun intended)
Is there a feature or decorative element within the room’s architecture that shouts “Look At Me”? This can serve as an anchor for your furniture placement.
Options? A window view or perhaps a fireplace? A built in wall unit? If not, no worries. You can create one! More on that in another post! In staging, we call these “Drama Mamas”, which is simply a strong piece with tremendous visual appeal. Known commonly as a focal point. Often substantial in size, but not always, they are the foundational strength that harnesses the capacity to hold or support your grouping. Place your furnishing around this support. Create intimate furniture clusters to promote conversation, TV viewing,reading,letter writing etc. Nod back to your function and you will not fail. Remember our furniture is NOT to support perimeter walls, but rather…provide a cocoon of comfort! Whisper “linger and stay awhile”. If you’re not fortunate to have a focus feature in the bones of your structure, its easy to achieve! I’d love to share more about that!
March 22, 2010 at 2:31 pm, by Rebecca Christian
Hello, Marji and Jodie,
I like your ideas!
“Drama Mama” is a fun concept.
Here’s a question. I have an Arts and Crafts home, and in the living room is a fireplace flanked by buiilt-in bookshelves. I’ve been drooling over a very large moody painting of a rainy landscape. If I propped it on the mantel, which is topped by a mirror, it would take up nearly the whole width of it.
Drama Mama or overwhelming and slightly weird?
Rebecca
December 14, 2011 at 3:20 am, by icedachrissy
I’m sure the best for you at my estore and check coupon code available