Dos and Don'ts of Successful Furniture Arranging

I’d like to stay with last week’s theme of furniture and talk about furniture placement this week. 

Many mistakes in furniture placement are made because it’s difficult for many people to visualize the three-dimensional effect of the furniture before purchasing it.  A floor plan is a necessary ingredient of furniture placement pre-planning; however you must also take into consideration the dimensional qualities of furniture as well. This is where a professional decorator’s expertise will save you time and money. 

DON’T block a view from a picture window – especially if it’s a good one!  Placing tall chairs or a lamp on a table placed smack in the center of a picture window (as seen in A Christmas Story) is a big no-no.  Choice and placement of furniture should complement, not conflict with architectural features. 

DO plan a furniture grouping that won’t clash with your window.  A sofa might fit below it, flanked by two end tables with lamps – creating symmetrical furniture grouping, and allowing your picture window to take center stage. 

DON’T place only wooden pieces of furniture along one wall or at one end of a room. Too many wooden pieces in one cluster tend to have a cold, inhospitable look. 

DO mix wooden pieces with upholstered furniture for texture contrast and interest.  Rich, polished wood tones look more so when contrasted by handsome fabric, and vice versa. 

DON’T use too many matched pairs of tables, lamps or chairs in one room.  Matching pieces help unify a room, but too many pairs will make your room resemble a furniture store.   

DO achieve variety by choosing some similar but not exactly matching pieces to balance each other…two non-matching lamps of similar size and shape, for instance, would be the perfect solution. 

DO create vignettes in larger rooms to break the room up and create more intimate seating areas.  Two chairs placed together with a small table allow people to sit on the side and have a conversation or provide a special place to sit, read or just enjoy the fabulous view outside!