The following article was published in the
Vermont Home Style Magazine in January 2005
and written by Annette Besaw
A COMFORTABLE LIVING ROOM
When deciding to decorate any room you first need to ask yourself what activities you plan on doing in the room? Function rules before anything else. If the room doesn’t function well then no matter how well it is decorated it won’t be pleasing. The basic function of a living room is a place to have conversation. So the furniture layout should be conducive to conversations. Set your furniture close enough together to be in a conversational cluster. This does not always mean against the wall. Try setting your cluster in the middle of the room. Other activities include reading, TV watching, and entertaining, so appropriate lighting as well as convenient table surfaces for hors d’oeuvres and beverages are needed. The general rule is every chair in the room should have a table to set a drink on within arms length.
Decide on the mood you want to express. Examples could be country, rustic, modern, traditional, contemporary, sophisticated, etc. Your choice will help you chose furniture, furnishings and accessories for your room. All furnishings are not created equal. An oil lantern fits well in a rustic setting but not in a modern high rise.
Another question to ask yourself; are the items you’ve chosen in harmony with each other and with the mood of the room? What this means is everything should feel appropriate and no items should feel out of place. Another element of harmony is scale. Are all the pieces in scale to the size of the room and in scale with each other? A large sectional may not be in scale in a small 12x12 room but would feel right in a 20x24 room.
Quality is another element that you should consider. All the furnishings should be suitable to one another in quality. A $2,000 authentic Louis XV chair would not sit well next to a $29 lamp. It would not be in harmony in quality.
Color should also be in harmony. Silver may sit well in a modern room but not in a country setting. Also vibrant colors will over power a relaxed scheme. While calming colors would get lost in a vibrant one.
Every room should have a focal point to create drama. Some natural ones would be a picture window, a fireplace, or even an entertainment center. Take the eye up toward the ceiling by extending the focal point. All windows, bookcases, artwork, etc. all work to pull the eye up.
Here are some approximate sizes of good proportions to keep in mind:
Balance the size of your tables with the size of your sofa and chairs.
An ideal coffee table is 1/2 to 2/3 the sofa’s length and about 16” – 17” high.
An end table should be approx. 1/4 - 1/3 the size of your sofa but no higher then 4” above the sofa’s arm.
A painting above your sofa should be approx the same size as your coffee table.
A group of pictures should be ½ - ¾ the length of your sofa.
Lamps should be 28” – 32” higher then the arms of your sofa.
Throw pillows should be around 18” – 24” in size.
Use a sense of scale when choosing decorative elements. Match the accessories and furniture to the rest of the rooms for a perfect fit. For example: Large walls can handle a large print, but a small wall can be dwarfed by them. Large motifs and strong colors can over power a small room. So maybe choose softer and smaller prints.
Flooring can help create a mood, bring together all the elements, and add color and pattern to any room. If your space is small unify the room by using wall to wall carpeting. In a larger space an area rug on a hard wood or tile floor can break up the floor for a cozier feel.
Weave an accent color using accessories through out your room. Mix up textures, use rough with smooth, shiny with mat, etc to help give your room more interest.
It takes time and effort to develop a scheme for a comfortable living room. No matter what your design scheme may be, if successfully done it can say “welcome home” to you at the end of a long day.
A. B. Transformations – Annette Besaw
Interior Design - Professional Organizer
802-879-8353
