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Simple Tips for Arranging Furniture in Your Living Room

Monday, March 8th, 2010

One common decorating difficulty that often occurs in the family room involves figuring out how to arrange the furniture to maximize the potential of the room. The goal is to have the furnishings highlight the room while at the same time seeming natural and comfortable. If you’re looking to make the most out of your room’s potential when arranging the furniture in your family room, here are 5 suggestions to point you in the right direction.

1. Consider the Location of the Doorways
There is only one doorway in some family rooms, while others may have two. Keep the locations of these doorways in mind when arranging your furniture, as this will ensure that the room has a good flow. You want people to be able to access both doors if you have a family room with two doorways, and you don’t want them to have to cross into the “conversational area” as they work their way across the room. If you only have one doorway, you want the furniture to be easily accessible so that people don’t have to walk all the way around the room to sit down.

2. Take into Consideration the Walls
Place your biggest piece of furniture, such as a big sofa or oak tv stand, against the longest wall in the family room. That wall can also be made into a focal point for the room by placing something like an entertainment center there. Then you can arrange your other furniture around this space.

3. Leave Plenty of Space between the Furniture Pieces
One important thing to consider when arranging your family room furniture is to be sure you’ve left plenty of walking space in between the furnishings. You need to keep a balance, so that people have a comfortable amount of space in which to walk but everything isn’t so far away that the space is no longer intimate. If you’re able to strike a balance, then people will have a comfortable amount of space to walk, but when seated, they won’t be so far away that the space isn’t intimate anymore. After all, you don’t want people bumping into the furniture, but at the same time you also don’t want to have to shout to have a conversation in the room.

4. Make Sure the Furniture Balances Properly
Don’t put all your large pieces of furniture on the same side of the room, as this will leave the space looking completely off balance. Don’t put your large sofa next to your large recliner, and then arrange a small chair and oak end table on the other side of the room. When you mix your larger and smaller pieces, you’ll achieve balance in the room both horizontally and vertically.

5. The Furniture Arrangement Should Be Functional
Keeping the family room functional is important to keep in mind when arranging the furniture. You want to make sure the family room serves its purpose as a more casual, sort of hangout room. So if your family likes to watch movies in there together, you need to be sure that at least some of the seating facing the television screen. It doesn’t matter if your family room is the most stylish room ever—if things aren’t functional, then for your family the space is completely wasted.

Arranging the family room furnishing should go much more smoothly when you follow these simple tips. What will result is a family room that’s stylish, yet also comfortable and functional.

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Easy Tips for Decorating Your Staircase

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

Another area of your home that can be easily decorated to make things appear stylish is the staircase. When it comes to decorating, the staircase is often overlooked. But depending on the layout of the home, especially if it’s the first thing people see when they walk in, the staircase may be more important than you think. Read on for some useful tips for decorating the staircase in your home.

Use Photographs to Decorate the Staircase
An easy décor option is to frame a few of your favorite photographs and hang them up along the staircase wall. You can choose to display photos of nature or other decorative objects, or photographs of your family. You want to hang them so they appear to be descending with the staircase. Choose frames that complement the color of the wall. Or try to match the color of the stairs (if they are wood) to the color of the wood in the frames.

Paint a Mural or Design on the Staircase Wall
A great way to create a staircase that really catches the eye is to paint a mural or design on the staircase wall. This could be a simple mural, such as a leaf or flower pattern that winds its way up the stairs, or you might choose a design that’s larger and more intricate. If you’re not confident in you drawing and painting skills, then there are stencils you can use for the design or you always have the option of hiring a professional painter.

Add a Decorative Banister to the Staircase
If you have a plain banister, then see if you can find a more decorative one that matches the style of your décor. Depending on the type of stairs you have, there are plenty of banisters to choose from. One of the latest trends for stairs is the mixture of wood with wrought-iron. This look goes great with a Spanish-style or even a modern-style home. You can research all the different options either in home décor magazines or online.

Lay Down a Decorative Runner on the Stairs
Lay down a decorative carpet runner on your wooden stairs to add more style to the area. Choose carpet that is solid colored, or if you’re looking for a real attention grabber, it can be patterned and multi-colored. If your staircase is already carpeted or tiled, a runner will still work. You want the edges of the stairs to show on the sides, so choose a carpet runner that’s slightly narrower than the width of the stairs. A wide selection of runners is available, so you should have no problem finding one to suit your staircase and fit the style of the rest of the area.

It’s important to put some attention toward decorating the staircase in your home, particularly if it’s right in the entryway. This way, you’ll be able to show off the staircase to its best advantage so it doesn’t look like an eyesore. By choosing more than one of these decorating ideas for your staircase, you can make the look even more appealing.

About the Author…
Leon Tuberman has been in the home furnishings and interior decorating industry for four decades. He is the owner and operator of popular furniture store in California. They carry a large selection of Amish made solid oak furniture for your living room, dining room and bedroom. Whether you’re looking for a oak dresser for your bedroom or a wood file cabinets for your home office then they carry everything you need.

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Tips for Staying on Budget When Decorating

Monday, February 8th, 2010

Homeowners sometimes have trouble working with a budget, especially a small one, when it comes to decorating their home. Although decorating budgets can be difficult to stick to, you need to realize that they’re necessary. A homeowner should never allow himself or herself to go into debt when decorating a home. By making sure to set a budget and by following these simple tips to stick with it, you can have a wonderfully decorated home that won’t end up costing you an arm and a leg.

Make the Decorating Budget Firm
You don’t want to set a decorating budget and then forget about it when you actually start shopping. You need to remember that you’ve set that budget for a reason. You don’t necessarily have to get all your decorating done at once. It might be better to do some of the decorating now, and then once you save some more money, revisit the room to add more items later. Be sure to firmly stick to your budget, no matter what.

You Will Have to Give a Little to Get a Little
If you are going to stick to a firm budget, you are going to have to be flexible and compromise in some areas. You’ll have to go the cheaper route for certain less crucial items, if you want any more expensive pieces that you just have to have. Thus, if you’ve found a coffee table or side table that takes up a third of your budget but you’ve fallen in love with it, then you might have to settle for spending much less on window treatments, picture frames, or other items.

Don’t Worry What Other People May Think
Getting caught up in what other people will think and say is such an easy thing to do. After all, if the figurine you find is perfect for your décor, does it really matter if you found it at the local discount store? It’s not likely anyone’s going to know what you paid for items in your home unless you tell them. It’s not necessary that everything in your room is of the highest quality. So if you find something you really like and it’s inexpensive and it fits in your budget, then go ahead. Buy it. Don’t worry about what others are going to say. It’s funny, but sometimes the least expensive item in the room will garner the most positive attention.

Invest in Quality for the Big Items in the Room
When you plan out your budget, it’s best to allocate the majority of your money toward the larger items like a wood bed in a master bedroom or a dining room table, thus making sure that you can afford quality that will last. You just don’t need to put as much money into window treatments or other décor items as much as things such as wood furniture, flooring, and artwork. You will ensure that those larger items will last longer and look better when you invest in quality products. Remember, it’s fine if you end up with a high end sofa with inexpensive decorative pillows on it, as long as you stick to your final budget amount.

It’s usually very tempting to want to go over your decorating budget, completely forgetting about what you can afford. The problem is, when you do that, then you’ll have negative thoughts about that debt every time you walk into your redecorated room or home. What’s the point of spending all that money if negative thoughts end up leading you to not being able to enjoy the space. Stick to the budget, not just for money, but for peace of mind.

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Finding an Interior Decorator 101

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

There are many different reasons why a homeowner might choose to hire an interior decorator for their home. Perhaps they don’t feel creative enough, or maybe they just don’t have the time to put forth the proper effort. No matter the reason, when you go to hire an interior decorator, you need to be sure that that person fits your style and the vision you have for your home. If you’re not sure where to begin, here are some tips to finding a qualified interior decorator for your home to get you started.

Ask Friends and Family for Referrals
One of the best ways to find a qualified interior decorator is to ask people you know and trust if they have someone they can recommend. Since the person has already worked with someone you know and trust, when you hire them you’ll know what type of work to expect. When asking your friends and family for a referral, just make sure you ask the right questions to help you determine if the person is right for you. Some questions you might want to ask include how long the project took, how many problems there were, and if your friend was ultimately happy with the result.

Look at Online Review Websites
Online review websites are a great starting point to finding a qualified decorator for your home, even though you probably don’t know the people who are posting the reviews. You can use the online reviews in putting together a preliminary list of decorators that you can then narrow down after making individual phone calls to the various businesses. You do need to remember that you can’t always trust what you read on these review websites. This is why it’s important to narrow down your list of possibilities by doing phone interviews with each decorator.

Utilize Referral Services
Several different referral services over the Internet will offer referrals of interior decorators. These services will have some way of matching you up with an interior decorator who’s compatible with your style. As with the review websites, this can be a great starting point for putting together a list of potential decorators.

Another place to check out is the American Society of Interior Decorators to find members who live in your area who can also be added to your list.

Seek Out Interior Decorators’ Work
You might be able to find an interior decorator whose style you like by viewing their work at model homes and decorating shows. Most building contractors, for example, will hire an interior decorator to come and stage a model home. By seeking things like this out, you can not only find decorators in your area but view their work at the same time. All you have to do is ask the contractor or sales agent who created the décor plan and then seek that person out. Another idea is to look at the expo centers in and around your city to see if there are any home expos coming up in the near future. These types of expos showcase decorators’ work and you are usually able to talk to them right there about specific projects.

It may not be as difficult as you think to hire an interior decorator. When you get good referrals from people you know, it makes the whole process of finding a qualified interior decorator much easier.

About the Writer…
Leon Tuberman has been part of the home furnishings and interior design  business for 40 years. He owns and manages a popular furniture store in Los Angeles. They offer a huge assortment of solid wood furniture for your living room, home office and dining room that’s built in the Heartland of America. Whether you’re looking for a wood coffee table for your living room or a wood dresser for your master bedroom then they have everything you need.

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Interior Design Resolutions – 10 Simple Redesign Ideas to Redecorate and Refine Your Home

Tuesday, December 29th, 2009

It’s that time of the year again, when we resolve to make changes that will improve
our lives. Your home is a big part of your life and a comfortable, inviting space can
really make a difference in how you feel every day. It seems only fitting that we
should add some design resolutions to our yearly ritual.

So here’s my top 10 take on the design resolutions that I believe can make a real
difference in your home.

1. Designate a space for clutter and resolve to keep it cluttered. Surprised? While
it’s true most people would put getting rid of clutter at the top of their lists, I’ve
been in enough homes to understand that if clutter is part of your lifestyle, it will
just keep coming back. I do, however, believe that it’s possible to control the
impact of clutter in your home – and it’s simple. Choose a spot that’s not visible
from the public areas of your home and designate a surface, chest or cabinet of
some sort for the paper and other things that usually end up in piles all over your
home. Give yourself permission to toss anything you don’t want to deal with
immediately into your clutter area without even thinking about organizing, filing or
putting it away later.

Trust me, if you have no area for clutter you will spontaneously make one, and
another, and another. If you have a designated area, it will contain the clutter and
keep you from feeling overwhelmed by it. You’ll have a much easier time with
everything in one spot when you do decide to sort it all out and, in the interim, at
least you will know where to find everything you can’t find.

2. Try at least one new color in your home to break your “color habits”. Be bold, do
something unexpected or something you’ve always wanted to try. If you are really
hesitant, put the color inside a closet door – somewhere where you can see and
react to it. The room which makes me smile in my home is one in which the painter
made a mistake and used a color that I never would have chosen for myself. As I
was awaiting his return visit for a repainting, I discovered that every time I walked
into the room it made me smile. The room has been repainted a few times over the
years, but always with what I call “my happy mistake.”

3. Pick the room or area in your home in which you find it hard to relax and do three
things to make the room quieter. For example, think about replacing high contrast
colors with a monochromatic scheme or toning down the color with a more muted
version. Try simplifying the lines in the room and paring down accessories. Get
those bookcases in shape, with all books flush to the front of the shelves in size
order, and create some empty wall and tabletop space where the eye can rest.

4. Conversely, pick one room or area in your home that feels bland and the most
uninteresting and do three things to elevate the tempo and energize the room. Try
introducing higher contrast or bolder colors. Layer in accessories, some interesting
coordinated fabrics in the form of throws and pillows, and some new textures.
Replace large artwork with a grouping that will add motion to the room.

5. Make at least four changes in your home to freshen it up for the spring and
summer. Change or reduce the number of layers in your window treatment to let
more of the outside in. Do what your grandmother did – use lighter slipcovers on
upholstery and seasonal accessories such as bowls of fresh summer fruit and vases
of fresh flowers. Pick up those heavy rugs. Now is the time to send them out for
cleaning. Replace them with light floor cloths or leave the floors bare for a cooling
sensation underfoot.

6. Rethink the least used room or area in your home. It may be great to look at, but
if it isn’t serving any function, you can do better. s its formality no longer
appropriate for your lifestyle? Are your college-aged kids really going to miss the
playroom? Should you have retired that home office when you retired?

7. Walk through your home room by room and consciously gauge its impact on
your senses by isolating various aspects of the experience. What do you see, hear,
smell? What can you touch? How does it make you feel? Make adjustments in each
room as needed so that the experience is always pleasant and inviting, and
appropriate for the room and its function.

8. Create a space just for you. It can be as simple as a chair in which you can
escape with a good book or an entire room. Surround your space in your favorite
colors and textures. Make it a place you can use for your most relaxing activities
and the best spot you can imagine for just sitting and doing nothing at all. Sit in you
personal space at least 10 minutes every day.

9. Approach the design and decoration of your home with joy. Whether it’s a little
change or a major renovation, try to focus, not on the chores involved, but on the
vision you have and the progress you are making toward it. Appreciate the changes,
and appreciate yourself for making them.

10. Invite guests a least once a month. When we tidy up for guests, we reawaken
our consciousness of all the little things that we can do to make our home inviting
and comfortable, details that often get lost in the chaos of our daily lives. Your
guests will feel it, but more importantly, so will you.

Peggy Berk is an award-winning interior decorator and certified interior refiner who has worked with a wide variety of residential and commercial clients throughout the New York Metropolitan Tri-State Area and Florida. Her design firm, Area Aesthetics ( http://www.areaaesthetics.com), specializes in interior redesign, home staging and full service interior decorating. Peggy is the featured designer on the Home Decor Exchange where she answers readers’ decorating questions and writes a column for “HDE Monthly.” Author of many articles in her area of expertise, she also writes the monthly “Rental Redesign” column for Rental Decorating Digest.

To see before and after photos of her one-day room redesigns, read what New York’s top real estate brokers have to say about her home staging services, or submit your decorating questions, visit her Web site at: http://www.AreaAesthetics.com

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Decorate with Style by Choosing Appropriate Art for Your Room

Monday, December 28th, 2009

Like other accessories, artwork can either be disruptive and jarring to the eye or put
the perfect finishing touch on any room. You can find many books in your local
library or home decor store loaded with the “do’s and don’ts” of artwork. However,
one author’s do is often another’s don’t, so it’s not surprising that artwork can be a
source of confusion.

There are many aspects to choosing artwork to complement your room, but if you
get the two basic considerations right, you should be onl your way to a harmonious
display.

A formal portrait in oil can look very out of place in a casual family room. Likewise,
those posters that graced the walls of your college dorm probably aren’t right for
the living rooms of your post-student years. So the first step in choosing artwork
for any room is to make sure that the piece is in harmony with the mood and style
of the room. Evaluate the artwork by asking the following questions:

Is the piece suitable for formal or casual rooms?

While the formality of a piece can be modified to some extent with the type of
frame and mat used, there are pieces which just don’t make the transition well. On
the other hand, there are many types of artwork which work equally well in formal
or casual rooms. Artwork should always enhance the mood of the room and, in fact,
can play a major role in establishing the appropriate mood.

Is the subject matter of the artwork appropriate for the room?

While many advise restricting depictions of food or dining scenes to the dining
room or kitchen, I think it is more a question of the piece’s style and that each piece
should be evaluated based on its own character. It is, however, advisable to keep
erotic art in private areas of the home, usually a bedroom. Very personal photos
should also be confined to non-public areas of the home. If the subject matter is
disturbing in any way, try to place the piece a room where the viewer has physical
and emotional distance from it, such as a hallway. Never use pieces of this nature
in dining rooms or bedrooms.

Is the quality of the piece suitable for the room?

An aspect of harmony often overlooked is the issue of quality. A room will look
much more cohesive if everything in the room is of a similar quality. It holds true
for artwork, as well. Bear in mind that the style and materials used in matting and
framing can have a major impact on the overall quality of a piece.

The second basic consideration in choosing artwork for you room is the shape and
size of the area in which the artwork will hang. If you draw a mental box around the wall space available for the piece, its shape will become immediately apparent to you. Vertical spaces should be filled with vertical artwork whose relative
proportions approximate the shape of the wall area. Horizontal wall spaces take
horizontal pieces. Square spaces can be used for square or round frames. As to
size, be guided by the size of the wall space as well as the scale of the furnishings
immediately surrounding it.

Peggy Berk is an award-winning interior decorator and certified interior refiner who has worked with a wide variety of residential and commercial clients throughout the New York Metropolitan Tri-State Area and Florida. Her design firm, Area Aesthetics (http://www.areaaesthetics.com), specializes in interior redesign, home staging and full service interior decorating. Peggy is the featured designer on the Home Decor Exchange where she answers readers’ decorating questions and writes a column for “HDE Monthly.” Author of many articles in her area of expertise, she also writes the monthly “Rental Redesign” column for Rental Decorating Digest.

To see before and after photos of her one-day room redesigns, read what New York’s top real estate brokers have to say about her home staging services, or submit your decorating questions, visit her Web site at: http://www.AreaAesthetics.com

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Six Steps to Choosing the Perfect Paint

Sunday, December 27th, 2009

Have you ever wanted help choosing a perfect paint color but didn’t need a full
service designer? Consider calling an interior redesigner. Interior redesigners offer a
new type of design service that specializes in adding those finishing touches that
make all the difference!

To give you an example of how a redesigner might work with you on your color
consultation, here are several techniques I use to help my clients:

1. We choose one or two of your favorite colors already present in the fabrics in your
room. If you are starting with an empty room, we establish your new color scheme
by looking at completed rooms you love in decorating magazines. You can also take
pictures of model home rooms you like or even go online and search websites that
show thousands of photos of professionally decorated rooms. The are there for the
purpose of giving you ideas for your home.

2. Then we look for paint in matching, paler, deeper or muted versions of those
colors. If you choose neutral colors (i.e., wheat, stone, white, etc.), they can flow
into adjoining rooms as well.

3. Next we use the paint to create a large, portable “paint chip” by painting a 3’x4’
piece of “Foamcore” board (available in art & craft stores). The reason we do that
instead of painting lots of patches of colors on the wall is you need to see the color
next to anything major that is staying in the room(s) like the flooring, furniture and
artwork. You also need to check the color in low-light and high-light areas of your
rooms both at night and during the day.

4. We then simulate that color in your room by using your paint chip as a backdrop
for a vignette: I’d arrange an upholstered chair, a side table and a lamp, a plant and
a few accessories. I would even hang a small picture on the “wall” to complete the
illusion. Live with it for a few days if you are not sure…I recommend living with it
even if you are sure!

5. Then, we step back and see what the effect is. It’s a very realistic way for you to
see the color. Avoid just using the small color patches on the wall to test as all you
can determine is how the color looks next to the others and the original color on the
wall, and nothing else. Plus, surrounding colors will throw off your perception of
each test color. Use the vignette instead, and if you love how that looks, you’re just
about assured of loving the entire room feeling that way!

6. If the color isn’t quite what you want, we can still use that information to make
further decisions. You will always know why you don’t like it. For instance, the
yellow may have too much olive in it to your eye, so we go back to the paint chips
and pick one that moves more towards a true yellow.

Don’t get discouraged if you need to test a few times to get the right color. It
doesn’t mean you (or your decorator) have not made good choices to begin with. It
may simply mean that the paint chips are not created with real paint but are made
with printer ink and so are just a facsimile. In the end, it is worth it to go through
the testing process to find the paint color you will love living with.

The best part? Find the perfect wall color for your rooms and your furnishings will
feel right at home…and so will you!

Mary L. Brown of One Day Design is an interior re-designer who specializes in quickly transforming rooms using the furniture, accessories, and artwork people already have to give them a professionally decorated look! She’s been featured on FOXTV, NBC and HGTV. Download Mary’s FREE “Top 10 Decorating Mistakes (and How to Avoid or Fix Them!)” and sign up for her FREE decorating eNewsletter at http://www.OneDayDesign.com.

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Easy Tips for Choosing Slipcovers for Your Family Room

Thursday, December 24th, 2009

If you’re looking to change up the theme or style of your living room, you don’t necessarily have to buy all new couches and chairs. Slipcovers are a great way to quickly change the style and color of a piece of furniture. Here are some helpful hints to help you get started in looking for new slipcovers for your family room furnishings.

Choose Cotton or Polyester-Blend Slipcovers for High-Traffic Areas
For high-traffic family rooms, your best bet will always be a slipcover that’s a cotton or polyester blend. This type of material will hold up the best when it comes to wear and tear. It does tend to wrinkle, but you can run an iron over the slipcovers and the wrinkles come right out. You should be able to find cotton and polyester slipcovers that are relatively inexpensive, although there are higher-end cotton slipcovers available as well.

Buy the Appropriate Size Slipcover
If you find the perfect slipcover for your couch but it’s not quite big enough, do not try to use it. Slipcovers that are too small for a couch or chair just end up looking too tight. You also will most likely be able to see parts of the couch peeking out from under it. It’s not any better to use a slipcover that’s too large for a furniture piece. The furniture will only end up looking very sloppy and unpolished. In order to make sure that you get the perfect fit, be sure to measure your furniture before you look for a slipcover.

Decide What Type of Slipcover You Prefer
Some like the look of slipcovers that form fit against the couch so that you can see every line in the couch. Others prefer a looser-fitting slipcover that will simply drape over the furniture and hang loosely off the couch. One thing to remember is that with tight-fitting slipcovers, you may find that you’re constantly rearranging it whenever people sit on it and move about. You may also find that this type of slipcover has a tendency to rip more easily from being pulled too tight or in a wrong direction. Decide what type of slipcover you want based on your preferences and the style of the room before you go out and buy one.

Slipcovers can be used in a room’s design for a variety of different reasons. They are a great way to hide those stained or ripped cushions that are otherwise in great condition. When redecorating, they can be used to inexpensively change the look of the room. Or they can be changed with the calendar in order to give the room a more seasonal look. Do be sure, however, to choose your slipcovers carefully, as once you slip them over the furniture, they will become one of the main focuses of the room.

About the Writer…
Leon Tuberman has been in the home furnishings and interior decorating industry for four decades. He owns and operates his family owned furniture store. They have a large inventory of handcrafted American built solid wood furniture for your bedroom, home office and living room. It doesn’t matter whether you’re shopping for a oak coffee table for your family room or a wood nightstand for your master bedroom then they carry everything you need.

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Painting Your Walls with Whiteboard Paint

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

Whiteboard paint is a great way to accessorize and add some personality to several different rooms in your home. Although people typically think of whiteboard paint for a child’s room, it actually can be utilized in other rooms of your home as well. Following are some unique ideas as to how to use chalkboard paint in the different rooms of your home.

Chalkboard Paint in a Child’s Bedroom
The most popular place to use Chalkboard paint is in a child’s bedroom. By painting one area of the wall, you can create for your children their very own Chalkboard to draw on and play with.

You might also use the paint on things like tables and closet doors in the room. In fact, with a little Whiteboard paint you can create personalized closet doors for your children, where they can design and draw any type of scene they wish. This can then be changed as often as they like, perhaps even with the seasons or holidays throughout the year.

Whiteboard Paint in the Kitchen
Another great way to use Whiteboard paint is to section off a wall in the kitchen to paint so that you can write down menus or grocery lists. If you don’t want to use the wall, you might take a piece of wood and paint it with Whiteboard paint. Then you can hang it up and write your weekly menus on the board for all to see.

As long as you don’t mind your kids drawing on the refrigerator, you can use Chalkboard paint there as well. What will result is your very own personalized fridge, freshened each day with new drawings from your kids. Chalkboard paint also works great on your backsplash. This gives you a great place where you can write down messages and recipes, or just doodle while you’re cooking dinner.

Chalkboard Paint in the Home Office
Chalkboard paint can really be used to your advantage in a home office. Paint a section of the wall, creating your very own message board or monthly/weekly calendar. Having a large board on the wall for your important tasks and items is much easier than trying to use a small desk calendar that you might not even notice every day. Now you’ve also given your family members a convenient place to leave messages for you, preventing them from bothering you when you are working.

Whiteboard Paint in a Game Room
If you have a game room, perhaps with a pool table, then Chalkboard paint makes the perfect place to create your own scoreboard. Remember, games such as darts and some card games often need a scoreboard as well. You might also play up this area with a nice wooden frame, or when not in use, it makes a perfect space to add a quote or inspirational message.

What better way to add a touch of personality to your walls in your home than with some Whiteboard paint? Beyond the child’s bedroom, Chalkboard paint can be used in so many different ways in any home.

About the Writer
Leon Tuberman has been in the home furnishings and interior design industry for four decades. He owns and manages a popular furniture store in California. They have a large inventory of handcrafted Amish built solid oak furniture for your bedroom, dining room and living room. It doesn’t matter whether you’re shopping for a oak bed for your bedroom or a wood dining table for your dining room then they carry everything you need.

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3 Ways for Arranging Furniture In Your Home

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

When you go to decorate any room in your home, of course you want it to be stylish and have character, but you also need it to be functional. In all the different rooms in your home, whether it’s oak bedroom furniture or the living room furniture, your furniture takes up the bulk of the space. This is why it’s important that you plan accordingly when you are arranging the furnishings in your home.

The way you arrange your furniture in your home will depend on several different things. The type of room you are decorating will be a factor, as well as what furniture you have and the style you’ve decided upon. How you arrange your furniture will be different for every room; however, there are some basic guidelines you can follow.

Choose the Focal Point of the Room
It’s best to figure how what the focal point of the room is going to be before you actually arrange your furniture. This might be a natural focal point, such as a fireplace or a bay window, or it might be one of your pieces of furniture.

Pay attention to where your eyes are drawn when you first walk into the room. This is the part of the room you want to focus on. Once the focal point is decided upon, you can now plan accordingly where you want the furniture to go in order to emphasize that place in the room.

Plan Your Design
Often homeowners like to play around with the design of a room before they get it the way they want it. It’s best to start by arranging the largest pieces of furniture first.

If your largest piece of furniture is your focal point, then that will be easy to place. You always want to arrange the largest pieces first in a room, as they’re going to take up the most space and be more dominant than the smaller pieces. This means first planning where your bed goes in the bedroom or where your sofa goes in the family room.

Design the placement of your furniture in relation to your focal point. When arranging the furnishings, not everything needs to be facing the focal point. However, you do need to arrange it so that it shows off the importance of that place in the room. It’s also important for you to not put all the larger pieces together in one place, as this will throw the balance of the room off. Once the larger pieces have been placed, then you can move on to the smaller pieces like side tables and chairs.

Consider the Purpose of the Room
An important factor to keep in mind when arranging the furniture is that you are constantly considering what you want the purpose of the room to be. In your dining room, for example, you need to pay attention as to whether there’s enough space for people to comfortably pass by the oak dining table when others are seated there. The seating in the living room, on the other hand, needs to be close enough together so that people don’t have to shout to be heard and can carry on comfortable conversations with each other. Functionality and purpose are key things to keep in mind when arranging the furniture in any room.

Arranging the furniture in your home doesn’t necessarily mean it is set in stone. Once you’ve designed the room, you can leave it for a few weeks to see how it works out. If it doesn’t seem to be working, you can always start over and design a different layout for the room.

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