THE RIGHT FURNITURE CHOICE FOR EVERY ROOM
Time flows on, bringing new decisions and changes for all of us. Situations such as a move — whether by necessity or by choice — wedding preparations, or the need for a refresh all come down to planning the homes where we spend most of our time, and which we want to reflect who we are, so that we feel happy inside them. Much as we want to create the very best for ourselves within our means, this is a subject with more than one parameter, and from time to time we can find ourselves undecided about making the right choice.
In this article series, which we will publish in three parts, we set out to cover every room in different types of homes through their essential furniture choices, highlighting the points you may want to keep in mind. We will begin with the main living-area pieces — the sofa and the table and chairs — and then continue with the remaining furniture and the other parts of the home.
We know that everyone’s taste and the decorating style they want to create can differ. Within a framework of certain dos and don’ts, however, it is possible to make sound choices in any style. Today’s world offers dozens of options in every category, and with a little research it is very easy to find almost anything you want. We are confident this article will help you too!
LIVING AREA
You’re Right, It’s a Tough Call: The Sofa!
When it comes to the main living area, the first furniture choice usually starts with the sofa. Sofas — arguably the most important furniture in the home — set the tone for the home’s decorating style while also needing to deliver the comfort we are looking for, so they thoroughly deserve the label of “the piece that demands the most attention” when choosing. At this stage, the most important part is to work from the type of your living room and anticipate the right layout.
In a seating layout oriented toward the television, the position of the TV unit also determines the placement of the sofas. Once you have found the optimal layout, your alternatives will include a three-seater and a two-seater, or an L-shaped sofa. Here again, you need to decide according to your living-room type. If you have a suitable corner for an L-shaped sofa and it does not obstruct circulation within the room, the L-shaped sofa is very often the preferred model. Sometimes — when a passageway is needed, or when it would block the circulation area — arranging the room with just a three-seater and an armchair, or with a three-seater and a two-seater, can be the wiser combination.
The other key point is sofa dimensions. Choosing a large sofa for a small living room makes the room’s volume look even smaller than it is. In a large living room, on the other hand, when the furniture is small in proportion to the room, the improperly filled volume keeps you from achieving the effect you want in terms of design unity. Along with sofa lengths, depths matter just as much. Deep sofas offer better comfort, but in small living rooms they take up more space, reducing the circulation area and making your living room look smaller than it is. For this reason, do not neglect to consider depths alongside widths. Average sofa depths range between 90 and 100 cm, though it is also possible to find — or have made — sofas in different sizes. In the living room of the home you are moving into, you can mark out the dimensions of the sofa you plan to buy on the floor using tape or newspaper. It will help you better visualize how the sofas will sit in terms of size.
Now for the sofa’s type and features. Its color and style are, of course, a matter of what you love. Still, staying within your style while minding certain criteria will lead you to a more comfortable and practical choice. If you have a small living room, for example, it is worth leaning toward sofas whose armrests are not too wide. Wide armrests shrink the seating area and can also give your living room a bulky look. Sofas with slim, low armrests are the better choice in that case. In large living rooms, the opposite holds true.
Another consideration is the sofa’s leg type. It may seem like a small detail, but it is actually one of the key elements defining a sofa’s style. Legless sofas that sit flush on the floor will, as we noted with the armrests, occupy more volume. Again, it is worth weighing this against the size of the room. For raised sofas, you can opt for wooden or metal legs. Watching for material harmony with the other furniture you choose will help you achieve a unified look. Remember, the devil is in the details!
On another note, if you use — or plan to buy — one of the robot vacuums that have quickly made their way into most homes and made life easier, you might factor that in when choosing the height of your sofa’s legs. Not a crucial matter, admittedly, but we did not want to pass by without mentioning it as a small tip :)
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A Choice Done Just Right: Dining Table / Chairs
The second most important element defining a living room’s style is undoubtedly the dining set. In determining the right size and shape, we again need to start from the living room’s dimensions and form. You can work out the size based on the space the chair (roughly 40-50 cm) and the passage area behind the chair (roughly 50-60 cm) will occupy. Next, we need to assess how we use the table and what we need. Once you have decided how many people your dining table must seat, you need to pick the most suitable model for the shape of your living room from many alternatives — round, square, rectangular, or oval. In a long rectangular living room with enough space, an elegant round table both lets everyone see each other comfortably during long dinner conversations and can lend your living room a more sophisticated air. In a nearly square living room, a round table will take up more space than it should. Also, if your living room is small, tables with oval lines avoid sharp corners, giving you a softer look and easing the passage areas at least a little. Demontha’s Reva solid-wood tables with rounded corners can be an excellent choice for the comfort and minimal atmosphere you want to achieve in small living rooms!
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Our second key selection criterion is, of course, the material. Marble, lacquer, wood, glass, and their combinations… Here too we face plenty of options, but what matters is how we use the table and its harmony with the other furniture in the living area. For example, if your living room features heavy use of wood and you want to strike a balance in materials, a marble table will be highly complementary. At the same time, marble tables are like pieces of art taken straight from nature — we know you agree :) Of course, they have their downsides too. Because of their weight and fragility, they are not well suited to being pushed and pulled around, and they can be a challenge when moving house. If you spend a lot of time at the table, the cold feel of marble to the touch may not be practical, and the surface is prone to damage. Although certain surface treatments can mitigate this, marble tables do stain and scratch. If you are planning to buy a marble table, these points are worth taking into account.
Glass tables share certain characteristics with marble, but they are lighter and have different visual qualities. A glass top can show off an elegant table base — or, if your rooms are small, add transparency to make the space feel larger than it is.
Among the options, the most frequently preferred are natural-wood or wood-look dining tables. Durability, relative lightness, a warm feel in use, and of course timelessness — for reasons like these, we see wooden dining tables in most homes. One factor to watch here is choosing a wood tone that harmonizes with the color of the flooring in the space where you will use it.
The other complement to the dining area is, of course, the chair. With their many alternatives in material and style, and because they are bought in numbers, chairs are among the pieces that play the biggest role in design unity. When choosing chairs, first determine how many you need and the dimensions of the space you have set aside for the dining area. Standard chair depths average between 40 and 50 cm. If you are short on space, opting for a shallower chair will make your area feel more open and prevent a cramped look. Likewise, in small spaces, choosing armless chairs is a smart move, since it eliminates the pull-out clearance needed to sit down. If you do have enough space, of course, you may well choose chairs with armrests for their greater comfort.
Beyond dimensions, minding how the chair style harmonizes with the table is another important point. Especially when you are not buying the dining set as a matched suite, keeping the leg type of your chosen table in mind is a reminder worth heeding. The chairs should slide comfortably under the table, and when the chairs are placed side by side, enough usable space should remain for each person at the table.
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Alongside all these ergonomic factors, since chairs are actively used and constantly moved, it is important to be sure of the sturdiness of the chairs you buy. Otherwise, they may soon turn into wobbly chairs with parts coming loose.
As for material, the key is — as we mentioned above — to watch the overall harmony and aim for a balanced use of materials in relation to the other furniture.
We hope this article helps you with your choices!
Canan Pervis
