facebook_pixel

How To Arrange Furniture in a Living Room

How to Arrange Furniture in Large Living Room
How to Arrange Furniture in Large Living Room

How To Arrange Furniture In A  Living Room: Step 1 - Decide on a Focal Point

How To Arrange Furniture In A Living Room - Like most rooms, a living room can have several potential focal points. The most common is typically the television, followed by a fireplace, and a nice view.  There can be more than one focal point, although things get a bit more complex and I’ll save that article for another day. It’s important to decide because you’ll arrange your furniture to allow you to focus on that point. Simple enough. You’ll want to arrange your furniture to get the best view of the focal point. If you want great conversation space, place your seating facing each other. If the TV is what we’re zoning in on, make sure each seat has a comfortable view. So, pick a focal point, cross that bad boy off your furniture arranging to-do list.

How To Arrange Furniture In A Living Room Step 2 - Consider How Many Seats You Need

 
Weird step right? It’s actually important. If you’re a household of 1-2 you likely only need a sofa and maybe a cozy chair. But you might be the guy that hosts the Super Bowl party every year and need seating for 8-10. How you plan to use the space and who will be in it will help you determine what pieces of furniture you need.  If you’re the Super Bowl guy and you only have a couch & chair, your dining room will likely be empty come game day because all your chairs are in the living room.

Step 3 - Determine the Function of the Space

 
What’s with all the random questions?  I know, designers think about crazy stuff like function & form. And you thought we just made sh*t pretty. Tsk tsk. What are you going to use the space for? Watching TV? Coffee & conversation after a dinner party? Spare bedroom when the Super Bowl party gets wild? How you arrange furniture will dictate whether your guests feel comfortable chatting or whether you’re all stuck on the same couch trying not to touch the person next to you. Some typical functions are:
  • watching TV
  • entertaining
  • sleeping
  • reading
  • corralling small children
  • hosting book clubs/baby showers/playdates
 

How To Arrange Furniture In A  Living Room: Step 4 - Start Moving Furniture Around!

So you’ve decided what kind of furniture, how much, who and what you’ll be doing in your living room. Sweet. I’m going to assume at this point you’ve acquired said furniture and have it in your home. I highly recommend purchasing some furniture sliders to move things around. (You’ll feel like superman and furniture will glide across your floor. Win, win).

I’ve included 2 sets of illustrations to belabor my point. 2 rooms with 2 different layouts each based on the function & focal points in each space.

And, as always, if you’d rather just have someone else arrange your furniture, you can utilize our Ask A Designer service to get some customized ideas! Send us some photos of your living room and furniture and we’ll offer up some designer advice (for a small fee of course)!