Focus on Your Furniture Layout — The Style Cure: Assignment #18

Consider symmetry. Either way, everyone should take some time and work on exact furniture placement ONLY today. Sofas and beds often work best with things of a similar scale (side tables, lighting) on both sides. Aim for a minimum of three separate seating options in the living room sitting area. Now, of course, these are just guidelines and may not apply to your own particular room or needs, but by running through the list, you may come up with some new things to try. Adjust as much as possible to make cleaning (and flow) easier and better. Even small shifts can make a big difference in how the room «feels» and what it is like to spend time in for you and your guests. Changes of all sizes take getting used to, so no need to rush here. Also, letting your eyes get used to the space with less «detail» will help with the next few assignments. If you cleared your room out for painting over the weekend, today’s assignment is a bit easier, since you are moving things back into place anyway and have removed all the accessories and artwork, which gives you a blank(er) slate. Don’t block windows. Leaving (or making) things a bit spare will help you think more about the actual space and how you are making the most of it, without the distractions of the «pretty» stuff that you’ll layer (back) in soon. Are there any parts of the room that will be difficult to reach with a vacuum cleaner? If you didn’t paint, it would be helpful to strip out some of your current accessories, artwork and decor items at this point to be able to focus on just the big pieces, and then add in the rest again with us over the course of the week. Some layouts will require big pieces (bookshelves, dressers, certain sofas) to be placed against walls, but for other items (end tables, chairs, floor lamps, etc) make it a goal to have them at least 6 to 12 inches from a wall to give some breathing room to everything — a «cushion of air so that good energy flow can continue» is how Maxwell puts it. Thinking back over the plans you made regarding the optimum layout for good flow, place the furniture. Keeping access around pieces open from as many sides as possible is a good goal. Whenever possible, move sofas off of the wall.