DESIGN RULES FOR THE LIVING ROOM

I'm not going to reinvent the wheel here as Emily Henderson pretty well nailed it in her article 'How To Design A Living Room - Our Go-To Rules (And When It's Ok To Break Them).

I have heard these questions asked many times, so here you go.

Rule #1: To avoid overcrowding, there should be at least 18"-24" and preferably 30"- 36" of walkway around your large pieces. As I have advised our clients, there should be ample room for walkers when your senior friends visit and need the space.

Rule #2: Make sure there is between 3.5" and 10” of space between seating: no more and no less. Any closer and someone is in your personal space. Any further, and you will need to turn up your hearing aids to hear your guests.

Rule #3: Give your sofa breathing room away from the wall. Having said that, there are times when your room is just too small to accommodate that rule. Guilty as charged, if you saw my living room, and for most senior residences, also not an option.

Rule #4: Your coffee table should be at least half the length of your sofa. This will help you to maintain visual balance in your room.

Rule #5. Your coffee table should be no more than 4" higher or shorter than the top of your seat cushions. This just happens to be the best height to place your cup of tea on or to rest your tired feet at the end of the day.

Rule #6: The distance between the sofa and table should be 16"-18". This will give you knee space and walking space.

Rule #7: Your area rug should be large enough for at least the front legs of your sofa and chairs to rest on. I’ll post more on area rugs at a later date.

Rule #8: Make sure your lamp shade is covering the bulb when you are sitting down. Nobody wants to be blinded while trying to have a conversation with you. Oh, and if it's a table lamp, the bottom of the shade should sit at your eye level.

Rule #9: Love your new wall sconces? Place them 5'- 6' from the floor and 3"- 6" away from a wall mirror or your art piece.

Rule #10: Your side table shouldn't be deeper than your sofa. Also, keep it about 2"- 3" from the chair or sofa you have placed it beside.

Rule #11: Try to place your accent chairs about 42" apart where possible.

Rule #12: Here's one that has caused grief for some of you. The TV should be about 30" above the lowest seat height in the room. Please, not on top of the fireplace! Your neck will love you. Oh, and about 7' away from your couch. Your eyes will love you. Remember your Momma telling you would hurt your eyes if you were too close?

Rule #13: These are suggestions. YOU DO YOU in the space you have. But maybe try a few of these rules! Hey, I'm not perfect. I have a big xxx TV in my bedroom that you can see from space.