Many modern houses today are using open-plan living as a selling point. We lead busy lives, so it makes sense that our living space doubles up and crosses over when it comes to purpose.
Open plan often means lots of light and a feeling of space – it could be the space that would have been your living room and dining room knocked into one, perhaps even with your kitchen thrown in, too – but it still suits some people to give their home some definition.
Floating furniture
With nothing to do with flood damage and everything to do with a style decision, ‘floating’ furniture simply means it is positioned away from the wall. It can be a great trick for open plan spaces to make the areas more usable.
Placing furniture cleverly can ‘force’ people to walk through a room in a certain way, which can make a room feel more defined and, strangely, spacious. The back of a sofa can create a ‘wall’ to create definition. This also allows you to think wisely about the type of flooring you will be choosing for each room and weather you will be sticking to one or multiple options. A popular choice recently is Wood Flooring which you can source from sites including https://irwintiles.ie/.
Depending on the dimensions of your room, you could try placing your sofas parallel or perpendicular to the wall. Beware making the room look too narrow and taking on the appearance of a bowling alley! You might need to adjust the positioning to make your space work for you.
Another important thing to consider when floating sofas is the view from behind – it can be a big expanse of ‘nothingness’ but a pretty, upholstered pattern can be a more attractive view to greet visitors.
Multiple seating areas
Conversation is important in most living spaces, so it makes sense to put sofas opposite each other, perhaps with a coffee table in the middle, to enable people to sit and chat. At the same time, however, someone else might want to be reading with specific task lighting, or watching the television, even gaming. If you have a beautiful view, you might prefer to arrange the furniture so people can fully appreciate it.
Be bold
If you have a bland room without any real focal point or architectural interest, try the bold move of positioning your sofa on a diagonal. Putting a pretty pot plant in the space behind it will create an interesting backdrop in what could be an otherwise awkward space.
Drawbacks
One of the biggest potential issues is accessibility of power sources without creating a trip hazard of cables trailing across the floor. Home Guides has some cunning ideas to overcome issues.
The best thing about trying your sofa in a different position is that if you don’t like it, you can simply move it back again! You might find that the room looks and feels completely different at different times of day or year, so don’t be afraid to try again.
