Photo credit: MandCo, FlickrCreativeCommons
http://www.flickr.com/photos/my_minime/
It is always helpful to have some guidelines when you are decorating a room. What size? What height? How much? What proportion? These are common questions that decorators are asked. The answers to these questions can make all the difference in the success of your decorating project.
Proportion of furniture:
It seems rather obvious, but this is one that people so often get wrong. The scale of the furniture has to be in keeping with the size of the room. All the pieces of furniture need to be in proportion with each other as well.
A 10′ x 11′ living room looks completely wrong when filled with furniture that is more suitable for a 20′ x 14′ family room. That massive leather sofa or those oversize recliners just overwhelm a small intimate room. If you are dealing with a smaller space, buy furniture that is relatively compact and very simple and clean or open and delicate in its design. A large space requires larger scale pieces of furniture so that the furniture is not ‘lost’ in the room. Oversize pieces with wide arms and deep seats, big accent tables and large ottomans in front of the chairs will be appropriate here.
Accessories such as end table and lamps must be in the same proportion as the main pieces of furniture too.
If, due to a move, you are stuck with too big furniture for a too small room, do not try to squeeze it all into the new room. Edit it carefully and make sure the pieces you use are proportionate to each other. An example of this would be to leave out the matching loveseat to your sofa or removing the ottoman from in front of a chair, or only using the loveseat instead of the sofa and reducing the number of side tables to a bare minimum.
Tables:
Side tables for a sofa should approximately match the height and depth of the arms of the sofa or chair they accompany. Coffee tables should be slightly lower than the seat height, 17″ – 18″ (45 cm). Any lower is really awkward to use and looks out of proportion. Coffee tables can be higher than the seat in some cases, though. An example would be using a large steamer trunk for a coffee table. It may be higher than the seat but does not look out of place due to its overall proportions and original intended use.
Lighting:
Your lamps must be in proportion to the scale of the furniture too. A short, thin lamp looks odd when placed on a solidly built, large end table or visa-versa. Lamps need to be tall enough to read by too. The shade of the lamp also needs to complement the style of the room and what is in fashion right now. And your shades should be similar in style and/or colour. Balance and harmony is very important when choosing and placing lamps.
A variety of lighting improves the mood of the room. Add an uplight on a pole in a dark corner. Down lights such as pot lights or mini spotlights on a track give a modern and stylish feel to a room or hallway. You do not have to have pot lights all over the ceiling either. Two that highlight your fireplace, or strategically placed over work areas, island or counter top eating area in your kitchen will add a nice ambiance to a room.
I firmly believe that you should not rely on pot lights as your major source of lighting in the kitchen though. The light is uneven and, to my mind, should be used as additional, focused lighting or mood lighting rather than the main source of lighting. They are hard on your electricity bill too if so many lights are turned on all the time. I still like a main, bright, central source of lighting for everyday use, and pot lights and under mount lighting to augment it.
Area Rug:
An area rug has to be big enough to tuck under the front legs of the major pieces of furniture in the room. For instance, the rug should start under the front legs of the sofa and carry across the centre of the room and tuck part way under the chairs that face the sofa. See “Decor Tips – Ground the Room“ for a more detailed description and diagram. No area rug is better than one that is too small for the space.
Drapery Rod:
The style for placement of the drapery rod changes over the years. Now it is not fashionable to place it right at the ceiling line (as in the 60s) or on the window frame, as in the distant past. Today’s rods are usually placed about 2″ (5 cm) above the window frame or just below half way between the top of the window frame and the ceiling line. The rod should extend at least 6″ to 12″ beyond each side of the window frame. There are exceptions to this, but this is the general rule for regular decorator rods.
Another problem often arises with the placement of your drapery rod. Your standard 84″ long curtains will often be too short and you will have ‘flood’ curtains (like ‘flood pants’!). You will have to let them down or add a decorative border to them. If you buy the 95″ length you can either shorten them or puddle them artistically. Puddled drapes are still somewhat fashionable in formal or ‘romantic’ settings but my preference is for draperies to hang neatly, just barely above the flooring.
Drapery Fullness:
Sheer, semi-sheer and very lightweight, unlined draperies should be 3:1 fullness. Heavy fabrics, crisp fabrics or lined draperies should be a mimimum of 2:1 fullness. Anything less tends to look skimpy and unprofessional.
Ready made pinch pleats are usually less than the minimum fullness and you should purchase a pair that are wider than your measurements to make up for the less than 2:1 fullness that is common in these types of draperies.
- Note: 2:1 fullness means that the whole curtain – both sides – laid flat, before they are pleated or gathered – are twice to three times as wide as the window +frame+ 6″ of rod at either end. A 48″wide window would then require a minimum of 112″ of fabric or flat panel width for double fullness and 168″ wide of fabric for triple fullness. A 48″wide window therefore would require 2 to 4 single, ready made flat panels that are 48″ wide each, to cover the window nicely. A very fine, sheer fabric that is less than 48″wide would require 6 panels to look nice and full on a 48″w window.
- Also Note: Curtains should be full length in most cases except over the counter in the kitchen or bathroom.
Pictures:
The picture or art above the sofa should be two-thirds of the width the sofa and the bottom edge should be around 10″ – 12″ (25 – 30 cm) above it – no more than that. This goes for over any piece of furniture! Another good rule to follow is that the centre of any picture or group of pictures or group should be roughly 58″- 62″ from the floor. If these numbers do not work out to be around the same over a piece of furniture, go with the height above the furniture measurement, rather than the distance from the floor.
If you don’t have a picture or painting big enough, make a group to fill the space. See ” Series – Hanging picture groups” for more information.
Pictures or groups that are not directly over furniture should be hung so that the centre of the picture or group is around 60″ – 64″ (152 – 160 cm)from the floor.
Proportion of Colours
The general rule of thumb is 70-30% or 60 – 30 – 10%. Stick to two or three colours. You can use four colours but it starts to look a little chaotic if not done very carefully. The easiest is to have a neutral background, a main colour and an accent colour. This is a three colour combination and if the walls are the neutral, they would be most of the 60 or 70%, your main furniture pieces would be the 30% and the cushions, art, accessories, the 10%. These are just guidelines, not strict rules to help you create a harmonious balance of colour. See article “Decor Tips – Proportions for Accent Colours” for more information.
These are a few basic rules for you to ponder and will help you create harmony in your room.
That depends on the shape of the rug. The rug must be oriented so that the long side of the rectangle is oriented with the long side of the room. The picture on the rug could be viewed from either the sofa or the doorway, whichever makes more sense, visually, for the shape and size of the rug and the room. Another consideration is the coffee table. Will it cover some of the picture, as viewed from the sofa??? If the rug is square or round, turn the picture whichever way gives you the most viewing pleasure. In other words — you both could be right
I have a dark chocolate couch and chair/ottoman along one wall. On the side of the couch I have a table lamp with a rectangle rust colored shade. The only other light on that side of the room is a floor lamp. Should I try to match the color of the rust shade/shape and replace the tan colored one I have now. Everyone keeps telling me that they don’t need to be similar…but to me just doesn’t seem right as they are on the same side of the room
Hi Kathy
Your lamps do not have to match each other, in fact, it is not in style to have them match, just as all your upholstered furniture should not be the same or all your tables should not be part of a set. What is important is that they relate to each other and the room in some way. Are you using the colour rust as your second colour in the room. If so – I would say replace the tan shade with a rust coloured one – the shape is not important, but if you wish the two shades to be identical, that is OK. A proviso here is that the rust colour MUST be the same, otherwise, it will just look wrong. Your best bet would be to buy two new matching shades in whatever is your secondary colour in the room and then make sure that you have touches of that colour – whether it is rust or something else – equally balanced around the room. That could be a picture, a vase, a pair of candlesticks, cushions, a throw…….. you get the picture! So go for it, and Happy Decorating!
Hi There,
My guest room faces the front of the house. I have drapes which are a lime green with black squiggles and these are lined with white blackouts so they face white to the road. I want to add sheers in a very pale green. However I have been told that only white should face the road (or is this an OLD rule??). White sheers would not look as nice as pale green sheers.
MUST I have white sheers because of that rule?
Tks.
Hi Sandie
White to the road is a relatively new ‘rule’. It came from apartment building rules – that the window treatments that showed to the road must be white or light beige. It simply keeps a building with a lot of windows from starting to look like granny’s patchwork quilt. As long as your pale green sheers don’t clash with the outside of your house, you are good to go! Rules were made to be broken, especially when they don’t make sense in your situation. One decades rules about decorating are considered out of date in another decade anyway. Just remember, decorating is about what works for YOU! Rules are to help you – not dictate to you. So go for the pale green sheers, if you don’t like them, return them and put up some white ones or some black ones! Get one panel of each colour and try them out, to see what you like best and then return the unwanted colours and buy more of the one you chose!!!!
Thanks A Million Leslie!! I will take your advice about getting a panel of light green sheers, another in white and another in black and see how they look from the road. Frankly, I am now leaning towards black sheers!!
Thanks again!
SANDIE
Hi Leslie,
Just purchased new coffee table and end tables and I am wondering if they are to big. I love them but the coffee table sits higher than my couch. the Couch is about 17&1/2 in high (that is the cushions you sit on) and the two cushions without the end of the couch is 5ft. 3in. The coffee table is higher measuring 19&1/2 in high,
length 4 ft 2 in. and width 2 ft 4 in. . I like the height in the end tables but wondering if they are to big also. 2ft high , 2ft 4in wide and
2ft 2 in. deep. The front of the table kind of has a wave to it wood with a glass top about an inch from the wood held by 4 corner pieces. Has
straight lines at the sides open underneath with a bottom shelf. My husband is having a fit because I have brought home 2 sets already and can’t make up my mind. Your input would be great. Thanks
Hi Norma,
It is almost impossible to give you sound advice about your coffee and end tables without seeing them in place. The height of the coffee table is not an issue. What is most important is that the size or bulk of all the pieces of furniture in the room must be in proportion. If the style of the coffee table suits the height, and, most importantly, the table is in proportion to the rest of the furniture, then it is fine. For instance, my coffee table is a big wicker trunk and is higher than the sofa seat. I find the height really convenient and it does not look out of place, because the proportions are right for the room and the other furniture in the room. But… I do not have end tables, so the sofa is not overwhelmed by being surrounded by over sized tables. Also, having a set of tables is not in fashion at the moment. If you love the coffee table, keep it but return the end tables and get ones that are more unobtrusive. That way the coffee table will anchor the group.
One major rule in decorating, if you aren’t sure that it right — it isn’t! You have to live with this piece for years, so choose carefully.
does the decorator have to follow the wishes of the client?
If the decorator decides to put pictures up in a cettian room. Dose the client ahve to compoly?