Living Room Layout... when the room isn't square or rectangle

prairiedawnpam

13 years ago

I'm happy with my mantel for now and I'm on to the furniture arangement.

Our living room is an odd shape and "the rules" for arranging our sofa and love seat don't seem to fit as a result.

Sorry about the Christmas pics. These are the only ones I have that show the entire room.

Exterior - the living room is in "those windows" on the right

{{!gwi}}

This is the long wall, across from the windows, as you enter the room. That's not me.

{{!gwi}}

Next comes an angled, short wall with the fireplace. Where the little TV is now, we have a wall-mounted big-screen set.

{{!gwi}}

Then there are the windows and another short wall that isn't quite long enough for a loveseat.

{{!gwi}}

This is our only living/family/sitting room and its used all day for tv and fireplace time.

...Pam

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (7)

justgotabme
13 years ago
Pam,I absolutely love your home! It's so cute! We too have a Victorian Revival with the same screen doors! I say doors since we have a set of french doors and a main entry door that all open to the front porch.
I have a question for you: is this arrangement not working for you? It seems like everyone would have a good view of the TV and fireplace when the Christmas tree isn't up. What are you hoping to achieve?
prairiedawnpam
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks, Justgota. Our home is cute, but the odd-shaped rooms and narrow staircase have made it difficult to furnish. It really needs furniture bought just for it, rather than the pieces we've moved from other homes.

Yes, this arrangement works. I just get bored. When I started reading articles about how to arrange furniture around a fireplace, though, I realized that the suggestions just wouldn't work because of the shape of the room.

...Pam
Related Discussions
Living room/dining room layout design??
Q
Comments (6)
Do you need the fireplace? It would be a great help as a room divider, but in the locations you have it, it really can't function that way. I'm assuming this would be a gas fireplace. Can it be very modern? Or does it have to be more of a traditional fireplace? Some modern fireplaces can be small and can be placed almost anywhere, which may work for you. Part of the issue is the space, once you remove the traffic area, is really a square which then needs to be divided in 2 for the 2 functions. That leaves you only about 9' or 3 meters for each function which is pretty narrow. Plus you need traffic area to get from one function to the other. Candice Olson has done some interesting dining/LR combos. Perhaps one of them will inspire you. Given the size of your area, look at the rooms where she's done a built-in banquette for one side of the dining area as a way to save space.
...See More
Kitchen Layout help when the Canvas isn't so blank!
Q
Comments (55)
Aisles...42" will only "work" for a year or two, at best. By then, there will be more than one of you working in the Kitchen at the same time -- you + one or two children. Unless you plan to remodel again in the next the couple of years. Cheri, they key in your situation was that you had to make do with what you had -- a small Kitchen with many doors. And even you admitted there were issues ("inconveniences"). Forever Now doesn't have those constraints -- her Kitchen is actually at least a medium size Kitchen and she doesn't have as many doors, so deliberately planning a Kitchen with issues when it's not needed doesn't make sense. I would not do less than 48" b/w the island and perimeter -- especially since the DW situation will not be ideal. Keep a wide enough aisle to not only work around the DW but also to allow more than one person to work in the Kitchen at the same time -- it's really a one-aisle Kitchen, so that needs to be accounted for as well. My recommendation is to: Move the island toward the window by 3" or so -- as you said, there won't be much traffic there and, besides, 33" is around the width of a standard interior doorway. Granted, a doorway is only a few inches thick, but I think it will still work, assuming the windows aren't an issue b/c they appear to open inward. Reduce the island's length by at least 2" -- that would still give you plenty of workspace if the DW is moved to the other side of the island sink. Reduce the 9" utility cabinet to a 6". If you keep narrower doors, you may be OK -- that just means french door or side-by-side refrigerators. See below -- you know have a 48-inch aisle. If you cut off the corner as in some of the layouts above, you might gain an additional 2" or so. Just be careful on the left b/c the front door is also in the Kitchen on that wall. BenjesBride...unfortunately, I don't think there's room to turn the refrigerator 90 degrees and place it on the exterior wall. There's not enough room for the refrigerator itself b/w the bathroom wall and the sliding door, let alone the necessary 9" or so needed b/w the wall and refrigerator to allow the refrigerator doors to open fully. Layout #2: With the 21" sink base, you can probably do all your dish rinsing at the island -- so not much, if any, dripping to the DW. . Layout #2 Zone Map: . In the end, it's up to you -- I'm just trying to get you a Kitchen that will work for several years to come while you save for a gut remodel. [It took us about 12 years or so to save up to do a gut remodel of our Kitchen, Foyer, & Powder Room (& replace all water pipes in our house), so I know it can take a while to save money for a remodel.]
...See More
L shaped living room / dining room layout
Q
Comments (16)
I like Manon's layout the best. In your current layout (where you just moved the furniture), pull that chair out of the corner and closer to the sofa so that people have to walk AROUND the seating area instead of THROUGH it. Please do not buy one of those combo TV console/fireplaces. They are truly an abomination. It you want a fireplace, install an electric or ventless one on the wall, add a mantel shelf that's longer than the TV and mount the TV on an articulating arm. If you don't do a fireplace, mount the TV anyway so you can turn it to watch from the sofa.
...See More
Living room layout help!
Q
Comments (43)
Happy to help. Everything looks great so you should be proud how you and your husband worked your way through it. And I have to tell you that I think the large couch looks good because it helps balance the trunk better in the room. Where before the trunk looked too large. Eventually a piece of art over the sofa will pull the room together totally and the only other thing you might want to consider down the road is going to a taller lamp on the table. With your larger furniture it looks a bit too small and also, to have interesting visual contrast you want to have different heights in a room and the height of the lamp ( at least in the photo) appears to be too close to the height of your new sofa and perhaps even the recliner. If you want to just experiment to see how the space would look with a taller lamp, just put a bunch of books under the lamp to raise it and then you'll know if that is something to consider later on. I really appreciate you letting us know what you ended up doing. And do keep us posted as you do your little tweaks to the room. Enjoy your new home and town.
...See More
justgotabme
13 years ago
Yes, the shape of the room would cause a bit of confusion when trying to find the best furniture placement. Have you thought about buying a conversation sofa and a couple chairs for the room? Our daughter had one in her first apartment that I loved and would have liked to have had for our Ladies Parlor, but she didn't think she'd ever get it back here so I helped her sell it. Now she'll be heading to Korea and her furniture will all be shipped back here for storage. If only we'd have known!
Here's a clickable thumbnail/link of her sofa to give you and idea of just what I'm talking about. It's the ad I made for when we sold it on CL.
{{!gwi}}
homebodymom
13 years ago
I think the room looks great. It looks warm and inviting- like a real home where you are instantly comfortable. I love homes like that. The wall color is great, and I love the print above the mantle.
I can imagine it being hard to place furniture because of the fireplace and making the TV viewable- is that a word? ;). IMO- I think it looks great !
prairiedawnpam
Original Author
13 years ago
Homebody - "Viewable" is a word. :-)

Justgota - I like the conversation sofa idea. I'll put that into my inspiration file. Thank you.

...Pam
westvillager
13 years ago
My brain works a little odd -- let me offer that at the start. I guess I consider room functions first, then assign a subset of the area to achieve it. Any shape can include a (visual) square or rectangle to make the placement work.

I can't move my fireplace or the flat TV, so if I get bored with a layout I draw the shape of the room and place the squares/rectangles differently to help with furniture placement. Last year I replaced a sofa with two chairs and that one part of the room became good for conversation and a perfect spot for reading by the fire.

Reading this, it sounds weird. :\ My problem is I tend to incorporate the whole space rather than breaking it down into pieces. The drawing helps me focus and shows what can or can;t be done.
justgotabme
13 years ago
I thought you might Pam.
Westvillager, that's a great idea!

Living Room Layout... when the room isn't square or rectangle

Comments (7)

justgotabme

prairiedawnpam
Original Author

Related Discussions

justgotabme

homebodymom

prairiedawnpam
Original Author

westvillager

justgotabme

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Living Room Layout... when the room isn't square or rectangle

Comments (7)

justgotabme

prairiedawnpamOriginal Author

Related Discussions

justgotabme

homebodymom

prairiedawnpamOriginal Author

westvillager

justgotabme

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

prairiedawnpam
Original Author

prairiedawnpam
Original Author