Hi folks,

I have lived in this apt for 2 years so far and still haven't figured out an appropriate furniture layout, so I am hoping that someone here can help me sort this out. The building was built in North America in the 1960's and is typical of the era (plaster walls, parquet flooring, big bank of windows in the living room, a baseboard radiator below the window that I keep turned off because the building is too hot during the winter). The 2nd picture shows the locations of electrical outlets ('E' circled and highlighted in yellow), light switch ('L' circled and outlined in teal) and the place where the cable for internet comes into the apt ('C' circled and outlined in purple).

For the furniture, I am hoping to buy a new couch and 1 or 2 living room chairs sometime soon (I've been looking for a while now but haven't seen anything I love yet, unless it's $3K or higher), but don't know what shape or configuration I should be looking for. The 1st picture shows the furniture that I do plan on keeping for now as well as the current placement of that furniture. I haven't included the entire apt here; only the living room/dining room area. I like the look of a couch with a chaise lounge attached best. We don't do a lot of entertaining. The couch will be used for reading, writing (I write a lot and everywhere), cuddling with our 9yr old husky/shepherd, maybe watching tv at some point, knitting.

In terms of functionality, I am probably expecting too much of this space. I will be working from home (hopefully forever) and need a desk, computer and either more storage or work space near the computer. My 12 yr old daughter is attending school remotely this year and also needs flexible space here to work. She usually attends the synchronous part of her school day in the living room and then returns to her bedroom to do the asynchronous work. We almost always have an art, sewing, cooking or craft project on the go at the table. The books are 3 Ikea Billy bookcases that can be moved around, but I have the books arranged by colour and this is the only part of my apt that currently brings me any joy. The tv stand has plants all over the top surface and desk storage items on 2 shelves below the surface. The computer had been positioned such that the desk was up against the wall. But on workdays, I usually have at least one Zoom meeting and am not comfortable with everyone having such a wide view of my personal living space.

My specific questions are:

1. Where do I place a couch and chair/s in this space?

2. How can I fit in an office space with a desktop computer as well as room for occasional laptop work? My daughter has said that she would love one of those coffee tables that can be pulled up to table height allowing her to sit on the couch with her laptop on the extendable coffee table.