Space Planning

Living/Social Areas – Living/Family Room Activities that commonly take place in living areas: – Conversation, recreation, dining, entertaining, hobbies, relaxing Furniture in conversation areas should be no larger than – 8-12 feet – 3 Feet of leg space is needed in front of chairs or sofas. If a coffee table is used it should be placed so there is inches between it and the nearest piece of furniture

Living/Social Areas – Living/Family Room There should be 3 feet of walking space around a conversation areas, so people aren’t walking through the conversation Secondary furniture grouping: – Seating for 2-3 people, a piano, a desk or a chair for one person There should be 3 feet of space between the wall or nearest object – such as piano benches, desk chairs.

Living/Social Areas – Dining Rooms Each person needs 2 ft. of dining space when seated at a table There should be at least 3 feet of space between the edge of the table and the wall or nearest object There should be at least 3 feet of walking space around the back of a chair when people are sitting, for serving purposes.

Sleeping/Private Area On each side of the bed there should be 2 feet of space for making the bed A Single Bed may be placed next to the wall because it is within the reach of a person making the bed

There should be inches in front of dressers for people to stand in front and comfortably pull out drawers In front of the closet, there should be inches Somewhere in the room there needs to 42 (3 ½ feet) for a dressing circle. Sleeping/Private Areas

Generalizations When planning space, designers usually work in ¼ inch scale. This means that when drawn every foot of space in represented by ¼ inch Designers usually draw out the amount of space and use furniture templates to visualize the amount of positive and negative space within a room

Furniture Arrangement Function: – How a space will be used. – Dictates the selection and arrangement of furniture. How can you combine functions with furniture arrangement? – Living and dining areas can be combined. – Drop-leaf table can double as a sofa table. – Bedroom can serve as an office, dressing room, reading room, etc. Mechanical or architectural functions that must be considered when placing furniture: – Air circulation vents, doors, windows, electrical outlets, phone jacks, television cables or antenna lines, fireplaces, and stairs How to control flow of traffic: – Place furniture at key locations to direct traffic flow or restrict or redirect traffic.

Furniture Arrangement Create a feeling of balance in a room: – Opposite walls should lend visual weight – Furniture, doors, windows, and fireplaces should be balanced – Visual mass is more important than dimensions – Groupings should be balanced – Do not overcrowd the room with furniture Use furniture to emphasize a focal point: – Group furniture around a focal point – If the room lacks a focal point, use a piece of furniture as a focal point Groupings for seating arrangements: – Straight line, L-shaped, U-shaped, Box shaped, Parallel