Monday, December 8, 2008

Time to Rearrange the Furniture?


We don’t always wear the same clothes every day, we change them to suit our mood and needs. We don’t always eat the same food every day – that varies to a large degree. So why should we keep the furniture arranged as it is now. Well . . . we shouldn’t. In addition, of course, there are lots of people out there like Big Frank, who are relatively new in their current home, but still haven’t finalized their furniture arrangements. You’ve been, like Big Frank, conceptualizing, as it were. So you’ve tried this chair out in one room, and then in another. You may have ordered a new couch and moved furniture as a result to another room, and then that caused another move etc. etc. So you’re thinking “What if I were to put this chair/table/couch/picture here . . . would it fit and how would that affect this other piece of furniture?” In the end you just start the musical chairs of decorating, but that entails getting some help or doing some major hauling on your own.

Stop! There’s a better way. No, Big Frank is not an interior decorator (not just yet – but with this new software he just might start). There is free online software available for you to plan out your room, and in doing so you can make exact measurements of all furniture involved, place doors and windows exactly as they are, and you don’t have to physically move anything. Then when you have it just as you want it – print it out and tell your muscular furniture moving friends to implement while you drink a glass of wine as you give the final finishing adjustments (here are some tips to follow with the moving)! Now, isn’t that better? And – it didn’t cost you a dime; (Big Frank’s consulting fee is waived this time around).

Here are a few online room aranging choices; try them all out and use the one you like best.

The first one is on a Better Homes and Gardens website, and has options for room dimensions, architecture, and furniture.

The next one is from Bassett Furniture. There are actually a lot of furniture stores that offer this option; the idea is with some that you can actually insert their furniture in correct dimensions into your room, print it out and then come to the store, or order online. However, it has all the options of the above, plus more. Lane Furniture has perhaps an even slicker site. And finally, if you want to go directly to the company that leads in developing this kind of software go to icovia . Happy decorating! And remember, no matter what you decide on for now – you can change as often as you like.

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