Whether you’ve got a large house or a smaller condo, your family room is likely to be one of the most integral areas of your home. For this reason, it’s important that you understand how to best set yours up in order to make the most of it. Mark Needleman is the owner and design director of Signature Interiors, a business that has been serving Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Southern New Hampshire for the past 15 years, and according to him, when it comes to family rooms, a little bit of strategic thinking can often go a long way. He therefore offers the following tips on how to design a family room:
Determine what your focal point should be
Most family rooms tend to offer two options for the area focal point – the fireplace and the TV. With the advent of flat screen televisions, more and more people have adopted the trend of mounting TVs above their fireplaces. However, Needleman warns that this isn’t the best idea. First of all, most people who go this route tend to make the mistake of mounting their televisions too high up – a fact that can cause neck strain from the couch-viewing position. Secondly, from a design perspective, the presence of a TV right above the fireplace can really send a mixed message about the family room in question. While fireplaces tend to be warm, inviting, and conducive to conversation, televisions tend to give off a cooler vibe. Therefore, Needleman suggests that when it comes to your living room setup, you should take the time to figure out what your focal point should be. If you go with the fireplace, then you’ll want to arrange your furniture to allow for visual access to it during conversation. You should also position your couches and chairs in a manner that offers the maximum heat benefit from a comforting winter’s day fire. On the other hand, if you decide to elect your TV as the family room’s focal point, then you’ll want to arrange your furniture accordingly.
Maximize seating and entertainment
Your family room is bound to be your home’s center of entertainment, so you’ll want to find creative ways to maximize its seating potential. Rather than focus on a single couch, it might make more sense to decorate the room with a couple of smaller sofas and well-placed chairs. You can also include some corner benches for additional seating. If you have a habit of gathering in the family room and wining and dining your guests or spoiling your children with sweets, then you’ll also want to make sure to have plenty of tables on hand so that everybody has a place to put his cup or plate.
Buy comfortable furniture
Since your family room is one area of the home in which you’re likely to spend a fair amount of time, it’s important that you incorporate furniture that you’ll actually enjoying sitting on. A cozy set of couches and a few soft recliners can make for a wonderfully pleasant family gathering around the fireplace or TV. Also, while it is certainly possible to incorporate style and comfort into your family room furnishings, remember that your family room is not necessarily the place to show off your elegant taste. Save the fancy, high-end furniture for your formal living or dining room instead.
Make sure that your furniture is practical and durable
Of all the areas in your house, your family room is the one that is bound to take the most abuse. Therefore, you’ll want to include furniture that is not only comfortable, but practical and lasting by nature. Remember, children don’t usually sit gingerly on couches like angels; they tend to climb back and forth and spill their sodas in the process. Another thing about children is that they tend to spend a good portion of the day running around – so you might want to forego the trendy glass coffee table in favor of something that won’t shatter upon rowdy human contact. Finally, if pets are part of the picture, then consider the fact that they too might end up wreaking havoc on your family room furnishings; unless you intend to ban them (or the kids) from the area, make sure that all of your couches, chairs, tables, and accessories are as durable and user friendly as possible.
Make the space somewhat intimate
While it’s nice to be able to use your family room to host and entertain, you should also take steps to create an atmosphere that is cozy and intimate. By bringing some of your seating closer to the fireplace and incorporating warm colors and accent pieces into the decorative scheme, you can turn your family room into a place where guests and family members alike will instantly feel at home.
