Q: I just moved into a new apartment and I can't figure out how to layout my furniture in the living room! It is a decent size (12'x18'), but there are a lot of door openings, and I would prefer to keep the tv off of the fireplace mantel because it is too high. My couch has an awkward "L" shaped foot rest and my only other piece of furniture I have is a fairly standard chair. HELP!
Sent by Sarah
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if you're open to the option --it might makes sense to get rid of the L-shaped couch as standard couches will give you more flexibility with placement.
Can you angle the sofa (45 degrees counter clockwise) and use the foot rest as a cocktail table? that would free up the wall there the foot rest currently sits for an entertainment center / TV.
It would also create balance between the TV and fireplace, while allowing good traffic flow behind the sofa...
Oh, and you could finish the lower left corner with a small bookcase and an extra chair or two. It's always nice to have a small, wood or metal frame chair to pull up when you have company.
How about creating two seperate areas? A tv area (lower left corner) and a sit in front of the fireplace area with a pair of chairs?
Can the L shaped couch be reversed? I have one like that and you can choose the side the chaise goes on. If so...
Flip it and place it on the wall you currently have the chair sitting. Place the chair opposite and slightly angled in front of the radiator. The TV can go on the wall opposite the couch and voila!
I would have the L shaped sofa face the bottom wall on floorplan w/Tv right across it and have a separate sitting area around the fireplace.
Get rid of the L-Shaped sofa - It doesn't work for this space.
Get a regular sofa for along the wall where the chair is, and place the chair next to the fireplace.
I agree with Love2design - turn the sofa 90 degrees clockwise, so it faces the "bottom" wall and put the TV on that wall. Use the chair, and perhaps buy another chair to create a sitting area by the fireplace.
Turn the sofa 90 degrees. Put the chair by the window, at an angle, if there is room. Buy two visually light but comfortable chairs by the fireplace. I am concerned that the chair might be too bulky, but I don't know what it looks like.
Put something visually strong on the wall that the chair is now on - shelves, a large graphic, a wall hanging - to balance the furniture in the other corner and to make an impact when someone walks in the front door.
I assume that if you could afford a different sofa, you would have said so.
I've created a 3D model for what I think would look great for your space. If you'd like me to send pics of it to you, email me at kateespears@gmail.com. And I'm not a spammer. I'm a landscape architecture grad student with a serious side passion for interior design.