The 5 Unexpected Benefits of Rearranging a Room

Written by

Taryn Williford
Taryn Williford
Taryn is a writer, editor, content strategist, and homebody from Atlanta. I might have helped you declutter your apartment through the magic of a well-paced email newsletter. Or maybe you know me from The Pickle Factory Loft on Instagram.
published Sep 9, 2015
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(Image credit: Kim Lucian)

If your furniture is in the same spot it’s been since you moved in, it might be time to shake things up a bit. Rearranging your room’s layout has a way of freshening up a space and giving you new life at home. There’s also a handful of benefits to a layout shake-up that you might not have ever expected…

You get to clean under heavy pieces.

That sofa that hasn’t moved in millennia? Unless you’re diligent about cleaning under it – all the way under it – it’s probably hiding an amalgamation of cat toys, crumbs and dust bunnies.

You avoid awkward tan lines.

No doubt you’ve noticed that one arm of your favorite upholstered chair is looking a little more faded than the other. Natural light is a good thing, but not always to fabric. Moving your layout around gives those pieces a chance to even out their tan lines.

You get to even out carpet dents.

The longer your layout is stagnant, the worse those rug divots get. Move things around periodically and use the ice cube trick to fluff up those dents.

It’s a chance to purge.

The minute you start to rearrange furniture, you’ll begin to move things out of the way – a stack of magazines, a bunch of kick-knacks – which gives you a chance to evaluate what you want to keep in your home. If you’re moving a storage unit like a bookshelf or chest of drawers, you’ll likely end up cleaning those out, too, to make them easier to move around the room.

It extends the life of your flooring.

If your new layout changes the flow of your room, you’re also altering traffic patterns and evening out the natural way the floor wears down. A new layout also gives you a chance to hide scuffs or other uglies on the old pathways, which psychologically buys you more time to live with your old floors as well.

What’s the biggest benefit to rearranging a room for you?