How To Choose The Right Furniture for Your Home
We’ve all been there – you see a beautiful piece of furniture and instantly buy it, imagining just how amazing it’s going to look in your house. But when you get home, you realize there’s not enough space, or the colors don’t work with your color palette. But don’t worry! There are some simple ways you can avoid this in the future. Today, we’re going to give you some top tips to help you buy the right furniture for your home.
By taking a few key aspects into account, you’ll be able to make sure that your furniture works as well in your house as it did in your dreams. That way, you can say goodbye to those tedious trips to the returns desk once and for all.
Buying the right furniture for your home
If you’re about to put a property on the market or you’re looking to remodel your house and put in new furniture, you’ll know that it’s a lot of work, and requires a great deal of time, effort, and planning. You’ve probably spent hours looking for inspiration in interior design magazines and online, visiting home stores, and imagining the house of your dreams. And then, after all that, things don’t quite turn out the way you wanted.
With all the time and money you’ve invested and all the excitement you felt, the disappointment can be almost overwhelming. However, if you can follow these simple rules, you’ll be able to ensure that everything works well together. The color of your new couch will complement your walls, and your stylish new dresser will fit perfectly into your bedroom.
Get inspired before you buy
Though it might be tempting, it’s always best to avoid impulse buys when it comes to your furniture. Before you go shopping, look online to check out some of the products on offer in your favorite decorating stores. You can also look at sites like Instagram (you’ll find some of our favorite accounts here) and popular boards on Pinterest. This is the best way to work out which decorative style you want for your home, and the type of furniture you’ll need to look out for.
Planning – right down to the last detail
If you want to buy the right furniture for your home, you need to take every single aspect into account. From the direction the doors open to the location of your radiators, as well as the dimensions of each room. That way, you’ll know exactly what kind of furniture you’re going to need, and where you’re going to put it.
If you have plenty of space, you have a bit more freedom to play around with the layout. In smaller homes, however, you’ll need to be more careful when it comes to the size, color, and shape of your furniture.
In this sense, it’s super important to measure each space you’re looking to furnish carefully. If you’re furnishing your bedroom, for example, the dimensions of your room will dictate the size of your bed. However, you’ll also need to think about aspects such as bedside tables, including their height and width, and the shape that will work best. The same goes for cabinets, where you’ll also need to think about which direction the doors open, and how much space they need.
There are a lot of apps that can help you to measure your rooms, furniture, and anything else you want. You can then save all this information for later. One example is Photo Measures, which you can find in the app store.
Buying the right furniture – focus on the essentials
Don’t let yourself get distracted by furniture you don’t need. If you’re shopping online, use the filters to narrow your search to furniture that’s suitable for your home, taking into account the measurements, colors, and budget you’ve set aside for your project. When it comes to buying furniture for your home, impulse buys are a huge no-no.
The same applies if you’re buying in-store. Make sure you take a measuring tape with you so you can measure the furniture properly. Seeing furniture in large, open home stores can be deceptive – things are often bigger than they look!
Try before you buy
Try out all the different mattresses (IKEA have so many to choose from), sit on all the chairs, and check to see that the dining room table feels comfortable. Can you see yourself watching a movie from that couch? This is the best way to decide whether a product is right for you, especially if you’re buying in-store.
As for the upholstery, you can usually request fabric samples. This will allow you to compare them with other fabrics in your home and see how they’ll look.
A failsafe method
To give you a better idea of what your furniture will look like in your home, try putting painter’s tape or newspaper on the floor, measuring it out so that it’s roughly the same size as your chosen furniture. That way, you’ll have a much clearer picture of how much space it will take up, and how it will look with the rest of the room.
Even if you’ve already measured both the space and the furniture, this will give you a more realistic perspective. For example, you’ll be able to see how much room you’ll have left to move around the room. You’ll also be able to check aspects like whether your new rug will be the right size for your couch, and whether it will obstruct your doorway.
Buying the right furniture for your home – make sure it fits
While this might seem obvious, it’s so easy to forget. You need to check that your new furniture will fit through your front door and that you’ll be able to get it in the elevator or carry it up the stairs. All too often, delivery drivers and home installation experts arrive at the address, only to find they can’t make their delivery, as there’s simply no way to get it in the house.
If you take all these aspects into account, you’ll never be disappointed again. More importantly, you’ll be able to buy the right furniture for any space in your home.
So remember – get inspired, find your style, measure, and try before you buy, and you’ll make the right choices every time.