How designers go about selecting your lounge furniture

I like to think there is a method to our madness - it comes so natural to us - and to you what seems an impossible task matching fabrics, sizes, compositions. This week I did a full specification for a clients lounge, dining and outdoor open plan. The firstling is to decide your max and minimum sizing restraints. This is often achieved through a spaceplan, or provided measurements of the space to determine what arrangement we can go with. This creates a shopping list and narrows down half the work because it zones in on the types of furniture that would fit in best practise.

Generally I start with the large investment pieces (sofa and dining table) that unlocks the rest of the room in terms of colour and style. As the dining table will either be light or dark, and the sofa fabric is decided to then layer in all the other interior elements in to make it interesting. In this case I chose a tan leather sofa, with black legs, a dark stained dining table with chairs that had a dark stain frame but with light linen upholstery to lighten the space up.  Framed by the rug, that informs the occasional chair in the sofa, and our accent palette which was green. Its all about telling a story and the best thing to tie everything in is the cushions and throws - something that most people overlook or make do with old cushions that have flattened or become outdated. A coffee table determines the flow for which I wanted to keep quite open so opted for a round coffee table.

When we provide options to a client, sometimes depending on which option they go for will have a domino affect. So if a client doesn’t like the armchair and we need a new one, then that might affect the ottoman colour or coffee table shape. It sounds a bit complex but usually people have it 70% there and suffer from decisiveness or confidence that the whole scheme will work together. Thats where interior designers are helpful because you can use them for one hour as a reassurance check or to do the whole scheme. I think designers do have a special super power of visualising entire rooms, but thats where 3D renders can really help you get on the same page and see the space through our creativity before investing on a house full of new furniture!