The essence of design from Zoha Interior

The first thing that I’m going to do is measure out my space. I can already tell that the room is very wide and tall, with ample space to accommodate any furniture choices, as well as plenty of room for walking. There are only three available plugins that I can use, but there is a large, beautifully-framed window that will allow plenty of natural light to permeate the room.  

The window also opens out into a beautiful patch of woods that lends a natural quality to the room. I also take note of which way is North, since I want to know where the sun will rise and set, and position any furniture so that guests aren’t looking directly into the sun. Even as I gauge the space, I also note that the hardwood floor is a deep, earth-colored brown that looks absolutely gorgeous, and I don’t have any desire to change it. This will be important later.

Once I have everything measured, I’m going to make a rough sketch of the room to record my measurements,  and mark the window and the electrical outlets, that I can use as a template to start crafting my design.

DETERMINING THE PURPOSE

Now that I have my measurements, I can start to decide what I want this room to do for me. The open archway doors rule out a bedroom, or anywhere else that would require privacy, and I want to take advantage of the natural beauty of the sunlight and trees. I’ve determined that a sitting room, where I can entertain guests, or lounge and read in peace and quiet, would be the perfect way to utilize this room.

With a general purpose in mind, I start to think about what I’ll need to achieve that purpose. I decide that the window will be the centerpiece of my room, and I want to arrange everything around it. Since this room smoothly feeds into other parts of the home, I need to keep a fair amount of walking space open, and position any furniture in a way that it won’t impede anyone moving through the house.

To accommodate any guests we have, I’m going to need ample seating space, but I’ll need to create it in a way that doesn’t restrict movement. I decide that a single couch, coupled with a loveseat and chaise lounge, will provide plenty of seating space whether I’m entertaining guests or just enjoying the sun on my own.

I also decide that I want to limit any food being eaten, but will allow drinks, so I need some space to sit glasses down or stack books and magazines, so a coffee table, with two end tables, will work perfectly. I’ll also include two lamps for when the sun goes down. Finally, I’m not too concerned about staining the hardwood floor, but I do want to protect it from any scuffing the coffee table and chaise lounge might cause, so I’ll need a high quality rug that will protect it.

From here, I can start to add to my sketch, using a different color, to mark possible positioning and dimensions for furniture. I can refine this later, so for now, I’m worried mostly about spacing and leaving the walkways open, while using the sunlight for reading and atmosphere.