I seem to have a new hobby…and that’s playing with Better Homes & Gardens’ “Arrange-a-Room” program!
It’s a pretty fun little program. You can select a basic room shape from a few standard options, and then click and drag “corners” to match the shape of your room.
Next you can add furniture to your room, choosing from a wide variety of standard pieces for living rooms, dining rooms, bedrooms, offices, etc.
You can also alter the dimensions of the furniture you choose, and then you can even change colors (to some extent).
I am still working on the front-room-to-office project (more about that here and here). Here are a few of the furniture arrangements I have been playing with:
The room isn’t exactly square, but that’s pretty much the shape of the workable space I have (and it’s really closer to 11’4” x 10’, but arranging those walls with a touch pad is a little tricky). Imagine that the walkway is on the left side (not pictured), with the stair wall to the left of that. The front door would be adjacent to the bottom left corner of this diagram.
In this arrangement, the desk (big white thing) has to butt up against the corner. The big brown thing is an old card catalog that I have, and the little brown chair is one of my vintage folding chairs. The smaller white thing is a low chest I have stashed in my garage. It would actually sit under the window (I can’t get the window feature to work on the room planner), and could be painted and/or dressed up with some cushions or pillows. I have a neat old wood-frame chair (in the garage, of course) that needs to be refinished and recovered that could go next to that (see, I’m trying to work with what I have).
In this next arrangement, the desk goes against the outside wall of the house. I think I like the fact that you wouldn’t walk in the front door and be staring at a computer monitor! I also think I could get away with displaying both of my folding wooden chairs this way. The two accent chairs could be a problem—since I don’t have two easy chairs—but I kind of like this look as well. But what do you think? Too many chairs?
So combining elements from the previous two arrangements, you get the look above. My guess is that that is what I’ll start with, but with no promises that it will stay that way!
What do you think? Does it look like it will work?
So…exactly where am I on this project?
Well, the good news is that I own all the furniture except for the desk and the rug.
The bad news is that the chair, the bench/chest, and the card catalog all need some refinish work!
I am NOT going to tackle building the 9-foot desk (which will look something like this)…
… but I have found a local shop that will do it for me at a good price. Tomorrow (I hope) I am going to go there to finalize the plans and pay a deposit (I love my tax refund)!
I am going to have to figure out how to get a DSL hook-up in that room (it’s the only room in the house without a phone jack!), and I need to see if I’m going to have to move an electrical outlet. If I do—and I end up calling an electrician for that job—I may see about getting the room wired for an overhead light! I *love* the idea of a chandelier in there…but my dear husband says,
“Just another light fixture for me to bump my head on.”
Men…they have no vision.
How about YOU? Can YOU share my vision??
Be sure to choose plants that are going to create the desired effect. For example, some people adore the look of plants that have flowers and blooms, while other people prefer plants that have only showy foliage. Consider the desired effect and find plants that play to it accordingly. Also remember that different plants have different care requirements. A coleus plant, for example, has bright showy leaves and requires an absolute minimum of care. On the other hand, an orchid is a plant that has a gorgeous floral bloom, but the care itself is more difficult. An orchid needs to be regularly watered through flushing clean water through the bark substrate. This is time consuming and orchids should only be undertaken by people who have a thorough understanding of their care. If there is enough sunlight and plants that are easy to care for are required, consider succulents. Succulents can survive for an extended period of time without the need for constant care and supervision, and if they are given enough light, they are typically quite hardy. 
If the indoor gardener is growing plants that do not directly have to be in the window, he or she may choose a corner shelf. A corner shelf fits snugly into the room’s corner and it has a rounded edge. The shape of the shelf from the top is that of a quarter circle, and there is plenty of room on this type of stand for many plants. Don’t forget to consider hanging plants as well. There are a number of plants that do well in hanging baskets, and a hanging basket allows the visual point of the room to be drawn up. This is a good choice if there is not a lot of space for a plant stand of any type, and it is an excellent choice for spaces like apartments and other areas where not a lot of space is possible. 
