Interior design: Creating cozy atmosphere in your living room

Interior design: Creating cozy atmosphere in your living room

Debbie A. Lubis, Contributor, Jakarta

Tired of the current image of your home and looking for a
change? Don't recite any mantras. Let's start with the place
where the most people will see it -- your living room.

Adding some trendy decorative items or changing conventional
furniture with contemporary furniture in your living room will
give your home a new look.

The living room represents the owner's personality. Furniture
and decor in this room determine whether guests will be welcomed
in a formal or a casual manner. Chairs with straight backs, made
of solid materials, will create a stiff feeling, while chairs
with a simple, but functional, design will make guests feel at
home and encourage friendly gatherings.

"The living room does not need to be spacious, because guests
do not always drop by in large numbers. Nowadays, most families,
especially young families, tend to have a small living room but
with furniture that reflect their characters, and are simple and
dynamic," said Lisa Miranti, an interior designer.

Character, she said, is seen in contemporary-style furniture
that denote simplicity, functionality and color. "A kidney-shaped
coffee table with tiny legs or a trendy sofa inspired by bean
bags can be the centerpiece of the living room. They bring
something different to the room and their addition is a
fashionable way to prove the owner's flair for style.

Bean bags were designed by an Italian designer in the late
1960s. The bean bags are made of polystyrene and are filled with
small plastic beads, so that when a person sits in it, the bean
bag molds itself around the sitter's contours.

Contemporary sofas are made of soft fabrics and are quite
solid, but still make comfortable seats.

To save space and allow for flexibility in arranging the
furniture, many like to place small side-tables at corners
between chairs and so link them in an arc. Lisa said backless
sofas are a new trend and function like a bench or chair, but
provides more space.

Firman Agus, another interior designer, said chairs with a
simple and solid construction are much in demand, especially
those with flexible curves. "Such chairs do not have many
complicated details that can cause strain to the eyes," he said.
Chairs upholstered with velvet can give a luxurious impression,
but Firman said they should still be imbued with the comfort and
simplicity of design.

Adeline Monike of furniture company DataScrip said chairs and
sofas in earth-tones were much preferred, because they could be
matched easily with other pieces in the living room.

She said fully upholstered sofas with a clean, crisp,
aesthetic and modern shape are much in demand, particularly those
made of 100% soft polypropylene or a mixture of polypropylene
with springs and Dacron, with legs of polished aluminum or wood.

"Besides being stylish, these pieces should also be durable
and ensure lasting comfort. You shouldn't feel the hardwood when
you're sitting on them," she said. Customers, though, should
choose chairs or sofas that best suit their wallet and tastes.

Firman believes that it requires extra effort and attention to
detail to arrange living-room furniture to achieve a pleasant,
cozy atmosphere.

First, the owner should determine what style they want --
modern, contemporary, classic, neo-classic or a mixture of
several styles. The shape of the windows, curtain motifs, color
of furniture and the number of decorative items should be kept
simple, too.

Then, take in the size of the room, the placement of doors and
windows and the flow of movement through the room. A linear
arrangement of chairs, for example, would make for a small,
cramped living room.

Firman advises that one chair should face the front door, and
the others arranged in a circular or rectangular shape facing the
single chair to instill a sense of communication between the host
and guests. If the size of living room does not allow for this
arrangement, two single chairs, a sofa and a coffee table can
also lend a cozy atmosphere.