Question: We have had our home remodeled and are satisfied with all but the living/family room. The area is very open, which leaves the backs of chairs and end tables as a main view.

I would like more - or better - seating in that room (presently there are four chairs), but the center post (a main support) makes it impossible. There has to be one recliner in the room for my husband. That recliner could be a wall-hugger. We have wondered about putting bookcases, buffet-style cabinets or something else useful across the backs of chairs, but have not as yet seen anything.

The rest of the house and garden are quite nice and it seems a shame that the central room is sort of ugly.

Mrs. Robert Drynan
Woodland

Answer: A support pole in the middle of the room is as challenging a dilemma as you can have, especially when it comes to furniture placement. Our objective is to make both the pole and the furniture relate to the room and each other.

The challenge is to make the pole appear as if it's always been part of your plan and to make it both useful and attractive.

HOW TO BLEND IT IN

The pole is a visual anchor that draws attention to itself. One solution is to incorporate it into another design element rather than have it stand alone. This would visually tie the pole into the design of the room and "support" the notion of it being part of the original design plan (forgive the pun).

Accomplishing this with furniture alone would be difficult and would appear to be an attempt at disguising the pole since the furniture itself doesn't belong to the architecture of the space.

From your photographs it appears that the room is between other rooms, and includes an often-used passage from one side of the house to another. This floor plan creates the perfect opportunity to add a built-in unit that incorporates the offensive pole as part of its design.

The unit has some other advantages. It gives the furniture something to relate to and creates additional storage space, a bonus in any home. Another, albeit hidden, bonus is that it will allow the beam in the ceiling to relate to another design element, thereby visually tying together all the structural aspects of the room.

The built-in unit should be no higher than one's waist, thus maintaining the visual openness of space. Use the pillar as the anchor of the unit on one end and run it underneath the beam to the far wall. Design it to be approximately the same width as the beam. These horizontal parallel lines, top and bottom, will create the illusion that the room is longer than it is and visually expand the space even further.

MORE STORAGE SPACE

A unit of this type offers lots of design approaches to storage, depending on the family's needs. It can offer hidden storage, with access from one or two sides, or it can provide open shelving. If book space is at a premium, the unit can be closed on either the passage side and open to the room to create book shelving, or vice versa. Or the unit can be open on both sides and artistic objects can be placed in it for visual interest on either side. If space is at a premium and you want to place furniture against the unit, allow the shelving to be open on the passage side. Ultimately, the decision will be based on your needs.

Since entertaining seems to be part of your lifestyle, another benefit of this unit is that it can function as a buffet area for food and wine presentation.

There is no limit to how functional a unit like this can be; it's just a matter of keeping an open mind to these opportunities when they present themselves.

Once the unit is incorporated into the design of the room, making an inviting furniture arrangement in the room is the next step.

HUBBY'S RECLINER, OF COURSE

The fireplace in one corner gives you an opportunity to make a cozy seating arrangement for a quiet reading space. The wall-hugging recliner, a side table and lamp would be a perfect arrangement for reading. Add a second chair and you have a conversation corner.

The sofa, a comfortable chair and the entertainment unit could be placed together to create another seating arrangement. Perhaps the TV unit can be placed on the diagonal in the corner to allow for easy viewing from different parts of the room.

For the finishing touches, bring some color into the space with interesting art on the walls and use lighting to open the room up even further. Arrange your small accessories in groups to make both the pieces and the space more visually appealing.

The new built-in unit will help in several ways. It will let you create a more inviting space by allowing the furniture placement in the room to be better organized. It will anchor the pillar to give it a greater sense of purpose. With your new design, the back of your furniture won't be the first thing you or your guests see when they come into the area. Overall, a good design solution to your dilemma.

 

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