Furnishing Your New Space
In case you missed my last post, I just bought a house! (Still can't believe it...) I was going to wait to write anything until after I moved in and got settled, but I'm just too excited about this topic to delay it any longer.
As you can probably imagine, I have a lot more space in the house, and in turn, a lot of new furniture to buy. I also wanted a different feel for the new place, so almost everything is getting an upgrade. With this blank canvas, I had a lot of decisions to make: what layout to choose for the living room, what size rugs do I need, will an island fit into my kitchen, etc. etc. The living room posed the biggest issue of all. I had dreams of a sectional to add to the cozy factor I'm seeking, but wasn't sure if it would work. I grabbed the measuring tape and a roll of painter's tape to see it on the floor. I quickly realized it was way too big. I needed a way to move furniture of different shapes and sizes around easily, so I turned to the computer. There had to be a way to do it digitally. That's when I found Planner 5d.
This website made my life so much easier when it came to choosing furniture and placing it in the house. This tool is fairly intuitive and user friendly. I started with just the living room to figure out my couch situation, but soon I had the whole house, including my front porch and yard designed to scale. Here's what it looks like currently in 2D mode:
I simply took a measuring tape and typed in every dimension from how far the doors were from their neighboring walls, to exactly where the fireplace was situated, to which way doors opened. If you have your floor plans, start there! It took quite a bit of maneuvering to get every measurement right this way, but it was worth it in the long run. I got really detailed (down to where the beams stuck out in the middle of my walls) because I didn't want any surprises when I got the furniture home (or when it was moved from my apartment).
I brought my laptop along to the store with me while I shopped. As I liked different pieces, I'd type in the dimensions and see how each piece it would fit in the space (even the rugs)! I can't express enough how much stress this saved me. I felt so confident about each of my purchases knowing I'd be happy when everything fit perfectly in its place when I got it home.
Building this rendering took me back the days of playing The Sims. I got fairly detailed with my layout, purely because it was fun. One caveat with this site: the free version limits the choices of furniture/appliances you have. I got around it by using something close and adjusted the dimensions for the purpose of sizing/placement. (For example, that huge exercise bike below is actually my treadmill.) If you want to get more accurate, there are three levels of premium you can buy. Full access for 30 days is $10, one year access is $20 and the unlimited version is $30. I found the free version sufficient enough for my needs.
Here are some close ups of the 3D rendering of my house (future state):
Whether you're moving into a house or apartment, buying new furniture, or simply placing what you already own into a new space, I can't recommend this website enough. We all know how stressful moving can be, so do yourself a favor and take the guess work out of arranging and decorating.
And with that, I hope your year is off to a good start! More from me on the house, organizing and tips for having a healthy and productive 2018 to come. Happy planning!
