Rearranging Furniture: Same Space / New Look
We have moved every three years for the past 20 years, so if I happen to be living in the same space after three years, I feel the need to change things around so my home feels fresh and new again, maximized for enjoyment. Sometimes you may have made earlier changes when a need arises. For example, when my oldest son decided to go to boarding school, we commandeered his bedroom to become my husband’s office, moving his desk out of our bedroom. That was an obvious improvement. But some changes seem less relevant at first.
You see, at a certain point you stop seeing your home with fresh eyes: Same Space. You skim over what you know to be there, and you stop seeing what it actually looks like. Maybe you’ve brought some new things into your home and you find a place for them, but you don’t always find the best place for them. If you were to start over again, and remove everything from a room, would your furniture and accessories end up in the same place? Eventually what started off as a well planned space, because a hodge-podge of random stuff.
Same Space/ New Look with Tables: This happened to me recently with some side tables I have introduced to my home over the last 6 months. I bought this small one at an antiques place in Zurich, and initially I placed it by a daybed in the family room. But the burled wood top looked a little too solid next to the leather daybed. It’s now been replaced with another antique find with a glass top, which suits the space much better as it looks lighter next to the heavy daybed.
The burled table has found its home in the dining room next to a white daybed. At first I had it on the other side, because it was easiest to place it there, but it looked unhinged, and out in the open. Tucking it into the corner makes it look more intentional. I am still thinking about placing a small lamp on the tabletop for coziness in the winter months.
Rearranging on my terrace: I had six low planters on view outside my dining room window. I loved seeing the greenery, especially in the winter. But when I started rearranging the planter pots near the outdoor table, I found it looked too cluttered to me. I’ve now spaced the six low planters across the entire terrace, and sandwiched my dining room view with greenery on either side. It is so calming to see the plants rather than my recycling! This was a small change but a huge improvement!
Finally, I replaced the cowhide ottoman in the sitting room with a vintage marble and chrome table. The cowhide ottoman was never meant to go with the B&B Italia sofa, but when I replaced the sofa, it didn’t occur to me to change the ottoman, because I don’t dislike it. It is also very practical as a footrest when watching tv, and we can also easily move it out of the way when we exercise.
But, I had started to want something different for that space. Something a bit more elevated, a table rather than a footrest. This table was another antique find from a local shop in Zurich that I frequent. Antiques are often better quality than newly produced furniture pieces.
Rearranging your furniture can make you fall in love with your space again. You can redesign it to better suit your needs as they change. It’s also a great time to donate some items you no longer love or have use for. This process can be quite therapeutic and satisfying, too!
If you are having trouble seeing the areas of your home that need adjusting, it can be helpful to take some photos of each room. Photos have a way of allowing you to be a voyeur in your own home, and the frames around a photo create distinct barriers and vignettes, which can also be helpful in determining which direction you may want to go in terms of design or color choices. Even if you end up putting things back where they were, you have made a conscious choice about where they go, and hopefully managed an epic cleaning session.
And maybe you end up adding a few things to your shopping list as well! It’s always fun to have something to shop for.
