Welcome
to All in the Detail... I am so glad you are here!
Have you ever looked at your coffee
table and thought it just doesn’t look right? Or maybe you were installing
a light fixture above your table and weren’t quite sure how high it should
hang or how large it should be? I’ve been asked these questions so many times I
can’t count them. I of course can help you out on any of these but if I’m not
around…
Here’s a great book I found that can help:
by
Elaine Griffin (you can find it here on Amazon and yes, it’s very affordable).
In additional to providing design advice in a very
approachable manner, Ms. Griffin gives Rule of Thumb measurements for
everything from the correct height of your bedside lamp to where to hang
curtains in relation to the window! For example, did you know that coffee
tables look best when they are 1″-2″ less than the height of the sofa’s seat
cushion? Or that you should leave 1 1/2″ -2″ of spacing between pictures in an
art grouping?
Here are just a few of her great ‘Rules of Measurement’ to
know:
In the Living Room
You need 26”-36” clear as a pathway to walk comfortably
through a room or 36″-48″ for an airy feeling
If you’re covering the entire room with one area rug, leave
12″-18″ clear all around to the wall. In smaller rooms, 7″-12″ will work
Choose side tables that are about 2” less than the height of
the sofa arm
In a small grouping, 15″ by 24″ or smaller can be a great
size for a coffee table
If using art above a sofa, fill at least 50%-60% of the
5-foot high space above the sofa
In the Dining Room
Wainscoting should be about 36” – 48” above the finished
floor
Chair rails should be 34”-36” above the floor
Dining tables should be 30” high
Allow 18” of table width per person
For rectangular tables, you’ll need a table that is at least
48″ long to seat 6 people, 72″ for 8 and 96″ to seat 12 people
Dining seating should be 16”-18” high from the floor to the
top of the seat
To pick the right size light fixture for above a table, you
can either
- divide the width of your dining table by two to get an approximate chandelier diameter OR
- add the room’s length and width in feet; the sum equals an approximate chandelier diameter in inches
Chandeliers should hang 30”-36” above the table surface
In general, center sconces’ back plates between 60”-64”
above the floor
In the Bedroom
If you have space for a bench, box, chest or trunk at the
end of a bed, it should be slightly lower than the height of the bed and no
more than 15”-21” deep
For most beds, 24”-27” is the ideal height for a nightstand
For a King-size bed, nightstands should be at least 36” wide
Area rugs underneath beds should extend 6”-12” beyond the
outer edges of the nightstands and the end of the bed
Swing arm lamps above bedside tables should be mounted no
farther than 3” out from the edge of the headboard with the bottom of the shade
about 20” above the top of the mattress
Table lamps should also have the bottom of the shade about
20” above the top of the mattress
Use a 47″ tall headboard if you don’t want much headboard to
show above your pillows or 52″ and up if you want to show more headboard above
the pillows
So, does this mean that if you aren’t following these
measurements your design is wrong? Of course not! I always say that design is
not a ‘cookie cutter method’… if it feels good to you and you like how it
looks, that’s all that matters. But if you’re unsure as to where to begin,
these measurements can provide you with a good starting point.
*But... Just for kicks and giggles, take the tape measure around your home and see how well you did on your own!
