Living Room (with TV) on the parlor floor?

http://cdn.brownstoner.com/50b248cd6540c-.jpg

We are working on a renovation of the parlor floor and we would like to make a practical and yet still beautiful parlor floor with sofa, seating area and a TV. Yes, I know that there is not an easy area where to put the sofa or the TV. I am sure we are not the only people who have encountered the challenge. Any idea worth to share? The size of the area is 24′ x 12′ 6”. On one side there is a mantle and on the opposite side there is a 5′ entrance. It is facing the street with two windows and the other side faces the kitchen and dining area.

brklynreno

in Interior Decorators and Designers 12 years and 7 months ago

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brokelin | 12 years and 6 months ago

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Ye, most of these rooms with the fireplaces and doorways get very crowded if you try to cram in too much seating furniture. Unless your room is extra-wide, less seating works better.  Unless you are going for that overcluttered, overstuffed vibe some go for.

elbow | 12 years and 7 months ago

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I have a room similar to the one in your picture, only less space to the left side of the 5′ hall door. I put the tv in a cabinet to the right of the mantle, which it looks like they did in the pic. My love seat is in front of the window wall and I put arm chair to the left of the entry door. It works well and looks good. My problem is what to put in front of the (giant) fireplace, which is a couple of feet to the right of a kitchen island. Unfortunately, the room feels too crowded to float a love seat closer to the fireplace parallel to the windows.

HouseNut | 12 years and 7 months ago

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We have a TV in our back parlor which is 18″ deep x 14″ wide. Our TV is on a cabinet to the right of the fireplace when you face the wall, similar to the photo you have.  A sofa is on the wall opposite the fireplace and we have two chairs on the window wall and one chair on the other side of the sofa facing the windows and TV.

brokelin | 12 years and 7 months ago

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This is a common problem in brownstone parlors.  I’ve never had a TV in any of mine, but I have seen how it can work.  One way is to put the couch or chairs for TV viewing facint the windows, and the TV can be on a piece of furniture either (1) between the windows, or (2) on either sides of the windows, on the side wall, generally better on the fireplace wall so you aren’t facing out into the hallway when viewing the TV.  The other way is if the open area to the kitchen is not completely open, but contains some wall space between doorways on that wall – in which case the couch or chairs for TV watching have their back to the windows, and face the TV.  It also works, if there is no room on the wall across from the windows, to place it on a piece of furniture on the wall on the other side of the fireplace.  Sometimes these side placements work best if the TV can be swivelled a bit to aim it better for watching.  Avoid mounting the TV directly on the wall – people generally put them too high for ergonomically correct (for the neck) viewing, and they are harder to adjust the angle of for viewing.  Whether you want to watch from the dining table or kitchen can also matter in where you choose to place it, and in how much swivel you want under it.