Arrange furnit

Personal comfort should not be compromised when creating seating Settings for guests

DESIGN OF THE TIMES

DID YOU ever notice that
we all walk around in a
transparent bubble? It is like
a second skin that expands —
and contracts; it forms the
border arcund our person.

When we feel fearful after park-
ing our car in a dimly lit garage
with half a mile between us and the
exit sign. the bubble expands in
split seconds.

If it had color, it would turn into
a red alarm signal. If it had a voice,
it would warn any stranger to stay
away.

It contracts a litle as we enter
the elevator and expands again
when a stranger enters, compelling
us to stand in one comer with our
eyes glued to the numbers above
the door.

Finally, it shrinks until it fits our
skin when we hug a loved one.
And what does this have to do with
furniture arrangement?

I was recently invited to a small
and friendly get-together — smali
and friendly turned out to be wo
acquaintances and many people I
had never seen,

Arriving late, the only available
seat was — naturally -~ the centre
of the three-seater couch. My space
bubble wanted to expand to ut least
four feet. but couldn't because }
was the centre piece, sandwiched

_ between two strangers.

It occurred to me that three-

seater couches are for the birds.

NEWS photo Mike Waketicid

FURNITURE GROUPINGS should be created with the user in mind. People need their individual
space and smail intimate arrangements will make them feel more comfortable in your home.

they seat two comfortably and
make a third uncomfortable.

Two people in conversation usu-
ally prefer to sit at right angles or
across from each other. We need to
see the other person’s body lan-
guage, facial expressions and eyes
when we talk.

If we sit next to one another on a
couch, we have to turn our head or
twist our body.

{ made another discovery at the
get-together: the size of our space
bubble varies with personality and
culture.

AS my eyes wandered across the
room, I noticed two men who
seemed to be performing a slow
kind of dance. One used his hands
to underline his words; the other,
obviously feeling an intrusion into
his personal space — moved back,

The first followed. the other
retreated, and so on, In the cool
north we consider a distance of one
arm's length comfortable: the dis-
tance seems to shrink in many hot-
ter countries.

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So how does the awareness of
invisible bubbles translate into seat-
ing arrangements that mike us feel
comfortable?

When more than five or six peo-
ple are gathered, several small seat-
ing groups seem to work best. A
few occasional or dining chairs
around a small table can be very
inviting when the arrangement is
set up near a plant or window and
iHuminated by a pool of light no
larger than the table.

Fireplaces and intimately fit
areas form an attraction that proba-
bly goes back to our ancestry.

Separate seating areas with just
three chairs also climinate the need
to combine chairs and armchairs.

Have you ever been at ease on a
chair next to someone in an arm-
chair? It makes me want to crouch
so [can talk to the other person at
eye level.

We can place a drink on the cof-
fee table when it is 14 to 36 inches
away, and we are comfortable in
conversation when seating is

ar
INTERIORS
a
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988-7328

arranged so that the farthest dis-
tance between two people is less
than eight feet.

Beyond that we either smile
politely or shout to make ourselves
heard.

A clear path to the table that
offers food and snacks will make it
easier for guests to circulate. Here
too, lighting plays a major role. It

Ry

66 Our homes
should first and
foremost make us
feel comfortable. 99

should be at or below eye level and
preferably very close to seating
areas, iluminating a surface rather
than faces.

Occasionally, even a delicate
plant will forgive a spotlight on the
floor if it produces an interesting
pattern on the ceiling.

Like our pets, we are territorial
Creatures. My cat owns a whole
variety of favorite spots and with-
draws in a huff when one of them is
occupied.

It reminds me of the fact that
even if we go out of our way to
make our guests comfortable, our
homes should first and foremost
make us fee] comfortable. That
includes fer each of us our own ter-
ritory — a favorite armchair, the
wide seat in the dormer window, or
the hobby room in the basement --
a place we can call our own territo-
ty. a place where we can discard
the invisible bubble and feel secure.

Edith Saatkamp is an interior
designer who teaches design and
decoration on the North Shore.

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