STYLES
OF FURNITURE –
Traditional:
Traditional style furniture making began in Europe.
Traditional style furniture was made from deeply carved,
thick wood, often stained dark, with elaborate hand-carved scrolls and with
ball or claw feet. There were elaborate inlaid sections to the furniture
pieces, in solid brass and exotic materials, such as bone or ivory. Fabrics
were often made from silk in sophisticated patterns, solid colors or
tapestries.
Traditional furniture is most known for its regal style. The
pieces were meant to mimic what the royal monarchies of the time used in their
sitting rooms, parlors and dining rooms. This opulence was allotted to the
general class and substantially altered the appearance of the most simple of
dwellings by affording them the same style of furniture that the regal set had,
even if not identically elaborate.
There were various pieces that both European and American
furniture designers incorporated to adapt to the times. For instance, there
were comfortable and decorative day beds, used for reading .The beds had to be
both decorative and built for comfort. The wood was quality, thick and meant to
last for generations.
Queen Anne chairs had scalloped or shell designs
carved into the wood on top of chairs, trunks and settees. The Federal style
furniture is most recognizable by the carved eagle design. Chippendale style
chairs are sleeker in design and elegant. King Louis IV furniture often
had elaborate claw and ball-foot legs or marble tops.
Contemporary:
While modern furniture refers to a specific school of
design, contemporary furniture refers to a furniture style that is in fashion
today. So, this definition changes as styles change; what was contemporary in
1970 or even 1990 are not necessarily "contemporary" today. (Examples
of styles that could be considered "modern" but not
"contemporary" would be retro or art deco.)
Contemporary furniture encompasses a broad range of styles,
and can be extremely flexible to fit into nearly any home style. Some furniture
trends include Japanese contemporary, American contemporary and European
contemporary.
Like modern furniture, contemporary décor is sleek with
straight, geometric lines. Think simple. You'll find a lot of glass, metal, and
smooth woods (without ornate carvings) in either very light or very dark
colors, in contemporary furniture. This makes contemporary furniture easy to
clean and to care for, and it can fit well in small, modern spaces such as
studio or loft apartments and smaller homes.
Black, whites and neutrals like tan and soft pastels
dominate, with brighter colors in accessories like pillows and artwork. Linen,
leather and other natural fabrics are used frequently in contemporary styles.
Modern:
Modern furniture is typically
classified as furniture designed in post-World War II U.S. or Europe, but that
doesn't mean that all furniture designed today qualifies as "modern."
Typically, modern furniture is designed in a way to make
your life easier – appearance is important, but it is not the only thing
considered when creating it. These days, modern furniture is meant to be
something practical that you have in your home due to its ease of use and
comfort. Things with multiple uses like storage beds are a great example of
this. Oftentimes, this style is great for apartments or smaller rooms because
it is easy to find pieces that are more compact. When you compare modern and
traditional furniture styles, traditional furniture tends to be much larger and
bulkier.
One of the most commonly recognized features of modern
furniture is its simplicity. These kinds of furnishings are much uncomplicated
with straight, clean angles. You’re less likely to find sweeping curves or
rounded edges when looking at a modern aesthetic. Additionally, modern
furniture is made from a variety of materials and is usually quite light.
Things like light colored woods, wrought iron, or laminated wood are just a few
of the materials found in modern furniture.
Modern furniture uses neutral colors like black, white, and
brown, sometimes drifting into red. Bright colors are used more to accent
modern furniture rather than being used on the entire piece. The same goes for
fun patterns – implement them into your furniture in a more restrained way with
accent pillows or throw blankets.
FACTORS
INFLUENCING THE FURNITURES –
Climatic condition:
One must pay attention of the local weather condition. It is
important to take into account the type of weather you are experiencing at your
area. Some areas are too cold, while some area is neutral in temperature. This
in turn, results to an uneasy and uncertain situation because your furnishing
needs to be situated correctly in a place where it does not experience sudden
wear and tear due to the climate.
Excess heat and dryness can cause wood to split and/or
crack. Keep your furniture away from all direct heat sources like radiators,
wood stoves and air ducts. If you need to put your furniture near a heat
source, use a shield or diverter to deflect or direct heat away. Wood is most
likely to check (crack) when the climate in your home suddenly changes from hot
and humid to cold and dry. Frequent and sudden changes in humidity and
temperature are especially bad.
Here are a few suggestions for dealing with humidity:
(1) Furniture can best handle temperature and humidity
changes when they occur gradually. Sudden changes like opening a vacation home
or putting items into non-climate controlled storage in winter directly from
your warm home can be problems for your furniture.
(2) When air conditioning your home, it is best to keep the
intake of outside humid air to a minimum. Don't open the windows to "air
out" the house on fair days.
(3) Add a humidifier or vaporizing unit to your heating
system to help stabilize the humidity level during the cold dry months of
winter.
(4) Use dehumidifiers in damp rooms and during prolonged
rainy seasons to remove excess moisture from the air.
Family needs and preferences:
One must think of them and their family’s comfort and
convenience, by selecting furniture that accommodates the capacity of their
household. You must consider prioritizing what kind of furnishing best suits
your family. Choose wisely by planning your financial costs and inquiring about
the warranty.
Specific function of your spaces; knowing what function and
purpose the particular sofa of your choice will be used, is practically a good
thing. This involves your responsibility in keeping track that you are not
leading astray from your goals. There are really times when people tend to buy
a furnishing, not because of its function in the room, but only because of its
aesthetic value. It often results to impractical buying that is irrelevant and
illogical.
Evaluate and precisely measure your area. The furnishing of
your choice also needs to be compatible with your areas measurement. Where you
are going to place the sofa, chair, or table, needs to be properly measured
firsthand. This is in order for you to avoid unnecessary consequences in the
future.
Availability:
Determine where you should be buying the furniture from. There
should be a number of providers who may be able to extend their assistance to
you. However, never trust all of these establishments to offer you the kind of
items which you expect to get. The best thing that you can do is ensure that
these are quality providers first before you start shopping from them.
Canvass several stores before buying. Selecting your
furnishing entails a patience of consistently looking for bargains in the
prices. Perhaps a local store sells your prospect furnishing in a price that is
not so considerable to imagine, and then you discover about another shop or
boutique, that givesa better one.
Principles of design:
Ensure that these items which you will be getting are not
only good in aesthetic value, but are also considered to have their very own
practical importance as well. Remember that you are not only adding these
fixtures for aesthetic purposes, but for their practical usage too. Thus, never
pick anything which does not have any particular use within as they may just
crowd the area even more.
Know your style. Different designs and patterns are
available in many shops, even online. Determining your own style helps you
accomplish a fulfilling purchase. This is because the type of style you choose
clearly reflects back unto you. Perhaps you are a classy person, and you would
want an antique chair made from Victorian origins. Maybe, you are a minimalist
by heart, and you just want to go for the typical black contemporary chair. Knowing
your style helps a lot.
When buying furniture, you will need to consider the amount
of space that is present within your home. You must understand that you have to
take note of how spacious or not these places are. You need to do some
evaluations so you can pick out those sizes which will not unnecessarily eat up
the living spaces within, but will just fill in gaps where they are most
needed.
Financial limit:
Determine your budget. Your selection of these purchases has
to be grounded in your financial plans. Buying furnishings you cannot afford,
or perhaps, chairs or sofas that are too impractical by choice, only makes you
displeased. It is deemed helpful to fully plan ahead about your monetary costs.
Consider the prices in which the furniture is being offered
at. As a buyer, you would prefer if these fixtures are being offered at
reasonable figures. You want to research how much these figures are as well.
This should allow you to make comparisons with other stores around so you can
choose the better deal.
Find out about the furnishings warranty. Services like these
serves as an insurance whenever your furnishing would decay or deteriorate on
unexpected moments. By ensuring about the available warranty of your prospect
furniture, you save additional monetary costs in the future.
BY
M.DARNESHREE
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR DESIGN AND DECOR
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