Plan Your Space Without Moving the Furniture

From Coral Nafie

If you're painting a wall or two or recovering a chair, you can probably make the decisions by looking the options. But if you're planning a remodel or major redesign, it's a good idea to have a floor plan on paper for reference.

It used to be that you'd have to use graph paper and cut out shapes to move around the paper to work on the furniture layout. You'd locate windows and doors and then try to figure out if your pieces will fit in the space you have. Or you might have drawn the floor plan several times on the graph paper, erasing and changing as pieces fit or didn't fit.

Today, all that paper planning can be done with decorating and design software and online programs.

It's not all fun and games, though. You'll still have to take careful measurements and place the windows and doors where they are.

But you'll get lots of help from the software, determining the bulk of pieces, that footprint they'll make on the space, and

Needless to say, all programs are not created equal, and some of them are difficult to use, the choices are limited, or colors are not accurate when printed out on your printer. But on the whole, the software design programs make the work of space planning and room design easier and more efficient.

If working on the computer is not your favorite, you might want to check out The Home Quick Planner. This kit contains hundreds of precut, 1/4-inch scale, reusable peel and stick furniture and architectural symbols, plus a Floor Plan Grid. You can use the planner to knock down walls and move furniture, fixtures, cabinets, windows and doors.

For lots of options, check out some of these Home Design Software links. Or, to experiment with designing a room online, visit Better Homes and Gardens Home Design Software site.