How to achieve balance in a room

When I visit clients' homes, they often tell me that their rooms don't feel quite right and they are not sure why. Many times the problem is that the room is out of balance. Sometimes the room feels like it is tipping to one side because of too many heavy pieces of furniture on one side of the room. Other times it is the artwork or accessories that are out of balance. To remedy a balance problem in your room, keep the following tips in mind.

• If there is a large piece of furniture on one side of the room, such as a bookcase or entertainment center, place something large and visually heavy on the other side for balance. For instance, place the sofa directly across from the bookcase, with a large piece of art above it to add height and visual weight.
• Bookcases and entertainment centers can be separated if necessary to achieve a more balanced look. Try placing one bookcase section on either side of a sofa or fireplace instead of keeping all of the sections together on one wall.
• Sectional sofas, too, are sometimes too large for a room and can make the room feel too heavy on one side. If necessary, separate the pieces of the sectional and arrange the pieces across from each other, as you might with a sofa and love seat.
• One way to balance a space is with symmetry. A symmetricalarrangement is one in which both sides of a central dividing line are identical. Matching pairs of items work perfectly. For example, place two matching chairs on either side of the sofa. Or place matching candlesticks on either side of a floral arrangement.  Symmetrical arrangements are easy to create and tend to look a bit more formal.
• Another way to achieve balance is with an asymmetrical arrangement, which brings together equivalent, but not matching pieces. If you have a number of items in varying sizes, shapes and colors, an asymmetrical arrangement would be appropriate. One example would be to place a large vase on one side of the mantel, balanced with a trio of candlesticks on the other side. Asymmetrical arrangements are a little more challenging to create, as you must keep in mind the visual weight of each object, and tend to be more informal.
• Balance a floor lamp on one side of the sofa with a table lamp on the other side. If the table lamp is too short, use a stack of books to elevate it to the appropriate height.
• Use a tall silk tree to balance the height of a bookcase or armoire. A large, vertically oriented mirror or piece of art can also be used.
• If a piece of furniture is too short and more height is needed, hang one or more pieces of artwork above it. Artwork can also be used to extend the width of a piece that may be too narrow for the wall.

This article first appeared in Alameda Newspaper Group papers on Oct. 1, 2005.

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All articles copyright 2003-2008 Anna Jacoby.