Ask the Expert

ANSWER:

There are numerous products on the market that can facilitate space planning, but since furniture can be so different in scale, from contemporary to traditional, you can never be sure that the pieces these provide you with will be equivalent in dimensions to those you are purchasing. The best method is the old fashioned one! Pull out a tape measure and start measuring up all the furniture pieces you are interested in at the store. When you come home, use your dimensioned plans and you should be able to scale the pieces and estimate their location and sizes.

Tip 1 – Don’t buy expensive pieces of furniture if you are unsure that they will fit.

Tip 2 – Buy yourself a hard-hat and chances are the contractor may allow you to enter the home during the construction phase. If this is the case, you can then take green painter’s tape and tape up the blocks of furniture on the floor. This will be an exact indication of whether or not your pieces will fit!

Expert's Bio

Dvira Ovadia is a designer and expert in residential and commercial design. In addition to her interior designer title, Dvira is also a prop stylist, style editor and trend specialist. With a degree in Architecture from the University of Toronto and a Masters in Interior Design from Pratt Institute in New York, Dvira has traveled the globe on a mission to discover the world in the context of design and architecture. Her career has led her to work on an extensive line of design projects and play an integral role in renowned design firms. Most notably, Dvira was the winner of “From The Ground Up”, where she beat out 9,000 applicants and 14 finalists who competed to become Debbie Travis’s Chief Designer. Dvira now manages and runs her own established design practice. For all of your design needs, check out www.dvira.com.