Enhancing the Living Room

With the rise in real estate business, the concept of proper furnishing of a house with high-end furniture is gaining popularity like never before. Of all the rooms, people tend to pay special attention while furnishing their living room as it is the room where family, guests, friends, and visitors are greeted. Living room is labelled as a versatile area and people often believe that one’s living room reflects their personal style and the sense of architectural presence.

The increasing trend and rising consciousness of the general mass in opting for high-end furniture is evident by the growing number of furniture showrooms in the valley.Most showrooms boast of providing value for money, and customers are mostly lured by the trendy furniture at affordable price.Homely Furniture, established in 2010 by Durga B Shrestha, is the sole authorised dealer of international furniture brand Quan U Furniture. “QuanU Furniture is manufactured by using first-class German and Italian equipments like Homag, Holza, Weeke, and Elmag,” says Upeksha Raya, interior designer of Homely Furniture.

“A well furnished living room defines your outlook and gives off the best possible impression of you to the outside world,” opines Raya, adding that those with higher purchasing power and a desire for style opt for imported products.

According to Raya, basic furniture for a living room are sofa, coffee table, hall unit, chest of drawers, chairs and entertainment furniture.Beside these, accessories like aquarium, lamps, photo frame, and fireplace screens add visual comfort and elegance to a room.“Our products not only score on looks but are also durable. The use of Medium Density Fireboard (MDF) and High Density Fireboard (HDF) with UV protected paint, makes our furniture 10 times more durable than other brands,” claims Raya.

The price of living room furniture varies from Rs 20,000 to Rs 2,17,000.

Along with furniture, flooring and curtains are also equally important in making the living room graceful and stylish. According to traders, most people prefer to use laminate flooring in their living rooms.

“Curtains add to its aesthetic value and help highlight the furniture and accessories in the room,” says Amit Agrawal, proprietor of Dreams, The Furnishing Centre at AT Complex, New
Plaza. According to Agrawal, double curtains and drapes are more suitable for a living room. "Customers mostly opt for plain and striped double curtains and drapes these days, perhaps owing to escalating influence of the housing concept and Indian serials," says Agrawal.

The cost of double curtains range from Rs 300 to Rs 800 per metre."The colour of the curtains should be in contrast to the wall, meaning if the wall colour is light then dark curtains should be chosen and vice versa," says Agrawal. Most people choose curtains that fall between the price range of Rs 500 to Rs 600 per metre. He further added, curtains and drapes with floral prints go well with traditionally decorated living rooms, while curtains and drapes with geometric prints are more suited for a modern living room. Also popular are curtains from GM, Eden and Dicitex. Dreams furnishing has been involved in interiors of model houses for Civil Housing and Prestige Apartments in last few months.

source: The Himalayan Times(2010),"Enhancing the Living Room",The Himalayan times: Property Plus, 12 Dec 2010