Looking at an empty room that needs to be filled with furniture or needs to be completely rearranged can be daunting. It can be challenging knowing where to start and where to focus your design. Our recommendation is to start with nothing, then move to the essentials. From there, you can focus on all the little details that make any space your space.

Start with the basics. You’ll need appropriate seating for your space. Understand what you’ll be using the room for and how many people you’ll need to seat at anytime. A smaller sectional and chair like we chose works well with a medium sized family as well as anyone who likes to entertain or have friends over. It can also be helpful to choose your largest pieces in neutral so that when you want a change, you can adapt the smaller pieces to suit your new style without worrying about replacing your sofa.

You may think a rug would come later, but a great area rug can center all of your furniture and provide a basis for your decor. It also helps create a visible space for your room. We went with a colored, textured rug to contrast the cream of the couches. The shag texture provides variance without the use of patterns, so it will be easier to match even with its bold color. Make sure you pick a rug that’s big enough that your seating at least touches the edge, otherwise it’ll be dwarfed by your other pieces (We have an entire blog dedicated to finding the perfect size rug for your space already handy for you).

Next comes the more functional pieces of decor. A good coffee or occasional table can function both as a surface and as a piece of art. Choosing a strong piece that doubles on form and function allows you to establish your style easily. Accent pillows and a nice blanket help to give a neutral colored couch a bit more design as well as making it all the more comfy.

Finally, move on to the purely designed elements. Rather than a few, small pieces, one large piece of wall art can help you establish a tone to a room easily. It’s also important to note that not everything has to match exactly or be in the same set. By matching finishes, the two differently designed lamps work with each other, as well as some of the other metallic table top pieces. Likewise, the end tables match each other, but aren’t identical to the occasional table, which gives a sense of unity without uniformity.