Beginners tend to focus on making all the pieces look nice together, rather than focusing on the paths that people will be taking as they move through the space. Circulation patterns deserve as much attention as the furniture groupings themselves. Tracing the lines of traffic is easy when you first start working on a room layout, and much harder to do after the furniture is all settled and you’ve started thinking about drapes and wall treatments.
Trace a line from each entry door to each piece of furniture and focal point. How does a person who comes into the living room get to the sofa? Can a person entering the dining room get to the table? How does someone entering the bedroom get to the bed, the closet, or the desk? Can they get out the other door if they want to?
Be sure and test more than just one path. You don’t just cross from one side of a room to the other, as you do lots of other things in a room besides that. Check a lot of paths to make sure they all work.
Draw furniture dimensions generously, especially where furniture comes into use, such as pulled-out dining chairs, opened cabinet doors, extended dressers and drawers, and the area next to a bed to get in and out at night. The circulation patterns can appear to function well in the layout, and yet create problems when used. The space between pieces may be wide enough to pass, yet feel constricted when used.
If a path is blocked or awkward, don’t just look at reducing the size of a small piece of furniture. Try shifting one larger item to another location or wall, which can have better results than changing a number of small items.
Circulation isn’t the leftover white space after the furniture is arranged; it has an active role that influences the success of the layout. Try not to have paths of movement cross the conversation area between the sofa, loveseat and coffee table. You’ll end up walking back and forth over the same ground constantly.
If you have trouble getting good circulation patterns, try two or three arrangements and compare them. It may be possible to make a path cross another path in the drawing, but that doesn’t mean they all function well. Compare the layouts and look for the one that has the best movement patterns. The best one should stand out. If not, go back and adjust one or more items to give more open spaces and see if you can improve the pattern. A path that works well should feel direct, rather than just adequate for walking. Watch yourself while you draw the line: If you slow down, take an awkward step, or have to make a sharp turn, you need to adjust the layout.