Home Decor Tips: The Living Room

Unless the recent change of seasons has caused you to hibernate in your bedroom, chances are when you’re at home you spend much of your waking time in the living room. If such is the case, you want it to look good.

You want it not only to look good for yourself but to impress guests (we want the same thing). Your house is an extension of yourself, and the way you choose to decorate it can show a lot about who you are.

Through our experience selling furniture, we’ve gotten pretty good at figuring out how to use your furniture wisely to make the spaces it occupies look the best they possibly can.

You know how they say that a picture says 1,000 words? Well, we think a living room sofa and other furniture choices do, too. In other words, your living room furniture sums up your home’s style, and if you think it’s time for an update, check out these tips to help you plan more effectively:

Trends Come and Go

Timeless, classic decor is always relevant. Get the most life out of your living room by keeping it simple and traditional. That doesn’t mean you can’t implement trendy touches in here and there—in fact, we recommend that. Just don’t go all out fully remodeling your living room to align with a style that you won’t like in two or three years. Doing so just makes the homeowner look insecure. Mixing and matching timelessness with trendiness is very tasteful if you do it right.

Keep the main pieces of the room classic—sofa, chairs, coffee table, and entertainment center. Then accessorize with things that suit your style at the moment; pillows, area rugs, items to display on the mantelpiece, candles, vases and whatever other relatively inexpensive items that can be easily replaced as your tastes shift.

Alternatively, have only real mementos and collectibles, shifting their display by theme or season: holiday, spring, etc. Store items not on display in an accent cabinet.

Use Color Wisely

Remember the relative or co-worker with the loud clothes? Colors can scream at you and your guests if you don’t choose wisely. Generally, to present a higher class statement, start your living room palette with neutral colors. Think earth tones, maroons, grays… almost the same scheme as the clothes in a finer men’s store. These not only calm the people in the room but form the perfect background for the spots of bright color you DO showcase in your living to add what designers call “pop.”

Maybe you have a gray reclining sofa with muted red pattern accent pillows, a different patterned oversize storage ottoman in an elegant neutral taupe, and a bright canary-yellow vase on the table next to them. Set that all against a pastel blue area rug.

That’s just one idea, but the options are limitless. Just keep the big stuff classic, and from there feel free to play with ways to accent them.

Of course we hope these suggestions get you started on the living room you want. That said, we understand are many different personality types, and a different style to suit each of them. Just remember: keep things generally simple and stay true to who you are. If you follow that mantra, your home will look stunning in no time. And if you need the furniture to make it happen, our St. Stephens Church, VA store is here to help.

Choosing the Right Mattress

Maybe you haven’t thought about it, but the bed is the piece of furniture that you probably spend the most time on in your entire home. It’s also where you go to get your well-earned rest after a long day, so it’s important that you choose a bed that can provide you with the comfort and rest that you need and deserve. It’s also the one item in the home that many people prioritize cost-wise over other furniture, so we think it’s important for you to know where your money is going. That’s why, this time, we thought it would be useful to talk about how to choose the right mattress, the thing that makes (or breaks) a bed.

There are various types of mattresses, and the only way for you to figure out which one works the best for you is try them out. Take your time, as this is a decision you shouldn’t make lightly. Here are a few popular examples.

Memory Foam Mattresses

Using lab-developed synthetic foam developed for the space program, a memory foam mattress molds to the shape of your body when you climb into bed. That means the mattress supports your entire body while you sleep, and that there is slight pressure (a good thing) on every point of your body, as opposed to all of the pressure going to just some parts like it does with “regular” mattresses. A lot of people love these mattresses and so are willing to pay a little extra for them. Memory foam used to warm up during the night, but if you’re someone who needs coolness to sleep well, this is no longer an issue. Advances in foam down to the cellular level mean today’s memory foam mattresses feature airflow. That and moisture-wicking covers guarantee you a perfect temperature-controlled night’s rest.

Various Mattress Tops

While a mattress’s core, be it foam, innersprings, or a hybrid of the two, is firm to support you, there’s a wide variety of descriptions for the softness of a mattress top, such as plush, pillowtop, or Euro top. This is an important consideration, because some people — due to back problems, for example — either require a very firm or a very soft surface to relax on. And outside of medical issues, everyone has a personal preference based on what they are used to.

Sleep Number Beds

This kind of bed has inflatable air pressure chambers inside the mattress. This gives you the ability to customize the firmness of your mattress depending on what you need and want — it’s also great if at some point, for example, the doctor advices you to change the firmness of the mattress you sleep on. However, sleep number beds may cost a bit more, especially if you get a bed that can tilt up or recline.

At our mattress store in St. Stephens Church, VA, we love to go out of our way to find the sleep solution for every customer. Got mattress questions? Just ask!

Be Yourself with the Perfect Bedroom Decor for the Autumn of 2018

It goes without saying, but we’re excited about furniture. Now with autumn rolling through—the leaves changing and the temperature dropping—it’s only natural that we turn our focus and our excitement towards the bedroom again. 

If there’s a trick to decorating the perfect bedroom, it’s this: knowing what you like, and knowing what’s available. So on the eve of this year’s Halloween, ask yourself what you want to bring out and accentuate the most about yourself, and how you can do it through your existing decor.

Don a Costume Any Day of the Year at Your Bedroom Dresser and Mirror

Halloween may only be one night of the year, but here at the Red Barn Furniture Outlet, near St. Stephens Church, Virginia, we happen to think any day is a reason to dress up and celebrate you. While some costumes belong in your bedroom closet, the ones you wear every day to work belong in a brand-new bedroom dresser.

You deserve a matching dresser and mirror that work together: giving you ample drawer space and the ideal vantage to gauge your newest look before you head out into the world. Weigh how you want to feel as you dress yourself—formal or fun; serious or spontaneous—and ensure your furniture reflects this.

Reinvent Yourself and Your Bedroom with an Antique or Modern Nightstand

Although it may be small—and often goes overlooked—the nightstand is an essential piece of bedroom furniture that you can’t afford to pass up. Beyond being tiny and beautiful, the bedroom nightstand serves as the perfect platform for an accent lamp, or charging station for your tablets, laptops and smartphones.

Between the look of weathered wood and polished faux stone, you have plenty of options when it comes to your style of nightstand, and the mood you want to infuse into your room. Because of its size, it’s easy to integrate this valuable piece of decor into any bedroom, regardless of how much space you have to utilize.

The Panel Headboard Can Singlehandedly Make Your Bed and Bedroom Stately

If there’s one piece of bedroom decor that can transform your entire space, and the bed that you sleep on, it’s a stylish panel headboard. Rest under the majesty of your own queen or king sized headboard, in a traditional or modern style, and you will appreciate the difference overnight. You simply can’t compare a space with and without one—which is why we recommend the former.

Visit the Red Barn Furniture to Stylize Your Autumn Bedroom

Whenever you find yourself itching for a new bedroom dresser or nightstand that fits you, pay us a visit at the Red Barn Furniture Outlet near St.Stephens Church, Virginia.  

The Latest and Sharpest Office Furniture: Guaranteed to Keep You Happily On Task

You may or may not know it, but home office furniture’s been changing in a big way lately. Your desk, which was always something you sat in front of, can now adjust so you can stand, if you want to stretch your legs while you’re working. And because the desktop and computer tower have gone the way of the dodo, practically speaking, we’re rethinking how we work, and what we need at home or in the workplace.

On that note, we here at Red Barn Furniture Outlet—your friendly furniture source in St. Stephens Church, VA just northeast of Aylett—want to review some of the latest and sharpest pieces of office furniture on the market today.

Start Standing at Your Adjustable Height Desk

By far one of the coolest innovations in office furniture we’ve seen in years, an adjustable height desk does what other desks wish they could do: raise and lower itself, automatically, at the push of a button. Personally, we think any desk that adjusts itself deserves to be praised, not least of all because it’s good for your back, and your brain. Being seated for 8 hours straight ain’t all that healthy; and you don’t need a doctor to tell you that.

Compose a Song or Some Sweet Lyrics at a Your Own Writing Desk

When you do sit down, why not do it a table that’s designed specifically for that? We enjoy good and sturdy writing desks specifically for that reason, because they’re stylish, and ideal for writing down a thought without the distraction of a computer or laptop. See yourself studying more than writing? Plenty of office desks now come with large bookcases, giving you easy access to all the physical texts you need.

An Executive Desk to Dominate Your Office Space

Whether you work at home or in a workplace, just think how much bossier you’d feel with an oak or walnut oval desk of your own. Being about ten times more elegant than any other desk on the market today, an executive or oval desk can redefine who you are, as well as how much storage space you have at your disposal. Imagine a bookshelf being built-in to the front of your desk or a pair of cabinet drawers gliding out, just for you.

If you find yourself intrigued by some of this modern office furniture, get yourself down to Red Barn and take advantage of a great deal.

Reinventing Your Living Room Upholstery for the Autumn Season

As the leaves slowly but surely change their colors, Mother Nature is giving us that cue again to transition into the autumn. What that means for each of us may differ, but when it comes to our homes and our living spaces, we think it should include a healthy reassessment of what we own and how we furnish the hub of the home—the living room. With so many new styles and options always making themselves available, you should take advantage of this seasonal shift to assess what’s hot and what’s not for you in the fall of 2018. 

A New Sectional Sofa from August Onward

In this seasonal perusal of your living room, it may in fact dawn on you that you need yourself a new sectional sofa. When it comes to this piece of upholstery, you can reshape the mood of the room, and your range of motion, just by carefully selecting the tones and feel of the fabric—be it plushy or leathery. Perhaps the allure of a chocolate colored sectional sofa calls to you with all of its beautiful contemporary curves; or your eye glides more gracefully along the sleek lines of a more vintage designed left-facing sectional.

Rock into the Autumn on a Power Lift Recliner

If you have a sectional sofa, but no power recliner, how much do you actually see yourself and your friends lounging in your living room? As we head into August and onward, you may want a power lift recliner that’s equal parts cool and warm, comforting you with its high-designs. Your rocker recliner can tailor itself to the rest of your living room furniture, while still retaining a clean and cozy profile. When you’re shopping with us, there’s no reason why your power recliner can’t enhance your aesthetics and maximize your comfort, courtesy of microfibers.

Your New Futon Sofa Will Carry You Comfortably

Ask around, and we guarantee you’ll hear that the futon sofa is the sexiest piece of furniture for your living room, and homes in general in 2018. Available in soft fabrics, as well as leather, any futon sofa oozes an aura of the old-school. You’ll be hard-pressed not to spend your evening on the adjustable futon—and then convert it into a makeshift bed for yourself. When the living room of your home possesses one of these classic pieces of furniture, relaxing is that much easier. 

Wherever you see an opportunity to upgrade your living room furniture, seize upon it now by visiting the Red Barn Furniture in St. Stephens Church, Virginia. Once autumn rolls around, you and your family will be thanking us. 

Personalize Your Bedroom Furniture: Mirrors, Nightstands and More

In this day and age, some people still have it in their heads that decorating a bedroom begins and ends with your bed and your mattress. While that may do it for the minimalist, not all of us like living with the bare essentials. When you cease looking at your bedroom furniture like one of history’s Stoic philosophers, you’ll realize just how much potential there is to decorate, style, and grow—be it with a headboard, mirror or nightstand. So suspend your minimalism for just a minute, as we explain our love for a few oft-neglected classic pieces of bedroom furniture. 

The Art of Selecting the Best Headboard for Your Bed

By now, minimalist or not, you’ve undoubtedly seen your share of headboards adorning beds on TV or inside department stores. Before you even dream of buying one, your first thought should be: what size bed do I actually sleep on? Laugh if you like, but a not-so-insignificant percentage of the population would be hard-pressed to accurately guess the size of their bed if you asked at random.

With the giggles of the way, ask yourself: do I lean towards a contemporary or old school design of the Old World? When in fact you do go shopping for a headboard on sale, take note of details like moldings and tones.

The Nightstand to Naturally Complement Your Bedroom

Off your bed, and onto the floor of your bedroom, you’ll find a piece of bedroom furniture that we lovingly call the nightstand. Best kept on the side of your room where you sleep, your nightstand is the ideal spot for a lamp or herbal tea cup—even a bit of old-fashion paperback reading. A fair bulk—if not all—of the nightstands we sell come equipped with extra drawers for storage, too.

Beyond the practical, nightstands are a subtle, and inexpensive way of using the space inside of your room, without wasting it.

Bedroom Mirrors to Reflect and Augment Your Aesthetics

If you happen to be living in a bedroom that’s bereft of windows, a bedroom mirror could be your favorite piece of furniture soon. Often paired with a dresser, this reflective piece of decor gives a much-appreciated peak at your appearance before you sleep, and as you’re readying yourself in the morning.

Give yourself a visual treat by positioning a painting or piece of artwork directly across from your bedroom mirror. 

Personalize Your Bedroom Decor By Visiting Our Store!

Thankfully, for anyone living in St. Stephens Church, VA, personalizing your bedroom is as easy as visiting our furniture store. 

Motion Furniture 101: A Brief Guide for New Shoppers

While deep, stuffed upholstery rightly has a fine reputation for offering a most welcome respite for your tired body after a stressful day, motion furniture such as reclining sofas, rocker or glider reclining chairs, or power recliners offers more support, adding infinitely more value to your purchase and giving you at least a decade of wonderful service relieving achy joints. With literally hundreds of options in a showroom such as ours, and with jargon confusing to the novice motion furniture shopper, choosing the right kind of reclining sofa or chair may seem daunting but need not be. Here is our short guide to finding the right motion furniture for your needs.

Recliner or Tilt Motion?

The recliner option in motion furniture gives you a footrest and, normally, a choice of up to 3 positions: upright, “TV” midway between upright and fully open, and entirely reclined. These seats require less floor space to unfold than your tilt-back models, whose moving backs can be extended to any reclining position, so you have a trade-off between a full relaxation experience and square footage in your living room. Carefully measure the available space in your room to make your selection. Also, tilt-back chairs don’t come with footrests so you would need an ottoman.

You Have the Power!

Power lift recliners understandably cost a bit more but arguably are worth that for their versatility alone. These offer a gentler reclining motion, more possible positions, and a smooth ride back to the upright setting. Some motion furniture features power headrests to boost neck support. Manual recliners, on the other hand, are simpler so they are less likely to need servicing.

The Importance of Lumbar Support

Especially if you are nursing a chronic injury, sufficient support for your back, often in the lower part of your spine, in medical parlance the lumbar region, is essential for you to get the most out of your new motion furniture. Features to look for include adjustable lumbar support. If that region of your spine is particularly bothersome, look into a seat in which there is no gap between your lower back and the chair or sofa when you sit in it.

Gliders vs. Rockers: What’s the Difference?

Although gliders and rockers may seem virtually the same to the uninitiated, they differ significantly based on the kind of motion you prefer. The glider actually offers you a smoother “ride” because it contains a sliding mechanism attached to a sturdy base, as opposed to the rockers’ swaying motion on curved pieces at the ends of the legs.

While we at Red Barn Furniture Outlet offer you this online guide as a service, of course we hope you drop by our showroom in St. Stephens Church, VA just northeast of Aylett to sample our motion furniture models to find the sofa or chair that best makes you say “aah.”

Choose the Perfect Reclining Sofa for You and Your Guests

When you are shopping for a living room reclining sofa, consider your body’s needs for support and comfort, the amount of available floor space so the sofa has enough room to swing out smoothly, and your room’s style plus any long-term plans regarding moving so you can best select your reclining sofa’s style.

Be Sure to Have Enough Back Support
Too many of us have lingering back injuries, be they from high-school or college athletics, unfortunate accidents, or simply the ravages of time slowly taking their toll. Whatever the reason for your sore back, including simply a hard week on the job or strain from weekend gardening or hoops, a living room reclining sofa with enough support for your body is essential for your immediate and long-term comfort. An investment in a reclining sofa with enough lumbar support would be wise. Ask your health care professional’s advice, and once you know what your back needs, come to our showroom where our staff will direct you to our selection. Here you can try sitting in and opening different sofas to find your ideal fit. If you choose well, expect your new living room reclining sofa to last at least 10 years.

Accurately Measure Your Living Room Floor
Spare yourself the aggravation of a return by carefully measuring your living room floor space in order to learn how large a reclining sofa your space can accommodate, remembering of course to allow about 4 feet of extra space to the depth for when you and your guests feel the need to stretch and chill out. If your back can’t take the crawling required to do this, ask a partner, family member, or friend, perhaps promising extra time on the new reclining sofa with snacks.

Aim for Stylistic Harmony
You might have a favorite style, from curved Victorian flourishes, to sleek, clean mid-century modern, to bold, almost overstuffed luxury in contemporary designs. Well and good, and many new homes can accommodate either or even all of these. But when you are choosing your living room reclining sofa, consider any unique design aspect to your current home that you would like to complement, as well as whether you will be moving in 5, 10, or more years. Think long-term.

Stop by our St. Stephens Church, VA showroom soon to sample our living room reclining sofas!