How to Choose Your Furniture Centerpiece by Room

At first, it might seem that choosing a room centerpiece is a no-brainer — bed for the bedroom, dining room table for the dining room, etc. But professional interior decorators tend to put a little more thought into the centerpiece of a room. After all, the furniture centerpiece is the focal point. It doesn't just need to be a practical piece of furniture. It also has the job of tying all of the room's decorative elements together.

If you're interested in getting the most for your room's centerpiece, read on. Our decorating experts have prepared some great tips and advice that you can put into practice in any room in your home.

A furniture centerpiece is the dominating piece of furniture in the room. It does not literally need to be in the center of the room, but obviously, it can. For instance, your bed may be the centerpiece of your master bedroom, but it can still be placed off-center or against a wall. Or your coffee table may occupy the dead center of your living room and still be an accessory to a luxurious leather sofa. For all intents and purposes, the centerpiece will be the furniture you accessorize around to create a balanced design.

You have a few options for a living room centerpiece. You can, of course, make the coffee table your centerpiece and arrange the seating around it. If you have a smaller coffee table and large loveseats and sofas, you may want to reconsider making one of the bigger items the centerpiece of the room.

If your living room has a fixture or detail that's meant to center the room — a fireplace hearth, a bay window, or a tile mosaic, for instance — you will want your centerpiece furniture to compliment that fixture. That doesn't necessarily mean that your furniture centerpiece has to hover directly under it or in front of it, but should work with that feature while maintaining its role as the centerpiece.

Note the commanding presence the Candace Swivel Chair by Bernhardt takes against this textured wall.

In most dining rooms, the table and chairs will be the center of activity and the centerpiece of the room. It's difficult to break this rule, and you shouldn't put too much effort into trying to. There are instances where a cabinet, buffet, or sideboard may claim dominance, but to truly balance the room, your table should be your centerpiece. Here are some suggestions to amplify the decorative significance of your dining room table. 

As is the case with the table in the dining room, in almost all cases, your bed will be the centerpiece of the bedroom. It is possible, of course, that a chest of drawers or armoire can give a smaller or understated bed a run for its money.

The bedframe may be the principal ingredient in establishing the bed as the room's centerpiece, but you can make up for an understated bedframe with accessories like pillows, throws, and patterned bedclothes. It's important that you don't gild the lily by over-accessorizing. Notice the way that all furniture in this room centers around the bed in the room by A.R.T. Furniture Inc. To further establish the bed's title as the room's centerpiece, an ornate chandelier dangles directly above. 

On the other hand, if you want to emphasize a particularly grand dresser or chest, the centerpiece of the room, you have a few options. A large wall mirror over a dresser is functional but can also draw attention to the dresser. Flanking the dresser with large vases or an accent chair can also help center the dresser as the room's dominant piece. 

The following decorator tips are general rules for declaring a centerpiece in any room:

Find stunning room centerpieces at Baer's Furniture showrooms today!