The furniture handbook, p.1
The Furniture Handbook, page 1
“We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us.”
Winston Churchill
English translation copyright © 2024 by Peter Graves
Illustrations on this page, this page, this page, this page, this page copyright © 2022 by Saramara
Cover art copyright © 2022 by Lisa Bengtsson
Infographics copyright © 2022 by Sofia Gustafsson
This page: Poster from the 1930 Stockholm exhibition designed by Sigurd Lewerentz
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.
ClarksonPotter.com
CLARKSON POTTER is a trademark and POTTER with colophon is a registered trademark of Penguin Random House LLC.
Originally published in hardcover in Sweden by Polaris Fakta, Malmö in 2022. Copyright © 2022 by Frida Ramstedt. Published in agreement with Salomonsson Agency.
This book is written based on Swedish norms and standards. Please note that the furniture measurements, norms, and standards in your local territory may deviate from what is stated herein, and always make sure to consider local restrictions and regulations.
The publisher has made every effort to ensure that the information, ideas, measurements, and instructions presented in this book are accurate and safe but will not assume liability for any resulting damage, injury, or loss to either person or property, whether direct or indirect or howsoever arising.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Ramstedt, Frida, author. | Graves, Peter, 1942- translator.
Title: The furniture handbook : a guide to choosing, arranging, and caring for the objects in your home / Frida Ramstedt ; English translation by Peter Graves.
Other titles: Handbok i möblering. English
Description: First edition. | New York : Clarkson Potter, [2024] | Includes index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2023048334 (print) | LCCN 2023048335 (ebook) | ISBN 9780593796153 (hardback) | ISBN 9780593796160 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Interior decoration–Sweden–Handbooks, manuals, etc.
Classification: LCC NK2061.A1 R3513 2024 (print) | LCC NK2061.A1 (ebook) | DDC 749–dc23/eng/20231214
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023048334
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023048335
ISBN 9780593796153
Ebook ISBN 9780593796160
Original book design by Edholm Ullenius, adapted for ebook
Edited graphic design and setting by Gabriella Lindgren
Cover design by Lisa Benk
rhid_prh_6.3_147003908_c0_r0
Handbok i möblering är faktagranskad av sakkunniga experter och författaren har gjort allt för att säkerställa att den information som presenteras i denna bok är korrekt, men inga garantier ges därav. Läsaren bör notera att informationen utgår från den svenska marknaden samt att normer, standarder och regler kan variera geografiskt och förändras över tid. Författaren friskriver sig från allt ansvar för förlust eller skada som eventuellt kan åsamkas läsaren till följd av informationen i denna bok. Vi reserverar oss för eventuella tryckfel.
Contents
Have a Seat
1
Your Body Is Your Yardstick
Anthropometrics
The Ergonomic Balancing Act
Proxemics
2
The Emperor’s New Furniture
Comfort, Work of Art, Concept, or Cash Cow?
Quality Concepts for Furniture
The Right Material and Construction
3
Seating
Chairs
Stools
Barstools
Benches
Office Chairs
Sofas
Armchairs
Rocking Chairs
4
Tables
Dining Tables
Extendable Tables
Tables for Children
Coffee Tables
Small Tables
Desks
Bedside Tables
5
Storage
Wardrobes
Chests of Drawers
Bookshelves
Display Cabinets
Sideboards
Media Cabinets
Hall Furniture and Coatracks
6
Beds
Choosing a Bed
What’s Hiding Inside a Bed?
Mattresses
Headboards
Beds at Different Levels
Children’s Beds
Sofa Beds
7
Materials
Wood
Veneer
Composites
Stone
Leather
Textiles
Metals and Alloys
Glass
8
Timeline
From Poverty to Artistry
Important Milestones in the History of Swedish Design
9
Planning Measurements and Concepts
The Space When in Use
Furnishability
Keep Things Close
ANS Principle
Room Design, Shapes, and Zones
Daylight and Shadows
Contrast Effect
Light Reflectance Value
Labeling in the Furniture Trade
Afterword
Sources and Further Reading
Thanks
_147003908_
This book is written based on Swedish norms and standards. Please note that the furniture measurements, norms, and standards in your local territory may deviate from what is stated herein, and always make sure to consider local restrictions and regulations.
The publisher has made every effort to ensure that the information, ideas, measurements, and instructions presented in this book are accurate and safe but will not assume liability for any resulting damage, injury, or loss to either person or property, whether direct or indirect or howsoever arising.
Have a Seat
What does that actually mean? It’s an offer that can be interpreted in slightly different ways, of course, and you might just as easily say: make yourself comfortable, or make yourself at home. Well-meaning invitations, but not necessarily achievable on every piece of furniture. Nowadays many things are pleasing to the eye while being hopelessly uncomfortable to use. How has that come about, and what can we do about it?
In my first book I shared the basic principles of domestic interior design and the tricks of the trade used by interior designers and stylists. In this book, I have brought together various aspects of the knowledge and experience of furniture designers and makers that are important for us to bear in mind when buying furniture—furniture that is both good to look at and comfortable.
During the last decade, we’ve spent more money on domestic design than ever before. Not only do we acquire more things—and more expensive things—for our homes but also more pieces of furniture that we haven’t tested first. And never before have we had so much to choose from: things from every corner of the world made available to us by the internet and e-commerce. In spite of this, we are given remarkably little reliable guidance as to what we should be thinking about when we buy furnishings, beyond what is fashionable in terms of color and style in a particular season.
These days we often know more about which chairs we think are trendy than which we think are nice. And there are times when we have to double-check whether the chairs of our dreams are actually sittable. Are they individual items of sculpture or are they comfortable? And in that case, for whom? What are the important things to look for when considering a piece of furniture and comparing it with alternatives in order to come to a better informed decision? Especially if we are serious about making our furnishing more personal: after all, we don’t expect a particular style of jeans to fit every bottom, so why do we expect one and the same chair to do so? And, taking the long-term view, if we want to become better consumers, I am convinced that there is just as much need for us to increase our knowledge about this kind of question as to recognize the importance of choosing suitable materials and shorter transport distances.
There are many people who paint a calf as a sun
And are considered to be geniuses.
But if you want to make a decent chair
There aren’t any short cuts.
There are many who write their poems using obscure words,
And people say: How wonderful!
But if you want to make a practical table
You have to think clearly.
The brain can dream without limitation
And the eye can see what it likes.
But there can be no pretense and artifice
In the inborn intelligence of the hand.
Alf Henrikson, “The Hand,” from Collected Poems Part 1 (Atlantis, 1996)
Your Body Is Your Yardstick
It’s not just chance that makes comfortable furniture comfortable and uncomfortable furniture uncomfortable. In this chapter you will learn about the measuring poi nts that trained furniture designers have in mind when designing products, as well as the measurements of your own body that you need to pay attention to when trying out and assessing their work in order to decide which is the optimal match for you and your requirements. Different folks, different strokes, as the saying goes. And the folks are not just different; they come in very different shapes.
Anthropometrics
Our bodies are the yardsticks we always have with us, and it is from that perspective that we learn to judge and assess the proportions of the objects around us. Human measurements are also what are decisive when it comes to the fit and usefulness of the things we create. Statistical data about target groups provide furniture designers with their most important tool when designing a piece of furniture intended to be useful rather than just beautiful.
The science that deals with measurement of the human body and its proportions is called anthropometrics: the word comes from the Greek anthropos (human body) and metron (measuring and the tools used for measuring). By taking the measurements of a sizable number of people, a sufficient body of data is collected to enable us to work out the normal statistical distribution. Or, to put it simply, to get an idea of what the most common measurements are.
Standing Still and Moving
When measuring human bodies, we make a distinction between structural data and functional data. The structural measurements are taken from fixed points of the body when it is motionless, whereas functional data is a measure of breadth of movement, of reach, and of the space we need when we move around or carry out various activities. These functional measurements are sometimes referred to as dynamic, but the important thing is not simply to understand the definitions or the exact measurements but to grasp the basic principles, both of which are important.
It is quite clear, isn’t it, that we take up different amounts of space depending on whether we are walking or standing, or similarly, that we have differing abilities to reach a tall kitchen cupboard depending on how tall we are. So, on the same principle, it is hardly surprising that the same armchair is experienced rather differently by people with different physical shapes or sitting positions.
It’s the Extremes That Rule
Anthropometric measures are used in order to facilitate the development of products that can accommodate as many variations as possible. That means that the aim is to come up with a product that offers a physical fit that allows a majority of the proposed target group to use the particular piece of furniture and design.
Traditionally, it is the size of the male that governs spatial requirements in housing—the height and width of doorways, for instance. On the other hand, females, who generally speaking are shorter, are used to decide on reachability, that is, what should be the maximum height of a shelf or hanging rail in a wardrobe to enable as many users as possible to reach it?
Did You Know?
Homo mensura: Protagoras’s statement, translated as “Man is the measure of all things,” was the basic principle of the furniture school started in 1923 at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. That is probably one of the reasons why twentieth-century Danish design classics have stood the test of time—and still do.
Important Measurements for Interior Designers and Furniture Designers
You only have to look around on the street to recognize that human beings come in different heights. And for each and every height, there is any number of variations in physical shape. There are books and manuals available to furniture designers to explain how best to design items of furniture to make them all comfortable.
The following examples are just some of the measurement points that I have taken from the standard work Human Dimension & Interior Space (1979) by J. Panero. Their purpose is to help determine dimensions and to resolve technical and design questions. Knowing these measurements can be useful for all of us, as they will help us to read and understand the form and functionality of furniture.
Standing Measurements
A. Stature
This is the metric used to establish standard measurements and minimum heights for everything from doorposts and doors to the height above head level for items such as ceiling lamps and shelves.
B. Eye Height When Standing
This is used, for instance, to determine the optimal height for everything from privacy screens and picture hanging to the position of lighting. Even the shortest individuals in the household should be able to see out of the window and see their own reflection in the bathroom mirror.
C. Shoulder Height and Shoulder Breadth
These help to determine the suitable breadth, shape, and height of the backrest on sofas, armchairs, and chairs. And, since most people’s shoulders are wider than their hips, they are also used to determine the seating breadth necessary where several individuals are to sit alongside one another.
D. Elbow Height When Standing
This determines the standard height for counters and kitchen surfaces where people stand to work. It is also the standard for sinks in the bathroom. According to the Consumer Agency book Kitchens: Planning and Equipment (1972), the elbow should be approximately 4 inches (10 cm) above the surface of the counter when the upper arm is allowed to hang down while the lower arm is pointing forward. In Human Dimension & Interior Space (1979), the distance is given more precisely as 3 inches (7.6 cm).
E. Knee Height
Knee height is used, for instance, to determine the most suitable height for the seats of chairs and other seating furniture. It also provides guidelines for the design of tables in order to prevent parts of the frame that support the tabletop from banging against the legs.
F. Vertical Reach
This is used to determine the standard measurement for the highest shelf height in kitchen cupboards, book shelves, display cases, closets, and hat and cap shelves.
G. Maximum Body Depth
The maximum body depth is determined by measuring the horizontal distance from the foremost to the hindmost part of the body when viewed from the side: the foremost point is usually the chest, the hindmost is usually the buttock. This measurement might, for instance, be used to determine the minimum clearance necessary in tight spaces.
H. Maximum Body Breadth
This is the maximum distance across the body when viewed from the front. This measurement is used to calculate the minimum breadth necessary for everything from chairbacks to doorways, but it is very easy to forget the need to take movement (functional measurement) into consideration, with the result that a space might feel constricted.
Sitting Measurements
A. Popliteal Height
The popliteal height is the distance, when seated, between the sole of the foot and the underside of the thigh behind the knee. This data is used to determine the appropriate height, shape, and finish for such items as chairs and upholstered seating.
B. Popliteal Length
This means the horizontal distance from the back of the lower leg/knee to the hindmost point of the buttock. It is used to determine the appropriate front-to-back depth of the seat for items such as chairs, sofas, armchairs, and toilets. You can tell by just looking at them that many armchairs and sofas are far too deep, with the result that when you sit in them you have to sit with your legs outstretched.
C. Thigh Clearance When Sitting
This is the distance from the sitting surface to the top of the thigh. When designing tables, for instance, furniture designers make use of this measurement in order to avoid the user’s legs colliding with the apron or subframe of the table. This measurement can also help you, as a customer, avoid mistakes or disasters: with the tallest member of your family sitting on a chair, measure the distance between the topmost part of his or her thigh and the lowest point of the surface or apron of the table. Is there sufficient space between the two, or do their legs knock into the table?
