Furniture – the stuff we all ignore until we either miss it, walk into it in the dark, or we see horrendously ugly upholstery on a sofa or a shabby duvet on a bed.

Finding interesting furniture - whether pine or plastic

Surely furniture must have a more interesting side to it? It must be more interesting than just whether it is pine, teak, a chair, coffee table, wardrobe, sofa/settee, or what upholstery it is covered in, surely?

I thought I had found something when I happened across this little piece of information: Furniture: is a noun for the movable objects ('mobile' in Latin languages) intended to be used for various human actions such as seating and sleeping (chair, sofa/settee, bed), to allow objects to be held or used at a convenient height for working upon (desks), or to store things (wardrobes, closets).

Well, I never knew that! However, I am struck by how similar the word 'furniture' is to the Old French fourniture. Fourniture is from the French verb fournir, meaning 'to furnish.' It makes one pine for simplicity!

Ah yes, it seems like in an attempt to make furniture 'more interesting' someone came up with a Latin connection. Some (mainly children) would probably maintain that pine bunk beds are more interesting.

Finding the essentials – a chair, sofa (settee), table, bed, wardrobe (pine or otherwise!)

Interesting or not, the one thing that can be said about furniture is that it is an essential part of life. However, it may be split into aspects that have different priorities to some.

A chair, sofa/settee, dining table or bed might be considered essential, but the upholstery, colour, duvet pattern or whether pine, teak or some material not yet invented, might be a matter of taste rather than necessity.  Maybe it will be a case of practicality. Furniture materials might be determined by whether there are children in the home and the possible need to clean spills etc.

Searching for good furniture and furnishings

Furnishing a home is something that can require much thought. Patterns and designs may be important to some, but equally the size and capacity of a chair, sofa, dining table, bed, wardrobe or the like must suit the requirements of the purchaser and the limitations, if any, of the environment in which it will be placed.

Looking for ideal furniture - if it's pine you want, buy pine!

A 16 place dining table will require quite a spacious dining room and not be suitable for a bedsit – no matter how aesthetically pleasing the style is on the eye. Otherwise, a pine bunk bed may not be the preferred option for a children's bedroom but a necessity if the room is too small for more than one single bed, but with a high ceiling. Or it might allow for a required wardrobe – or even that chair to be placed in the corner, even if not a sofa/settee...

So, furniture is not the simple necessity it may at first appear. Selecting suitable furniture is not the seemingly straightforward process that many will have you believe.

When furniture involves more than one person it becomes a potentially more challenging task to determine what is best. Suddenly considerations may need to be prioritised differently. Questions might be asked such as, 'Why not that colour?' or 'Why that size?' It will depend on the interaction of the decision makers with respect to their perceptions of what the requirements are. Suddenly the style or colour of the upholstery may take on a greater significance.

Does the furniture selected need for there to be a sole connection with either requirements or desire? Or is it better to be a compromise?

Furniture – chairs you sit on it, beds you sleep on it, desks to rest things on it, opportunities to argue over it – is it 'sofa' or 'settee'?. Furniture is something that has so many uses...