Guides

Practical answers to the questions that come up when you plan a home: what to measure, which sizes are normal, and how much space to leave.

• How to draw a floor plan

  A step-by-step way to draw an accurate floor plan of a home, from a rough sketch and measurements to a finished, furnished plan.

  2 min read

• How to measure a room for a floor plan

  What to measure, in what order and with which tools, so your floor plan matches the real room — including walls, doors, windows, radiators and ceiling height.

  2 min read

• How to read a floor plan

  What the lines, symbols, dimensions and areas on a floor plan mean — walls, doors, windows, scale, and how floor area is measured.

  2 min read

• Small bedroom layouts that work

  Practical layouts for small bedrooms — where to put the bed, how to fit storage and a desk, and which furniture sizes leave room to move.

  2 min read

• Space needed around furniture

  Clearances that make a room comfortable — walkways, space beside beds, in front of wardrobes, around dining tables and in kitchens and bathrooms.

  2 min read

• Standard door and window sizes

  Typical widths and heights of internal doors, front doors, garage doors and windows, with the differences between countries you should know before you plan.

  2 min read

• Standard furniture sizes

  Typical widths and depths of sofas, beds, tables, wardrobes, kitchen units and bathroom fixtures — the same sizes used by the Roomdraft furniture library.

  2 min read

• The kitchen work triangle

  What the kitchen work triangle is, the usual guideline numbers, how it applies to different kitchen layouts, and when to ignore it.

  2 min read