20 space-saving ideas for compact city flats, from hidden wall desks to corner sofabeds Almost half of Londoners would describe their home as a 'large bedsit', so we find the best space-saving furniture to make the most of city living.. Wednesday 6 July 2016 15:12 BST Big ideas for small spaces Making the best use of space is an increasingly tough challenge for half of the world's population - city dwellers. In London, the average one-bedroom new home is now the size of a Jubilee line carriage (495 sq ft) and even the average family home has shrunk by 22 sq ft over the past decade. This growing shortage of space means that only half of Londoners consider their homes big enough to entertain visitors. Today, modern furniture design is often space-conscious as well as being aesthetically pleasing. From truly comfortable sofa-armchairs and corner sofabeds, to hidden wall desks and console tables that magically open out to seat up to 10 people, multi-functional furniture should also be long-lasting and beautiful.
is asking aspiring designers to focus on space-saving, multi-tasking furniture ideas for modern-day living for their annual Emerging Talent Award. The winning design will be chosen by customers and produced and sold on their site within 12 months. Ruth Wassermann, head of design, says: "We now need furniture to work really hard, especially as rising house prices mean it's not unusual to have a small flat, but a substantial income." When buying furniture Wassermann recommends first thinking about how you use your space. She advises using masking tape on the floor to create an outline of the piece you're thinking about buying to get a good feel for how it will fit in with both your home and your lifestyle. "Go with your gut in the first place - what you buy for your home should be an aesthetic choice as well as a functional one," she says. "If you're renting or buying your first home, veer towards practicality - think about what you can take with you or what you might leave behind.
But if you're buying a piece of furniture for your forever home, go for what you really love." Follow us on Twitter @HomesProperty and FacebookWhen shopping for the best ergonomic office chair, getting a chair that fits the user is of paramount importance. Not every chair labeled "ergonomic" has all the adjustment features necessary to truly be ergonomic. This guide will help you make a better selection.Use our chair selector tool and one of our fit experts will respond with personalized recommendations. We love to help people find exactly what works for their needs, and we typically respond within 1 business day. The mechanism controls how the seat and back move. It includes controls that are typically levers under the seat that the user can push, pull, or twist to adjust the chair. Some models may offer more than one choice of mechanism for the same chair. These two mechanisms are the most popular: Multifunction Mechanism This mechanism is preferred due to the wide range of adjustability it offers.
The back and seat angles adjust independently of each other as well as independent of the tilt. This allows you to lock the chair into an infinite number of positions. This type of mechanism will rock/tilt back from the center of the seat. The Neutral Posture NPS800 and the Bodybilt J3507 are two examples of chairs that offer this type of mechanism. Synchro-Tilt Mechanism - The seat and back are linked and tilt simultaneously as you lean back (typically the seat back tilts back two degrees for every one degree of seat pan tilt). Since there is less adjustability with this mechanism it is not as ergonomic as the multifunction mechanism. A chair with a synchro-tilt mechanism should have a waterfall front or flexible front seat edge or it may press into the back of the thighs when reclining. This type of mechanism also rocks/tilts from the center of the seat. The Raynor Ergohuman and the Allseating Cpod Chair are two examples of chairs that offer this type of mechanism. These are less common but may be appropriate for many applications:
Task This is the most basic mechanism and adjustments may be limited to just seat height, seat height plus seat depth, or seat height, seat depth and back angle. Task mechanisms do not offer tilt. As this discourages movement, a task mechanism is best suited for lighter duty such as a home office or conference room. Two examples of this type of chair would be the Ergocentric Saffron Apt and the Raynor Vigor RG33 Task Chair. The backrest should slide up and down to allow the lumbar curve of the chair's back rest to fit into your lower back (lorthotic) curve. A height adjustable lumbar support is a common substitution. This will also help fit the chair to your body type. Reclining in your chair supports the weight of your upper body and thus relieves some weight from you lower back. Many chairs have a locking back angle adjustment that will let you find your most comfortable reclined or upright position and then lock that position. Both lumbar disc pressure and back muscle activity are lowest with a supported recline angle of 110° - 130°.
Reclined postures often are preferred (Grandjean, 1988). This adjustment knob allows you to adjust the amount of force required to recline to your body weight. The Humanscale Freedom Chair and Liberty Chair are counterbalanced to the weight of the user and do not require a tension adjustment. The best lumbar support offers both vertical and depth adjustment. This is especially important if the user has lower back issues, or if multiple people will use the chair. The most basic lumbar supports are adjusted vertically as you raise and lower the chair back. A fixed depth lumbar is acceptable if it fits you well and does adjust vertically. A chair without either an adjustable back height or an independently height adjustable lumbar support may not fit many people. The chair base should have a minimum five spoke base. Four spoke bases tend to tip over when reclining back in your chair. Quality casters should glide freely over various floor surfaces. A headrest provides support for your head and can reduce the weight your neck must support.