Entertainment Centers


Thursday, July 22nd, 2010

The questions that matter when shopping for furniture

questions“Should I go with fabric?…..What color do I need?….. will this even fit?….what style do I need?…… do I have enough money?!!”………

We’ve  all been there before. Planning on buying a new piece of furniture can be a very stressful time, especially when there are so many factors to take into consideration. Take your time and don’t make a hurried decision, this will save you from detesting your furniture for years to come. In order to help you find the right piece of furniture, we have assembled a list of factors you need to take into consideration before you go shopping. Each recommendation will help you find that perfect item you will treasure for years.

  • Measurements: You want to bring your furniture in your house, right?. Many people find the perfect piece, buy it, get it home and oops it doesn’t fit through the door. Keep in mind that some sofas are simply too big to bring into your home. In order to get the piece into the room, it has to first fit through the door. Measure all your furniture pieces already in the home. This will give you a solid base of measurements to look for in a piece of furniture.  This will save you the stress on the way home about whether it will fit through the door.
  • Space is key: How much space do you have to work with? This is the first question you need to ask yourself. It’s simple…regardless of what you want, if you don’t have the space, then don’t even consider it!  The shape and size of your room will help you determine what to look for. For instance, if you’re looking for a living room sectional and don’t have a lot of room to work with, consider a loveseat over a sofa.
  • Budget: It’s simple. Don’t buy what you can’t afford. Always plan around your budget. You shouldn’t burden yourself with the added stress that accompanies paying off home décor you can’t afford. Quality furniture costs more, but will last longer. Cheap furniture, while easy on the budget, doesn’t last long and you may find yourself buying furniture again in several years. Determine how long you want your home décor to last and shop for items that fit that time range, and most importantly your budget.
  • What’s your lifestyle: What is your life like? Is it just you or are you a part of a large family? Will the piece you buy often have smaller children on it? Your lifestyle determines what type of piece you should buy. If you entertain guests regularly, consider a sturdy, comfortable couch. Buy pieces of furniture that will flow with your lifestyle and won’t leave you pulling your hair out every time you have guests over.

When following these steps for purchasing a piece of furniture, visit your local PMD Furniture Direct ™ franchisee and shop their enormous selection of high quality furniture from the Royal Heritage Home Furnishings Collection and leave in peace, knowing you got that perfect piece!

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

Contemporary vs. Contemporary

S7350Are you in style? Does your home have a look that would be considered cool by today’s standards? If so, then your home probably has a contemporary or modern look to it. But what does “contemporary” really mean?

Many times people classify contemporary as a distinct style that doesn’t encompass other design styles. Commonly, and un-knowingly, they think furniture considered contemporary is something they are most likely to find in an upscale art gallery in New York city. What they fail to realize is that the word contemporary simply means “of the present time,” and this can encompass a broad range of designs.

“Artsy” furniture, the most common label for contemporary furniture, is likely to be found in urban locations and lofts. This furniture often has flare and is extremely simple. Furniture pieces in this category are not always adorned with straight lines, but typically showcase curved lines to give them a unique look and shape. Leather and microfibers are usually the upholstery of choice in this case.

If you are looking to stay within the contemporary style but want more of a straight lined look, then look for pieces that are of Danish or Scandinavian design. Contemporary Scandinavian designers often use straight lines in their designs and leave their pieces unadorned and crafted of walnut and teak. Sometimes their pieces will have gentle curves, but these will not be at a premium.

Finally, minimalist styled furniture takes the contemporary look to the extreme and is known for its use of straight lines. The Minimalist approach was inspired by Bauhaus design and puts emphasis on free space, functionality, and economical design. You won’t find a lot of furniture in a minimalistic room. Instead, you will find one of two pieces accompanied by a lot of space.

Whether its straight lined or curvy lines, minimalistic or urban, visit your local PMD Furniture Direct ™ franchisee and shop their massive selection of contemporary furniture from the Royal Heritage Home Furnishings Collection and give your home the modern style you are looking for!

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

Keeping up with furniture vocabulary

2400-2401With styles changing what seems like daily, it’s hard to keep up with current furniture lingo thrown at you when you are shopping for furniture. Whether it’s contemporary, traditional, cottage, modern, or chic, these terms can encompass a broad range of styles that might leave you scratching your head. In the next few weeks I will review the most commonly used terms to discuss styles, and what exactly the definition of each is. This week we will look at traditional styles, and what it truly means to be a traditional looking piece of furniture.
Time honored, Colonial, European…these are just a few of the words you might hear when shopping for a traditionally styled piece of furniture. The main characteristic all these terms have in common is they have a century old look. These pieces will be reminiscent of furniture you might find in a royal mansion in Spain, or a President in Colonial times.
American styled pieces will have a look that was represented in the Colonial times. Painted finishes coupled with spindles – and finial – are very typical in this instance. However, they will be adapted to fit modern day uses.

If a piece has an European feel, it most likely means the wood will have a curvilinear design and commonlywill be constructed our of dark woods. Sofas and chairs will have an arched back giving them a more formal look and feel.
Tropical looks combined with British styles are what makes up the British Colonial and West Indies fashion. These pieces are most likely built with wicker, rattan, and other lighter woods but completed in deep dark finishes. The lines and edges of these items will be much cleaner and simpler when compared to the curvy lines of the European brand of style.

When looking to give your room a traditional look that will last for centuries, visit your local PMD Furniture Direct ™ franchisee and shop their enormous selection of furniture from the Royal Heritage Home Furnishings Collection so your home can have the class and style it deserves!

Wednesday, April 21st, 2010

Protect your furniture from getting scratched

cat-scratching-postCats are a great family pet. Their easy maintenance, sweet and loving nature, and great companionship can really add to your family’s home lifestyle. But one of the frustrations that come with having cats is their constant need for scratching furniture.

Cats have a need and desire to scratch, stretch, and flex their claws. The way they accomplish all these acts is by latching on for dear life to your nearest piece of furniture and stretching their body until they feel comfortable again. This can lead to severely damaged furniture and leave you very frustrated.

Follow these steps to prevent your cat from scratching and preserve the look of the furniture you bought through your local PMD Furniture Direct™ franchisee for a lifetime.

  1. Get your cat a scratching post. Put them in locations cats like to be at. For example, cats love the sun and how it feels on their fur, so place a post by a window.
  2. Find a post that best suits your cat. This may take a bit of experimenting on your part, but will be well worth it.
  3. Do some research and find out what type of surfaces or textures your breed of cat likes. This can include rugs, wood, cardboard ect.  Also, what type of post orientations they like. (vertical or horizontal)
  4. Through a reward system, give your cat kitty treats every time they use the post. This will create a desire in them to want to scratch the post.
  5. After the cat takes a long hard nap, pick the cat up and place them near the post. Cats stretch and flex their claws after waking up. This will give them a place to do it on.
  6. Do not punish your cat if they scratch the furniture. This will only teach them to not do it when you are around.
  7. Even if you plan on getting rid of an old piece of furniture, still do not allow your cat to scratch it. This will only teach them to scratch furniture.
  8. Finally, consult your local veterinarian about different treatment option before you give up.

Visit your local PMD Furniture Direct™ franchisee to shop our vast selection of affordable, durable and beautiful furniture from the Royal Heritage Home Furnishings® Collection.

Friday, April 9th, 2010

How to set up an entertainment center

entertainment centerThere it is! It’s magnificent!

Standing tall against your living room wall is the entertainment center you’ve been dreaming about. But now the fear sets in as you see a bundle of electronic equipment that you must now, somehow, put together in order for your dreams to become complete.

But have no fear. Follow these steps to install your television, media player and surround-sound speakers to create a home entertainment system that will blow your friends away!

1.      Place the television in the middle of the entertainment center. Connect your Blue-ray, DVD or VHS player to the television using HD or HDMI cables.

2.      Connect the home theater receiver to the A/V (audio/video) output on the television. If the television does not have an A/V Out, then connect it to the DVD or Blu-ray player. It is best to use either RCA or fiber optic cables for this.

3.      Center the channel speaker below or directly above the television.

4.      Place the two front speakers on each side of the channel speaker.

5.      For maximum impact, the channel speaker and two front speakers should be placed equidistant from the listening area in an arched arrangement. They should also be at the same height, ideally at ear-level for the listeners.

6.      Put the two rear surround sound speakers on each side of the listening area behind the listening area. These can be placed above or below the seated listener.

7.      Finally, place the subwoofer around the room and experiment to find the best location. Turn on a movie or music and move the subwoofer to various spots in order to find the best sound.

Visit your local PMD Furniture Direct™ franchisee to shop our vast selection of affordable, durable and beautiful entertainment centers from the Royal Heritage Home Furnishings® Collection.

You and your friends and family will soon enjoy the ear-splitting, seat-jarring surround sound from your new home theater set up!

Saturday, April 3rd, 2010

“I can’t find the remote!!”

entertainment centerKeeping your living room in order can prove to be very difficult at times. With tons of new and exciting electronic pieces being made available to you on a daily basis, keeping all of it organized can prove to be overwhelming.  Finding the proper entertainment center through your local PMD Furniture Direct™ franchisee is the key to solving this problem.

When looking for an entertainment center, the first and most important detail you need to consider is the size of TV it is designed to hold. Entertainment centers are designed to fit around the TV. If the center you plan on purchasing from Royal Heritage Home Furnishings® can hold up to 64″ TV’s and you only have a 32″ TV, this will leave too big of a gap on both sides and take away from the look of your living room. It is best to purchase both your TV and entertainment center around the same time, however,  this is not always an option so buy the TV first and then shop for an entertainment center to go around it.

DVD players, DVD’s, CD players, CD’s, Blue Ray players, stereos, TiVo, tuners, and yes VCR’s are just some of the many media pieces you will acquire over a long period of time. Make sure your entertainment center has lots of storage space for current and future items. Glass cabinet doors work best for electronic components.  It allows you to control them with a remote while keeping the doors closed. They will also stay protected if you have children or pets. DVD and CD collections should go behind solid doors. This will keep them out of site and keep the beauty of the room intact.

Visit your local PMD Furniture Direct™ franchisee to shop our vast selection of affordable, durable and beautiful entertainment centers from the Royal Heritage Home Furnishings® Collection!