People On This Group Are Sharing The Most Beautiful Rooms They Can Find, And Here Are The 30 Best Ones

To learn more about what makes a room great and interior design in general, Bored Panda got in touch with designer, stylist, and content creator Luke Arthur Wells. He said that function has got to be at the base of a room design. "No matter how good a room looks, if you haven't got the basics right including the spatial planning and the flow of the space, you won't enjoy using it and you'll want to change it again quickly," he said. "The details, such as ensuring there's enough room between furniture and walls and doors for you to traverse the space, or getting the layout of your kitchen appliances right so that you can cook efficiently, don't necessarily have to have a negative bearing on the aesthetic of the room."

However, function is usually not the concept people are most excited about when it comes to settling in. It's form. "This part is more creative and less measured than the functional aspect of the space," Wells said. "It's about creating a space that reflects you and offers a sanctuary from the outside world when you need it. While functionality is at the core of a scheme, that doesn't mean that you can't opt for objects that contribute to the aesthetic more than they fit the purpose of the space."

The designer offered the coffee table in his own living room as an example. It's huge, blocky, and too heavy for one person to lift—not very functional. However, it strikes the balance between a design he loves and the drawbacks that may come from this style of furniture.

Essentially, it all boils down to balance. "If you can get function and form to meet, then that's great design, but I think you need to strike a compromise between the two when they're in conflict. No space is going to be completely perfection function-wise and you may have to shift away from your dream scheme if it means your space is going to be less usable."

"Of course, there are design styles where form and function sit perfectly together," Wells added. "The Bauhaus movement, which has seen a style revival over the last few years, prioritized function over form in furniture design, but now these designs are coveted more for their good looks than their functional nature."

The most upvoted rooms in the subreddit are usually those where both function and form are intertwined: if it belongs to a building in the countryside, you often get huge, panoramic windows, "extending" the space into the outdoors, blurring the line between the two. If the room is situated in a 100-year-old house in the old town, it might preserve a little something from its original design, hinting at its rich history. You get the idea. In its 9 years of existence, the subreddit has grown to over 1.1 million members, and judging by the way they engage with its content, I think there's room to get even bigger.