Let’s talk about couches. Personally I like leather. It’s always cool, except in the summertime and you’re shirtless, but come on man, no one wants to see that and then you hear the sound it makes when you peel yourself off  the couch when you decide to finally get up. Anyway, leather is nice. It kind of envelopes you in the way a beanbag does. And the kind that recline are even better. Who doesn’t like to put their feet up after a long hard day of work? The best ones though are the single seat recliner Lay-z-Boys. Oh yea, they don’t even have to be leather and you got me for life.

But if you’re into something a bit more formal I really like the L-shaped couch. That way you can generate more conversation than if everyone is just sitting in a line, craning their necks to look over at the person across the couch.

Or the love seat. A personal favorite of mine, especially on first dates.
And if you have a friend over, and there’s no room for him in your bed (why would there be?) just put him on the couch. Couches are great. If you don’t have one, or are in need of a new one, I’m jealous. I love couch shopping!

In many homes, it’s hard to imagine a family or living room that doesn’t involve a television, and some people even keep televisions in their bedrooms. As the Friends character Joey once asked: Without a TV, what does all your furniture point towards?

Still, enjoying a good telenovela or Monday Night Football game doesn’t mean you have to decorate your house entirely in La-Z-Boys and mini-fridges. In fact, you can use your furniture to completely hide your television when not in use. You know, for when the ladies from the book club come over.

First, throw out that ratty TV stand in favor of some real furniture—namely, an armoire to stash your TV in. Find a piece with a large enough compartment to fit your TV (and a spot for DVD players and such, ideally), with doors that you can close to conceal what lies within. Many armoires nowadays are specifically built to store televisions in, and they come with doors that can slide or fold back against the side walls so as not to interrupt your viewing. Joey from Friends would love that.

Of course, nobody’s going to believe you don’t have a television if you’ve got remote controls and DVDs strewn about. Invest in a couple of classic wicker baskets for storage to complete the illusion.