Real-Life Math -- Solution
You're trying to shrink a living room to make it more cosy. First,
figure out the overall size of the room:
18 feet x 12
feet = 216 square feet
You have 216 square feet to work
with. Now how much fabric will you need for the wall? To figure that out,
you simply figure out the size of the wall:
5 feet x 8
feet = 40 square feet
So you'll need 40 square feet of
fabric for that. To reduce the room to a more suitable size, try shortening
the length of the room using the temporary wall:
Wall
placement = 18 feet long - (150 square feet optimum size / 12 feet wide)
Wall
placement = 18 feet long - 12.5 feet
Wall placement = 5.5 feet
You
recommend placing the temporary wall 5.5 feet from the existing end wall,
creating a room 150 square feet in size -- which is more comfortable for the
average person.
All this may seem like a lot of math for one room,
but you still have to decide on a carpet and measure for curtains -- all of
which will require some math.
"You go into every day prepared to do
math, some quickly in your head with the customer standing right there, some
much more in-depth," says Beverly Ellsey, an interior designer
in Connecticut. "You learn to do estimates very quickly and before long you
can tell the square area of a room just by looking at it. You can't get away
from math in this business."