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Built-In Seats

Opening context:
Sequence of Sitting Spaces, Entrance Room, Alcoves, Window Place

Conflict

Built-in seats are great. Everybody loves them. they make a building feel comfortable and luxurious. But most often they do not actually work. they are placed wrong, or too narrow, or the back does not slope, or the view is wrong, or the seat is too hard. This pattern tells you what to do to make a built-in seat that really works.

Resolution

Before you build the seat, get hold of an old arm chair or a sofa, and put it into the position where you intend to build a seat. Move it until you really like it. Leave it there for a few days. See if you enjoy sitting in it. Move it if you don’t. When you have got it into a position which you like, and where you often find yourself sitting, you know it is a good position. Now build a seat that is just as wide, and just as well padded — and your built-in seat will work.

Closing context:
Thick Walls, Thickening the Outer Walls