Furnishing and Decorating

Whether you bought an unfurnished home, built your own, or just want to change things up, furnishing and decorating your home lets you create an atmosphere for your Sims to express their personality. You furnish your home in Build Mode. However, instead of using the Build menu, you use the Objects menus.

Bathroom

While the bathroom is usually one of the smallest rooms in a home, it is also one of the most important. The bathroom can take care of two of your Sims’ six needs and can also provide moodlets to help Sims get into different emotional states. Bathrooms can be as simple or as fancy as you want. However, they need to have some basic items. Sims need a toilet for their Bladder need. Toilets do not need to be high quality, but the more you spend, the more reliable they are. Hygiene is the other need that bathrooms provide. At the least, your bathrooms should have a shower. Not only does the shower gets your Sims clean, it also helps your Sims change emotions, depending on the type of shower they take. Take a bubble bath and it can put your Sims into a Playful emotion. If you would like both, but space is limited, get a combination bathtub and shower that fits into the same space a just a bathtub.

A bathroom does not have to be big. This one has a lot of extra space. Maybe it could be divided into two bathrooms with one attached to the bedroom and the other to the living room.

The next object your bathroom should contain is a sink, which provides a smaller effect on the Hygiene need as Sims can wash their hands and brush their teeth. Finally, place a mirror in the bathroom. Mirrors provide several interactions that can help create an emotion.

After you get the basic objects into the bathroom, add decorations and lighting to add to the environment of the room.

Kitchen

All Sims have a Hunger need, which they need to feed, so each home needs a kitchen. The two main objects required for a kitchen are a stove and a refrigerator. While you can get by with just a refrigerator, this severely limits the number of different meals your Sims can make. You need the refrigerator to store leftovers and provide quick meals. However, that is not all you need. Be sure to have some counter space in your kitchen, because not all meals are prepared right on the stove. Salads and some other meals are made on the counters or other spaces. You don’t need a lot of counter space, but install at least two sections if your Sims are going to do any cooking. Finally, your kitchen needs a sink for cleaning dishes—or they will be using the bathroom sink for cleaning. Without this, your house can get smelly as dirty dishes litter the place.

Kitchens not only need a stove and a refrigerator, but also work space for Sims to actually prepare meals.

Optional items for the kitchen include a coffee maker so your Sims can brew coffee and get a moodlet to help them get going. If your Sims are busy and only have time for quick meals on some days, a microwave can really come in handy. Many kitchens also have a place where Sims can sit and eat, such as a counter or a small table. Some homes even have the dining room attached to the kitchen. If you don’t have a separate room for dining, be sure to provide a table and chairs for your Sims so they don’t have to eat on the couch.

While a kitchen can be basic, by adding decorations and lighting, this room can be a great place for Sims to hang out and even entertain.

Bedroom

Bedrooms help Sims meet the Energy need. The main item you need in a bedroom is of course a bed. This is an area where you might want to spend a little more. Cheap beds are uncomfortable. Sims may wake up without their Energy need completely met. They may also have a negative moodlet due to sleeping in an uncomfortable bed. In addition to a bed, include a dresser. This piece of furniture allows you to edit your outfits and create new outfits. You might also want to put a mirror in your bedrooms for the Sims to use. Some people even put televisions or exercise equipment in their bedrooms if they don’t have space elsewhere. However, if you have more than one Sim in the home, this could be a problem as the noise from the exercise equipment or television may bother a Sim who is in the same room trying to sleep.

The most important thing in the bedroom is the bed.

Add some night stands, a dresser, a mirror, and some decorations to finish up a nice bedroom.

Living Room

Sims will spend a lot of time socializing and entertaining in the living room. The main objects you need for a living room are places to sit, such as sofas and couches. Because this is a room for the entire household, it is a good place to put a television and stereo so Sims can enjoy these objects together.

In many homes, the living room is centered around the television. Make sure Sims can see the television from the various seats.

In smaller homes, living rooms may also contain a dining table, desks with computers, and other objects. They can serve the same role as study and dining room if your home does not have these types of rooms.

Add some lighting, rugs, and decorations to finish up a comforting living room.

Add a fireplace to your living room. It can provide some positive moodlets for your Sims. However, be sure to have a smoke alarm nearby to prevent your home from burning down.

Study

Many Sims with careers have to do some work at home to meet requirements for promotions. Therefore, if your home has space, create a study for them to use when they need to focus on work while at home. Several careers require Sims to use a computer. So when furnishing a study, put in a desk, a desk chair, and a computer. If you have space, a comfortable chair can be a good place for some quiet reading. Finish off the study with a bookcase to hold your books and some decorations. You also need some lighting if your Sims will be reading at night.

A study can start out simple. Add to it as you can afford to or as you unlock objects related to your Sims’ careers.

Use decorations to help create a good environment in the study so Sims will stay in good emotional states while working.

Dining Room

Dining rooms are usually found only in larger homes where there is enough space to dedicate an entire room just to eating. Smaller homes may have the dining room as part of the kitchen or living room. However, it is nice to set aside an entire room for dining—especially if your Sims like to entertain and have Dinner Party social events. The main requirements for a dining room are a dining table and some chairs. Everything else is just decorative.

If you have a large kitchen, use some of it for a dining room until you are ready to wall it off into its own room. This also makes your dining area more functional for everyday use and not just a room for special occasions.

Children’s Room

If your household has children, they can have their own bedroom with their beds and all of objects children use. Or you can even create a playroom where kids can go to work on their skills and have fun. There is a complete category of items designed for children and you can design a room just for them. Again, this is dependent on the Sims in your household and the size of your home.

This children’s room has an art table for developing the Creativity skill. It looks like it could use some more toys and fun things. But some parents are so focused on their child becoming a prodigy.

Lighting Lighting is one of the details most players don’t even realize exists when they first begin playing the game, especially if they move into a furnished house with lighting already in place. However, when building your own home, you really notice if you forget lighting when the sun goes down and your Sims are left in the dark. While you are furnishing your home, be sure to include lights in all the rooms—even those with lots of windows because Sims need light at night. To add lighting, go to the Objects by Function section of the Build menu. You can then choose different categories of lights such as table lamps, floor lamps, outdoor lights, wall lights, and ceiling lights. Wall and ceiling lights are great because they do not take up floor space. However, table and floor lamps can help add to the decor of your rooms. Once your lights are in place, you can modify them for your home. In Live Mode, click on a light to open up a menu. Here you can turn the light off or on as well as set the color and intensity of the light. A neat feature is the ability to change just that light or all the lights in the house at the same time. Want to change the lights to blue? Just click on one light, choose set color and intensity, select all lights, and then make your adjustments. When you are done all lights in the house are now giving off blue light. Once you learn how to use and modify lighting, it can really add to your homes. If you are designing a nightclub or bar, lighting can be very important to create a specific theme or feel to the place. You have several options to adjust the lighting in your home.

Landscaping and Outdoors

Landscaping is like furnishing the outdoors on your lot. Place trees and flowers around your yard and then add planters or other decorations. You can also use terrain paint to help landscape your lot. You don’t have to build a porch or patio—just paint one. Either paint walkways before you place your plants and objects, or afterward to connect them. The bonus to terrain paint is that it is free.

Start off with large objects such as trees. Then once you have them in place, fill in the rest of your landscaping.

Landscaping really adds to a lot. If you built a patio or porch, put objects on these deck spaces just as you would a room. Some homes have outdoor furniture in the backyard along with a barbecue so the Sims can dine outdoors. Remember to include lighting for your landscaping if your Sims will be outside at night.

Planters and other decorations help finish up the landscaping and add detail to the exterior of your home.