In carpentry there is the adage “measure twice, cut once”. This saying can be applied to decorating as well as carpentry.  Getting measurements right can save you time and money and headaches. Whether you are measuring for an area rug for the living room, curtains for the bedroom or a new sofa for the family room, make sure your measurements are accurate. Write down your important measurements in your home notebook or design file for future reference.   Few things are worse in decorating than finding something you love and getting it home to find out it doesn’t fit the space it was intended for. This might be okay if it is a bowl or an inexpensive accent. If it is the custom upholstered sofa you’ve waited two months to have delivered it can be more than disappointing.   Professional designers will begin by measuring the size of the room so that they know what will work with the scale of the space. Buying a nine foot sofa for a room that can only handle a seven foot sofa will make the space feel cramped and crowded. Once you have your room measurements you will have a base on which to build the design.  You can even make small examples of the furniture you are thinking about bringing into the room to scale to see how they will all fit in the space. Scale representations of furniture and rugs can help you visually plan a layout before you have furniture to move around. This will save your back as well as your wallet.