Sectional Sofas Archives

Thanks to everyone who’s submitted a question of the Design Chat series. Keep them coming.

In today’s installment of Design Chat I’m addressing a question from Sheila related to her sectional sofa. Here’s what Sheila asked…

“We have a Large sectional sofa. It has been in the same position for 11 years. I like to rearrange things, this is the first time I have not rearranged!! So I divided it… Much to my husband disapproval . I have one complete couch four seats with arms, and the other part is three seats with a corner. I have them facing each other. I love how it looks! Makes our large living room look cozy, and don’t feel the need to shout to have a conversation. If I could I would attach a picture…. But not sure how on this new device!
What are your thoughts? Thank you in advance.”
Sheila

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Well, based on Sheila’s question and some of the other questions I’ve received, finding the right decorating solution involving a sofa is a big challenge. And when you have a sectional, the challenge can be even greater.

Before I answer Sheila’s question, let me address the pros and cons of a sectional sofa.

PRO: Sectional sofas can be really functional in large rooms when lots of seating is needed, especially for TV viewing. And you can find or order just about any configuration in a sectional that you need so creating a custom layout to fit your space is easy to do.

PRO: Becasue sectional sofas are made up of different sections, it’s easy to move the pieces apart to accommodate guest or a party set-up.

PRO: Sectional sofas are good for small rooms since they can be pushed up against a wall and into corners while keeping the center of the room open.

PRO: Sectional sofas can be less expensive than buying a sofa and multiple chairs to fill a room.

CON: Sectional sofas don’t give you a ton of re-arranging options. If you like to rearrange your furniture often, know that you probably won’t be able to do so with a sectional. It will probably only work ONE WAY due to TV viewing, door openings etc.

CON: If you ever want to re-upholster your sectional it will be considerably more expensive to re-cover vs a traditional sofa.

CON: Picking the right color of fabric for your sectional is key because there is so much fabric making an impact in your room so picking the wrong color could become a major eye-sore.

via Crate and Barrel

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So now to answer Sheila’s question…I think separating your sectional is a great idea! Not only does it create a more intimate seating and conversation area but splitting up the sectional will give your room a less boxy feel and make it feel larger like you noted. Also, splitting up your sectional could allow you to bring in additional side tables which would actually make the area more functional for guest. A few other things to keep in mind…

♦ To maintain the lounge feel that the sectional had when it was all one piece, consider adding an ottoman or footstool so your husband can prop his legs up.

♦ If you have the two sectional pieces flanking a TV or fireplace wall, it will actually create a much more dynamic focal point within the room.

♦ Make sure you have the right size rug under the furniture to anchor the seating area and the room.

♦ You can get creative with the pillows on the two sectional pieces as long as you have a few common pillows on each side.

So Sheila, separating your sectional sofa gets my vote.

Here are a few inspirational photos is case the hubby needs more convincing.

via CB2

via Basset Furniture

via Wayfair

via Domaine Home

Munger Interiors via DecorPad

For more tips on styling your sectional, you can view my sectional design guide post here:

If you have a design question you’d like to me give input on, you can email me at shelly.confettistyle@gmail.com.

I hope your week is going well. The Atlanta Gift and Home Furnishings market is happening this week and I’m headed down there to see the new trends to check out the new product introductions. I’ll be sharing highlights on Instagram so follow along there and I’ll also have a full recap of market next week here on the blog so stay tuned.

Today’s post is the start of something new. Last week Ann posted a question on the blog and I decided it was the perfect question to launch my Design Chat series. This new series is where I’ll answer your design questions and offer up suggestions to solve your design challenge. I’m hoping to post a Design Chat question once a month but if the questions start rolling in I’ll post more often so send your questions my way.

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Most of the questions I receive on the blog come with no photos so I’m taking the information I receive and using that to visual the space. Ann’s description was pretty straight forward so I think I have a good idea of her challenge and the layout of the area she is working with.

This was Ann’s question…

“We have a long sectional couch that is floating away from the wall in our living room. Behind it is a 2-story wall of windows. Would you place a console table behind the sofa or up against the window wall? Does the console need to be the entire length of the sectional? It’s pretty long, so would you do multiple console tables? I was thinking of putting stools underneath it for extra seating and people would still be facing the TV/fireplace, just sitting behind the couch. It’s about 5′ between the back of the sectional and the wall of windows, and it’s wasted space right now – any other ideas on how we could style it and make it more usable?”

I envision the space to look something like this…

via basset furniture

There are several options for this design challenge:

OPTION #1–place a large console table or even a desk behind the sectional length that faces the fireplace and TV which will fill that area and create a functional zone.

Stools could be nested under the table or two accent chairs could be used so the space could function as a desk surface. The chairs or stools could be moved into the room when additional seating is needed and the table surface could be used to serve food or drinks from when entertaining.

via better homes and gardens / decor pad

via design manifest

via mix and chic

OPTION #2–place a console table behind the sectional piece that sits in front of the window. With 5′ between the back of the sofa and the windows, you would want a table that has a depth between 24″ and 28″ so that a walkway is maintained between the table and the windows.

Lamps could be used on the table as long as there are floor outlets to prevent the cords from running across to the window wall. Also, if the windows don’t have curtains and the lights are on at night, the exposure to the room will be wide open.

via Liz Marie Blog

Or, you could decorate the table with a grouping of accessories. If you go the accessory route, larger accessory items would be best to balance the scale of the two-story windows.

via pottery barn / pottery barn

OPTION #3–place furniture behind both ends of the sectional. In this case the two pieces do not have to be match. A console table could be used behind one side of the sectional and a chest behind the other which would provide additional storage.

via apartment therapy

A couple other suggestions and tips:

♦ The console table does not have to be the same length as the sofa–in fact I’d have a little breathing room at each end of the sofa. If you find a table that you love but it is shorter than desired, try placing baskets or even small accent chairs at each end of the table to ‘visually’ elongate it.

via decor pad

♦ If you don’t already, consider drapes between the windows to soften the window area.

via

There are several ways to approach any design dilemma but the bottom line should be to go with the solution that works best for your lifestyle and your decor.

Ann, I hope this answers your question and gives you some ideas to play around with.

For more tips, check out my post on How To Style A Sectional Sofa