I guess it depends on how the room size, what else will be in there, and how you plan to use it.

The room is 11X13. We have two chairs we can put in the room now, but nothing we're committed to. This house is basically a clean slate for us, and I'm struggling with thoughts about how to start. I don't want to just hop over to ikea to get it all done, but I do need it functional pretty quickly.

Anyhow, I'd love ideas on how to work around/with the loveseat, and start a process that is totally new to me. I've never invested in furniture or decorating b/c we were never in one place long enough for it to make sense.

Many thanks!

If you have the room, I would want a full size sofa in the living room. Then you would have your lay down, stretch out space. Since you mention decorating on a budget, I would watch craigslist for a nice neutral couch with the same lines as your loveseat.

Not all furniture has to be done in the same fabric. It's fine (preferrable) to have variety. You can add a full size sofa if you want to lay down in the living room, or a set of chairs if you can lay in the bedroom, or recliners, or...

You might not care for a chaise lounge down the road. Unless you have a very lare room, you may find it limiting down the road, kind of like a sectional.

If you like the loveseat you might get the matching sofa in a complementary color. Those 2 colors and one or two more will be your color scheme. If not start from square one with a different sofa and use the chairs you have.

Since your new room is not all that large do measure carefully and even lay out templates of the furniture to see how it all fits.

Because of the small size of the LR, I'd stick with the loveseat and add two chairs.

My old LR was 12 x 20, and I found it tiny for a family of four. It was just too narrow. I liked it the most when we had a loveseat and no sofa in the room. We had two other chairs also. It gave me more room to play with and move around.

I could easily lay on the loveseat to read, I just plopped my legs over the arms. :)

Maybe two loveseats? You can easily turn one into a chaise lounge with a mobile ottoman, plus you get so needed storage..

2 love seats still isn't a sofa.....2 chairs and a love seat still isn't a sofa.
If I am reading the ads correctly, a sofa and cover to match the love seat would amount to $550.....That's what I would do and put the chairs you have in bedrooms.
Do you have a family room? or will the living room be your "place to be"....where you watch TV and generally hang out? If so you will need a sofa and a love seat in there....more versatile than a sectional and you can still add a small open arm chair if you need to.
Linda C