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Design Dilemma Furniture living room

Desperate for advice re: sofas vs sectional in open-concept room!!

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

Hi!! We really need help with our living room: we want to change our sofa. Right now we have a brown leather sofa with a leather chair and light plaid chaise. Should we go for a sectional? I would love to have one but I’m not 100% sure whether it would look good (or which way to put the L shape: facing the window or the opposite).

The room is open concept (living room, dining area and kitchen). We have huge windows overlooking the backyard/river. I have attached photos of the whole room.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks :)

Featured Answer

Susan Davis

5 years ago

If you want a sectional but aren't sure rearrange your loveseat sofa and chair into an L shape sectional unit to see how it feels......orient the longest side to the TV.

Put you sofa and love seat so arms touch and add a pair of chairs opposite the windows....it could work. Examples below!

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Manhattan, NY · More Info

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Comments (11)

Mellaf84
Original Author
5 years ago
Mellaf84
Original Author
5 years ago
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It doesn't look like the sectional would take up more space than the sofa and loveseat do except that it will cover the corner on the right where it looks like you have an end table. The shorter end is open, so that will feel lighter, plus the color and the less bulky style. I don't think it will take over the room. I'd put a small table near the window (with drawers or a shelf), use a console or sofa table below the TV (tip: if you can find one that butterflies open into a table you can pull up to the sectional, you have a second area for dining when entertaining, puzzles or games for the family or kid parties -- any kind of fun), and look for some baskets or less revealing containers for the kid stuff to put under the TV table. You can use a coffee table or ottoman in front of the sectional. We have a sectional with a butterfly table that makes for a very versatile and comfortable family room. We have at times pulled up a bench or chairs to the table and seated 16 in our breakfast room and family room for casual family dinners and teen get togethers. I'm linking another one I just saw that you might like. Here is a link that might be useful: Another smaller contemporary sectional
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So there’s a lot I could say about how to set up your family room, but it would be way too much detail! The first thought I had would be to remove the 3’-10” wall. There’s so much more you can do with the space with that gone. Most of my ideas hinge on that. I did a couple with the wall intact. A few basics when doing a seating area is that you want your seating to be no more than 6 ft from each other for having a conversation. An area rug is really helpful in anchoring the area to be used for furniture placement. Yes, a sectional will give you the most seating but because the room is narrow, it could make the room feel closed in. What can help is having legs and sticking with something more tailored and not overstuffed. If you go more modern, sectionals tend to be very deep and it could end up swamping the room. I recommend using painters tape and outlining it on the floor and get dimensions before you set foot in a showroom. I would take your tv out of the corner and get it up on the wall. You can put it on an arm and angle it toward your seating area. Unfortunately, when I post these they may not be in order where the floor plan matches the 3D elevation.
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Mellaf84
Original Author
5 years ago
Mellaf84
Original Author
5 years ago
My apologies for posting the photos as comments I tried to attach them a few times to the original post but it never worked...
sheloveslayouts
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
What do you dislike about the arrangement you have now? Floating sectionals really cut off traffic flow in open concepts like this, so I'd pass on the sectional.
Mellaf84 thanked sheloveslayouts
Mellaf84
Original Author
5 years ago
@benjesbride thanks! It’s not the arrangement I guess it’s mostly the brown sofa and chair. And I’ve always wanted a sectional for coziness (I feel like I would adopt the corner/chaise!). But I can see how it can cut flow. That being said we never walk through where the little round corner table is. Does that change your view in any way? I thought replacing the plaid chair, round corner table and brown sofa by a sectional would perhaps have the same effect as we have now.
Mellaf84
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank You @Susan Davis. Yes I will try that. I just didn’t know if having a sectional was something that was doable with the type of room we have (where trafic is and no wall plus which way to angle the sectional).

it will be hard to try what you have in the photo as the chairs we have are huge!
sheloveslayouts
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
I'm not a fan of sectionals. I have a problem with sofas--my family teases me.We tried three different sectionals in the past ten years and ultimately ended up with a sofa and two armchairs. IMO, a sofa and two armchairs is perfect in most living rooms.

I liked the idea of a sectional, but people tend to prefer an armrest and a convenient place to set a drink. As cozy as the corner seat sounds, they're just awkward. You're sacrificing the armrest and end table for two seats to gain one awkward seat.

If you want to kick up your feet while sitting on the sofa, ottomans are a much better way to go.
tqtqtbw
5 years ago
You can do a sectional as described able but I prefer a sofa and two chairs in your room. I actually own two sectionals, having update to a new one after a remodel. They work for our family and our room since my husband would stretch out on a sofa and there wouldn't be room for anyone else to sit down. Also, we have the TV on a console, not on the fireplace wall.

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Susan Davis
5 years ago
Yes i noted the chairs are huge but you can also move all the furniture out of the room and tape the size of the sectional on the floor in blue painter tape and see what you think.....the actual furniutrue gives your a better visual though.

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