Home & Garden Architecture

What Kind of Sofa Is Good for a Long Narrow Family Room?

    Place Sofa on the Longest Wall

    • Usually the sofa should go on the longest wall of a room away from the door. This placement allows the most room for the conversation area.

      Add a coffee table in front of the sofa and set two easy chairs facing each other across the coffee table. Set up the TV across the room from the sofa. This U-shaped seating arrangement makes it comfortable for several people to talk to each other, eat or drink using the coffee table, and watch TV.

      Any type of sofa could work in this arrangement, since you don't have to worry about saving space. Rolled arms are comfortable for resting your head on for naps.

    Place Sofa Across the Short End of the Room

    • A sofa with no arms can save inches in a narrow space.Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images

      To counteract the length of a narrow room, you can place a sofa across the short end.

      With this arrangement, you may have to worry about space. Choose a modern style sofa with straight, upright arms, an armless style or a love seat to save inches. You may not, however, be able to stretch out completely on a love seat for a nap. But by counteracting the bowling-alley feel of a long room, these handsome styles may help the room look more balanced.

    On the Diagonal

    • A sectional sofa can fit into a corner.Goodshoot/Goodshoot/Getty Images

      You can also place a sofa in the corner and set up the TV across from it towards the middle of the opposite wall. This arrangement has the advantage of making the narrow room seem wider.

      For this arrangement, use an L-shaped sectional. Remember that L-shapes are not conducive for easy conversation, since only the two people near the corner can talk to each other easily; the others have to shout. Remember to add an easy chair on the other side of the L for better conversation.

    Using the Corner

    • A curved sofa can fit into a corner to save space.Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images

      If a sectional is too big for your space, you can put a regular sofa on the diagonal in the corner. A curved-back sofa would fit best here. Again, place a coffee table in front of the sofa, put two chairs to the side of it so they face each other across the coffee table, and put the TV across from the sofa on the diagonal in the room.



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