Buy the best best living room sets selected and recommended by interior designers.
By Caroline Patterson.
In case you are looking for the perfect living room anchor furniture, then you have to consider living room sets. Living room sets offer two main benefits. First, buying an entire set means that you don’t have to spend too much time finding individual matching pieces to complement your decor. Secondly, living room sets are also available in many different styles and designs. Whether you are looking for a vintage-inspired set or a more modern one that will transform your home, the variety of products available is incredible. Normally, an entire set will include sofas, love seats, accent chairs, chaises, as well as ottomans with storage.
Caroline is a young, New York-based interior designer and home decor writer, obsessed with textiles and designer furniture. Backed with rigorous training from a prestigious design school, as well as a profound understanding of material quality and fabric care, she offers spot-on advice on how to furnish your place with reliable, functional, and aesthetically pleasing pieces.
Every living room has a different purpose; some serve as gathering areas for families and other are used only when guests come over. Choosing living room furniture that creates a pleasant and welcoming atmosphere but still endures the wear and tear of everyday life is what you should consider.
Look through our guide, which will provide you with the needed advice, to decide on the perfect living room set.
There are three things you would need to do first when you choose a living room set:
Always take measurements. Measure the length and width of the room and consider the dimensions of any alcoves or other recessed spaces.
You should sketch a floor plan. It does not need to be perfect, just good enough to determine how much space you can spare. Try a few different compositions and think of adding a meter of free space in between pieces so you will not have to squeeze in.
Check your doorways. The worst thing would be experiencing delivery mishaps.
Decide how you are going to use the space:
For an informal entertainment space, functionality and comfort are key. Within your living room set you will need to have two or three occasional tables and plenty of seats to accommodate family and friends on games' or TV marathon nights.
A child-friendly family space begs for durability and ease to clean. Avoid fragile and precious things. Also, choose accessories that will not only brighten up your day but your little one's too.
A formal gathering area suggests that it will not to be used as much as casual spaces. You can take this as an opportunity to design it with high-end pieces of furniture.
After you have gone through the initial planning, you need to select the best materials to fit the plan
Fabric
If you are looking for a pet- and kid-friendly furniture, a smooth cotton fabric is the right material for you because it will be easier to clean. It will be even more beneficial if the cushions have zippers because fabric can be machine washed. Other durable fabrics are corduroys and microfibre blends. If you suffer from allergies, smooth and synthetic blends will be a better choice, such as faux suede.
You can splash on luxury if the set will be used rarely. A high-thread-count cotton or a velvet fabric scream elegance and sophistication. The higher thread count, the better.
Also, fabrics come in a variety of colors to match any interior.
Light colors are prone to getting marks more quickly so if you have fallen in love with a pale-colored couch set, remember to look for removable, washable covers or at least make sure the upholstery is pre-treated to repel stains.
A gray or taupe colored set is your safe option since it is easy to work with any color scheme and they are dark enough to not show marks or stains. You can always add bright touches such as vibrant throw pillows or choose a textured fabric blend. Try and not expose the set to direct sunlight since it can experience fading in color.
As for patterns, design experts recommend that a larger couch looks good in plain and textured fabrics and that smaller ones beg for patterned fabric.
When thinking of easy to clean fabric, opt for cotton because any natural blends such as cotton-wool mix or cotton-linen will have to be cleaned professionally. Complex fabric blends tend to shrink in the wash, but you can always spot clean with upholstery detergent.
Leather
Leather couches bring a touch of luxe to your living room. If cared properly, they can last you as long as a fabric couch. It is a suitable option for homes with adult guests since there is minimal chance of spilling and stains. However, you need to consider that if leather is exposed to direct sunlight, it can result in a quicker aging process. There are four types of leather, which are considered top quality -- full grain, semi-aniline, top grain and nubuck.
Known as premium leather, full grain leather is the most expensive on the market because of it is rarity. This type of leather does not undergo any corrections when made to keep its natural look and feel. It is extremely durable and is truly the one that gets better with age because of its highlighted folds and imprints.
Semi-aniline is like full grain, but it offers micro-pigment coloring and a protective topcoat. This coat ensures that liquid puddles so you can wipe it off. It is still considered premium quality and has the same durability as full grain.
Top grain leather is the one most people will be familiar with. It is usually firmer to the touch and very durable. This is a good choice for high-traffic furniture because it is covered in protective coat, which makes it easier to clean and is more resistant to staining that full grain leather. However, because of the corrections made such as buffing, sanding and coloring, the leather is robbed of its natural marking and texture.
A decorative leather such as nubuck is soft, water resistant and more durable than suede. The process of producing nubuck is sanding and buffing the top surface to create naps, which aligned vertically gives nubuck its velvety touch.
Contemporary Style: Contemporary styled living spaces are designed with elements of neutral, clean, smooth and subtle reign supreme. The material of the set can be either fabric or leather and the colors should not be more than two. Look for ergonomic features in the couch set.
Cottage Décor: Cottage inspired interiors aim to provide coziness and charm to a living space. Think simpler designs of couch sets. This décor begs for cotton in pastel and neutral colors.
Eclectic Design: Eclectic décor embraces freedom of expression and begs for mixing and matching. Couches sets made from nubuck or velvet in purple or blue.
French Country Style: Elegant yet simple, French country style is all about rustic finishes and refined details. Pick a set made from fabric in rich colors such as red and green in simple patters with gold or wooden framing.
Traditional Design: Traditional décor is quite minimalistic and does not like bright colors. You should opt for a set of a three-seater couch and loveseat made from a high-gloss polyester fabric in gray or beige.
Vintage Décor: Vintage décor screams for floral patterns and fabrics in pastel colors. A classic choice would be a cotton upholstery set in white with added padding.
Moroccan Style: Moroccan style is rich in history, color and texture. It embraces bright colors such as yellow, blue and pink. For this style of home décor, a sectional upholster set with a mix of patters would be ideal.
We know this is a lot of information to digest in one go so we have provided a shorter list of tips for you to read through:
Always measure your available living room space before you go living room set hunting and do not forget to measure your doorways as well.
Choosing a focal point is a great way to plan out your space. Your living room set should be around it.
Ask yourself what the main purpose of your living room is. Depending on your answer you are either looking for comfort and durability or elegance and style.
Material is key when choosing your living room set. Fabric is considered better for family homes because easier to maintain and leather is for living rooms driven by luxe.