If research shows that the right type and arrangement of seating can positively impact students’ academic performance, motivation, long-term health, and overall learning experience, imagine how the right seating in our homes can benefit us as well.
We all include some form of seating in our homes, but are we selecting the right options, or are we just settling with a certain type of seating instead of considering all options we have at hand?
Explore the many types of seating with the following guide:
1. Chair
Perhaps the most common type of seating is your average chair. As foolish as it might seem to include “chair” as an item on our list, it’s important to expand on how selecting the right chair can add a pinch more luxury to your home setting.
For the dining room or formal breakfast nook, go for chairs that offer dark, rich wood with velvet and/or button tufted cushions if you want to add sophistication to your design. Consider selecting chairs with cushions or padding that is vibrant and brighter than the wood you select to add a lovely contrast to your space.
Apart from selecting formal dining chairs, you can also opt for nice chairs to place in your living room in front of your fireplace or next to a small side table. Cushioned chairs can add comfort and luxury in a snap. Draping a fluffy throw blanket over the back or arm of your chair along with a throw pillow can amp up the comfort even further.
2. Sofa
A majority of living rooms have a sofa, and as we are all aware, sofas can come in a wide range of colors, sizes, styles, prints, and materials. There is a couch style out there for any interior design style your home features.
If you want a simple, minimalistic sofa, go for a mid-century modern, Lawson-style, Bridgewater, Knole, or settee sofa. If you want to add more shape, detail, and sophistication to your interior design, consider a Chesterfield, camelback, or tuxedo couch.
3. Loveseat
As many know, a loveseat is essentially a mini sofa for two. While you might not think there is anything special about love seats, they are suitable for many home interiors. Loveseats are ideal for smaller rooms or sections of your home in replacement of, or in addition to, a regularly-sized couch.
Although tiny and cute, loveseats can be luxurious if you select the right one. A dark leather loveseat or a loveseat with curled arms, a classic beige or dark gray material, and button tufts can look especially stunning. If you want to go for a loveseat with color, opt for a darker red, deep purple, or rich blue for added formality.
4. Recliner
There’s nothing like lounging in a recliner after a long, hard day. The great thing about recliners is that they not only offer a space to sit down but also a place to lie back. The versatility with this form of seating is certainly apparent.
Recliners come in different styles. Some recliners have the capability of rocking, gliding, or swiveling. When reclining back, some recliners simply require that you push back while others feature a lever that allows the chair to keep in its recliner position, even if nobody is currently on the chair at the time.
5. Armchair
As an alternative to a recliner, a simple armchair can also add coziness and formality to an interior space. Armchairs, however, are typically narrower and less chunky than their recliner counterparts. Nevertheless, they are still available in a handful of colors, styles, materials, textures, and sizes.
A tufted or riveted armchair can add a lot of class to an interior space whereas a bulkier, cushier armchair can add a cozy, more casual feel to a home setting. For extra comfort, add throw pillows and/or a throw blanket to your armchair. The addition of an ottoman can allow you and your guests to kick their feet up and relax.
6. Chaise lounge
If you love armchairs as well as couches but have a tight space, a chaise lounge can be the perfect solution to giving you the best of both worlds. These chairs are essentially a couch with one arm that is primarily designed for laying. You might instead consider a chaise lounge to be an armchair with an elongated cushion to sit on.
Chaise lounge is also known as fainting couches that were popular during the Victorian era, traditionally used as a couch a woman would literally faint on or go to rest when her tight corset deprived her of oxygen and made her weak. Today, chaises have a different purpose, and they come in many modern-day colors, prints, and styles.
7. Bench
Benches might seem like they’re only suitable for your front porch or patio; however, they can also look stunning inside a home too. In fact, a bench is a great, more casual alternative to a couch that can still sit two or more people at a time.
A cushioned or cushionless bench without a back looks great at the end of a bed, along an accent wall or mural, or against a window. Even if your bench doesn’t have cushions, adding fun-colored or -printed throw pillows can add some coziness and style.
8. Bean bag chair
An adult bean bag chair might seem a little too casual for your space; however, where there is comfort, there is luxury. Bean bag chairs, whether for adults or for children, are especially fit for casual family rooms, home theaters, sunrooms, and bedrooms.
Bean bag chairs don’t just come in their classic, round appearance. You can also find bean bag chairs that are flat and resemble a bed as well as bean bag chairs that are shaped like an actual chair with armrests and a back for proper, upright seating.
9. Ottoman
Ottomans are often used as a foot and or leg rests, and thus, are often paired with armchairs or other non-reclining forms of seating. Some even use ottomans as a coffee table. However, ottomans can also be considered seating themselves as they are usually soft and plush.
Long, rectangular ottomans look great at the end of a bed or when used as a bench or “booth” for a casual eating area in the home. Circular, oval, or square ottomans look cute next to a small side table and make for the perfect spot for sipping a cup of joe and reading the paper.
10. Lift chair
Lift chairs or pop-up chairs are basically recliners with an additional feature that allows the sitter to have their chair lift up to help them get out of their seat. Older individuals or people with disabilities of any age are great candidates for having this type of seating in their home.
Although lift chairs are generally used as a form of medical equipment as they can aid those with mobility issues, these chairs can still add value to any home. A nice, leather lift chair can add warmth and masculinity to an interior space.
11. Stool / bar stool
Stools and bar stools are both great options for seating, especially in interior spaces that are tighter and more cramped. If you have a lot of flat, horizontal furniture and decor, stools can help add height and, not to mention, can also add seating variation to your interior space.
Bar stools are perfect for a counter, bar, or island in your kitchen to add more seats for eating. However, stools, in general, don’t have to be confined to a countertop or tall table; a short stool can look stunning in a blank corner of an interior space. To top it off, stools are incredibly easy to store when not in use.
The many colors, styles, heights, widths, and materials bar stools and general stools come in is exciting. If you have children, elderly individuals, and/or folks with disabilities in your family, your best bet is to opt for stools that have backs, armrests, and cushions. Stools that swivel 360-degrees are especially fun for the kiddos!
12. Rocking chair
Some might consider rocking chairs a thing of the past, but the truth is, rocking chairs are always a viable option in interior design as they are useful in numerous ways whether it be to rock a baby to sleep or simply to sway to-and-fro as a means of personal relaxation.
Rocking chairs are not only available in its traditional, brown, wooden style. You can find cushioned armchairs that feature a rocking base for a more contemporary, comfortable type of rocking chair. If you do opt for a plain, wooden rocking chair, however, you can always add your own cushions and perhaps a throw pillow and plush blanket.
Conclusion
From a classy bar stool to a lavish chaise lounge, there are numerous forms of seating we can add to our interior spaces to not only bring comfort but also luxury to our homes. Although some of the latter seating options are not as common, searching in-store and online for these fun types of seating can be well worth it.
Besides picking out different forms of seating for your home setting, it’s also important to consider how the color, texture, material, shape, size, and arrangement of your seating play roles in the luxuriousness of your home. With the latter characteristics in mind, you should have no problem finding comfortable yet formal seating for your home.