Know Your Personal Space
My living room
My living area is an open plan, which means my living room, dining, and kitchen share one open room with no divisional walls. Although it sounds pretty spacious, the designated living area is small. But being small doesn’t mean you don’t have options. You just have to be creative.
If your living room is small
1. Don’t put a large bulky sofa in it. Pretty obvious. But how many times have you seen oversized furniture in a small room? Instead, look for a smaller scaled sofa that is less than 80″ in width. Find one with straight arms, not flared or rolled, which will look too grand for a small space. Your best strategy is one with straight lines.
Metro Sofa is 79″ wide.
A 2-seater sofa works better than a 3-seater. A low profile (your shoulders should be higher than the back cushions while sitting) fits better than a high profile.
The Urban Loveseat is low-profile and is 65.5″ wide.
2. Skip the sofa and get a loveseat. Loveseats are almost always less than 80″ and are usually 2-seaters.
The Gianna Loveseat is 55″ wide.
3. Choose a sofabed. Stick with the same criteria as #1, low-profile with straight arms. But with the added benefit of a sofabed, you’ll get the additional function of a sleeper too. Ideal for studio living.
Tribano Sofabed is 76″ wide
Tribano Sofabed opens to a comfortable sleeper
If your living room is large
1. You’re lucky. You have a lot of options. Look for sofas with deep seating. These sofas offer vast comfort. Add multiple pillows to your sofa and even mismatch the patterns. The more pillows, the more comfort and fullness you bring to your room.
Allegra Sectional comes with multiple loose pillows for color and comfort
2. Choose a sectional. A well-designed modular sectional can be configured in so many ways. You can buy as many pieces you need to fit your space. And it’s always fun to see how many ways you can configure all the seating you have.
Modular sectionals can easily be configured to fit your needs.
3. Break up your space with occasional chairs and ottomans which add visual interest and additional seating.
A pair of Perfect Chairs by Human Touch
4. Instead of placing your sofa along the wall, float it in the middle of the room to define the area as your “living” area.
The Belmont Sofa and the recliner defines the living area
How well do you know your space? Next time you step into your living room, take a good look and see what improvements you can make to define your personal space.
About Terri Dux
Besides being a writer, passionate blogger, and photographer for HomeWorld Furniture, Terri is also co-owner of a local t-shirt craft company. When not watching her favorite TV channel, HGTV, Terri likes to sew, vermicompost, and thrift at neighborhood garage sale
Bringing together stories, rooms, life. 
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Well said. thanks for the comment.