Question: I have enclosed a layout of my great room. You enter it from the outside into a foyer. One half of the room is designated for dining, the other half for living. There is a 9-foot dining room table and buffet. This area is fine and allows us to enjoy the panoramic view out the French doors while dining. My problem is my seating and living area. It is about 17 feet wide and 19 feet long. Three options have been suggested to me, but I am not sure which one works best.

K. P. Duffy
Santa Rosa

Answer: It's clear to me that this house, with its large "great" room approach to living, needs flexible seating for living comfortably, entertaining effectively and enjoying the space. I've taken into consideration making your piano a focal point for the seating arrangements. To maximize how the room is used, I've made one modification to the structure.

The opening to the closet is directly behind the piano. However, it seems logical to me that the best place for access to the closet should be nearer to the front door where people are coming into the house with coats. Therefore, I've closed off the wall behind the piano and put that door in the foyer. This makes the closet access more functional and at the same time gives us a wall behind the piano to visually expand the space (more later).

For the main seating area in the living room I've selected an 8-foot sofa. Two people will share it comfortably, and three in a pinch. The arms of the sofa should be lower than the back to keep the visual line open and flowing. I've placed two club chairs at right angles to the sofa. Again, I recommend low arms on these chairs. For seating opposite the sofa, there's a 6-foot-long upholstered bench. This gives you easy seating for one, and two comfortably. In a moment you'll see why I'm using a piece without a back or arms in this location. In the corner on the wall that leads to the bedrooms, I've created an L- shaped upholstered seating area for curling up and reading while listening to music. This can be a small L-shaped sectional sofa, or a built-in-style corner unit with a lot of throw pillows. When entertaining, it can be used as a small area for intimate conversations. In front of this seating area I've put a small ottoman that doubles as a coffee table when you put a tray on it. Because it's an upholstered piece, it can become extra seating when needed for more guests. Its feet are small casters, or wheels, so it can be easily moved. With seating on both sides of the living room, you can see why the upholstered bench is so effective; it won't create a visual barrier between the two seating areas and, depending on which way your guests are facing when seated on it, they can talk to guests on either side of the room. On the wall behind the piano, where the closet door used to be, I've put a long console table. Above it is a mirror that reflects the piano and makes the space appear larger. A pair of tall, thin lamps will illuminate this area nicely.

On either side of this console table are a pair of occasional chairs that can be pulled into service when you need more seating in the living room. From a practical perspective, these chairs should complement your dining chairs, so if you ever need extra seating at the table, you'll have chairs that look nice there as well.

A large, square coffee table anchors the seating area near the fireplace. If you want to keep this space open, the surface of the table should be glass.

A small table on the end of the sofa near one of the club chairs can hold a table lamp, and a floor lamp on the other end of the sofa will light that area. Swing-arm lamps attached to the walls on either end of the corner seating unit will give this area light for reading, and an end table can be used for holding glasses or coffee cups when the ottoman/coffee table is otherwise occupied.

Make sure you choose fabrics that complement each other and that mix and match well from one area to another so there's a sense of flow and planning in the overall effect.

I think that this arrangement will fulfill all your seating needs. And by my count, 12 people can sit in your living room without feeling uncomfortable. Twenty close friends wouldn't have a problem either! 

 

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