We're Officially Buying A Sectional After Seeing These Living Rooms

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updated Dec 05, 2019

sectional in living room emily henderson — Design: Emily Henderson Design, Photo: Sara Tramp

People often talk about how important it is to invest in a mattress because apparently you spend a third of your life sleeping. But what about the other two-thirds of your life? We like to think we’re probably spending a good chunk of that time lounging on our sofas, blissfully binging Netflix. Because of that, we’re pretty sure that finding the right couch is just as, if not more, important than finding a good mattress.

On one hand, you could go for aesthetics and invest in a high-quality leather sofa that skips on any comfort whatsoever. Or, you could go for all cushioning and settle on a sore-eye that you’re afraid to show guests. But there’s a middle ground sofa that does it all: it’s aesthetically pleasing, it's endlessly cozy and, if you try hard enough, it can double as a bed for those times when your mattress just won’t cut it.

Yes, we’re talking about sectionals. And we’re pretty convinced that every living space needs one. Ready to find your perfect sofa? Keep scrolling for our favorite sectional ideas. Trust us, you’ll want to choose wisely when it comes to the piece of furniture you spend two-thirds of you life lounging around on.

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The Instant Classic

There’s perhaps nothing more classic than this sectional: the modular design, the rectangular-cut cushions, the not-quite-gray-not-quite-white color, the small but beautifully crafted feet. It’s the kind of couch that could go in any room with any design style, but we happen to love how it fits so well into this minimal color palette.

LD Shoppe Leclair Sectional $2744

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Mid-Century Green

We like to think of this couch as the perfect mix between 1960s Mad Men vintage and 2010s hipster chic. It’s all in the details: the off-olive velvet, the wood panelling, the tufting that intentionally tries too hard. It’s the ultimate recipe for a retro sectional.

Kardiel Woodrow Box Sofa U-Sectional $3195

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A Little Leather

Unlike the leather couch you might find in an old guy cigar lounge, this leather couch oozes comfort — and it’s all thanks to the mixing of textures. The sofa pillows, combined with the faux fur throw and lush rug all give the otherwise stuffy leather material a very homey feeling.

Interior Define Caitlin $4595

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At First Blush

Ask any millennial, and they’d probably tell you that millennial pink is, in fact, a neutral. The wonderful thing about the blush pink color is that it pairs well with almost any other color, whether that’s lavender, coral or deep teal — or all three together.

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Hue of Blue

If you live in an apartment where painting your plain white walls is definitely out of the question, or you just like to stick to a neutral color palette, this bright royal blue sofa is an easy way to add some color into your living room without it overpowering the space.

Tone it down with a few neutral accessories, or play up the hue with all white decor.

Hooseng Modern Design Sofa Velvet Fabric Convertible Tufted Sleeper Sectional Couch $499

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Texture, Texture, Texture

Have we mentioned we love texture? There’s just so much it can do for a room. Here, the leather pairs amazingly well with the knit pillows and fluffy rug — not to mention the wood grain art print. Don’t you just want to dive in head first?

Article Sven $2999

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Gather Around

One of the best parts of sectionals, is their innate nature to build a conversation area. Whether you have just one extended side, or a full wrap around couch, sectionals just bring people together. This one is no exception: the sofa invites people in with its soft material and long coffee table.

Arhaus Landsbury Three Piece Sectional $4999

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Comfy Contrast

Few things bring personality to a room quite like the contrast between extreme light and extreme dark. Here, we love the way the deep navy walls juxtapose with the soft, chunky sectional. We’re pretty sure we could spend hours there reading a book.

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Back to Black

Black leather is a fairly difficult material to work with. It tends to overwhelm a space. But this sectional does the complete opposite: the slim profile along with the rose gold accents makes it much softer and attainable.

Baxton Studios Dobson Leather Modern Sectional Sofa $803

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Make a Statement

For those who might shudder at the thought of a completely neutral room, it’s all about making a statement with brightly colored furniture. Select a sectional in an unexpected color, such as thing red-orange, and pair it with plenty of brightly colored accents and greenery.

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Masculine Design

Sometimes, you buy a couch to fit the design of a room. Other times, such is the case for this room, the couch determines absolutely everything else. Here, the sharp lines of the couch emulate everything else in the room, and the clean masculine design extends well past the living space.

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Made for Monochrome

The telltale sign of a great sofa is one that you can easily see yourself face-planting into after a long day. This one has that exact vibe. But it’s not just the deep, cushioning that gives off that feeling. It’s also the entirely monochrome color scheme that feels like something you might see in a hygge handbook.

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Pop of Pink

You might be asking, “Pink, again!?” The thing with pink sofas is that they’re so versatile: on one hand, you can easily play down the color as a neutral, but on the other hand it works so well as a pop of color in an otherwise simple room. This sectional is the latter, and boy, does it work well.

One Kings Lane Marceau Reversible Sectional, Blush Velvet $2295

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Clean White

If — and only if — you have no pets, no kids and no problem with constant cleaning, a white sofa can be so magical. The crisp colorless furniture makes such an impact in a room. This one works overtime with the excess white and cream pillows lining the entire length of the sofa.

Room & Board Oasis Sectional $2798

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More Sectional, Less Problems

The issue with most sectionals is that everyone always wants to lay down in the part that juts out, leaving others to settle for the much less fun middle section of the sofa. Here, the problem simply doesn’t exist. With two sectional ends, movie nights just got way cozier.

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Greige, Of Course

It’s honestly surprising that we got this far into a furniture round up without selecting something greige. It’s the classic couch color, honestly. And with a sectional, you really can’t go wrong. If you’re trying to invest in a sofa that will stand the test of time (and trends), greige is your BFF.