L-Shaped Sofa Layout: Which Corner, What Centre Table Shape and What Size Carpet
DecoraHubAn L-shaped sofa fills a corner, seats more people than a three seater, and makes every other piece in the room harder to place. The centre table has to reach two arms of seating instead of one, the carpet has to work with an uneven shape, and the long side blocks the walkway if it is put in the wrong corner. This guide covers each of those, using the real DecoraHub sofa range.
The L-shaped range
| Sofa | Build | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Deep Tufted Velvet 4-Seater Chesterfield L Shape | Chesterfield, polished wooden frame, velvet | ₹79,999 |
| Blue Chesterfield L-Shaped Sofa | Solid wood frame, velvet | ₹84,999 |
| The Serene Arc Luxury L Shape Sofa in Brown | Solid wood frame, velvet | ₹84,999 |
| Tufted Chesterfield L-Shaped Sofa in Elegant Beige | Chesterfield, deep button tufting, rolled arms | ₹1,02,000 |
| Deep Tufted Velvet 7-Seater Chesterfield L Shape | 36 in high, polished wooden frame | ₹1,18,999 |
Check the exact dimensions on the product page before ordering, and measure your door, lift and staircase first. An L-shaped sofa is the hardest shape to carry up a flight of stairs. The method is in Will the Sofa Fit?
Which corner it goes in
The long side of the L should run along the longest wall, with the short side, the chaise or return, pointing into the room. Two things decide which corner.
- The walkway. The return must not block the path from the door to the rest of the house. Walk the route before deciding.
- The television. Everyone on the long side should face the screen or be angled towards it. People on the return see it side on. If the return is longer than about 5 ft, the far end gets a poor view. TV distances are in the TV unit size guide.
Leave 30 inches of clear floor around the outside of the L. A sofa pushed hard into a corner with no gap makes a room feel smaller, not larger.
The centre table
This is where most L-shaped rooms go wrong. A long rectangular table suits a straight sofa. In front of an L it leaves the people on the return reaching sideways across a corner.
Two arrangements work:
- One round or oval table in the inner corner of the L. Everyone is roughly equidistant from it, and a round top has no corner pointing at anyone's shins. Look at Sophisticated Oval with a black base at ₹29,999, Luxurious Centre Table with a golden base at ₹27,999 or Copper Gold Luxurious at ₹28,899.
- A combo, one centre table plus a side table. The centre table sits in front of the long side and the side table serves the return. Most designs offer this for ₹5,000 to ₹10,000 more. See teapoy designs with prices and the side table height guide.
A set of nesting tables is the third option. Two tables that separate cover both arms of the L and tuck back together when the floor is needed.
Keep 18 inches between the sofa edge and the table, and keep the table top within 2 inches of the seat height.
The carpet
Use a 6 x 9 ft carpet with the 9 ft side running parallel to the long arm of the L. The front legs of the long side rest on it. The chaise or return will usually sit partly off the carpet, which is normal and looks better than a carpet stretched to cover everything.
If you want the whole L standing on the carpet, no fixed-size rug is large enough. A cut piece of wall-to-wall carpet at ₹150 per sq ft does it. The sizing is in the carpet size guide and the cutting maths is in the wall-to-wall carpet guide.
The wall behind
An L-shaped sofa covers two walls, which leaves less wall to decorate than you expect. Concentrate on the wall behind the long side.
- Art should span about two thirds of the long side's width, not the whole L. The rule is in metal wall art sizing.
- Leave the wall behind the return plain, or use one small piece. Two competing arrangements meeting at a corner look busy.
- On a deep-tufted velvet Chesterfield, keep the wall quiet. A plain texture such as Beige Linen lets the tufting show. Costs are in wallpaper price per sq ft.
Open plan rooms
An L-shaped sofa often stands away from the walls, dividing a living area from a dining area. When it does, its back is on show. A console table behind it covers that back and gives a surface for lamps, with the height and length rules in console table behind a sofa. A PVD partition does the same job in 2 to 3 inches of depth, which matters when a console would eat the walkway. See fluted glass partitions.
Velvet on a family sofa
Most of the L-shaped range is velvet. It looks right on a Chesterfield and it marks when brushed against the nap, though it recovers when brushed back. Choose a darker shade for a sofa in daily use, and keep it out of hours of direct afternoon sun. Fabric comparisons are in the sofa buying guide, and other shapes are in teak wood sofa sets and curved sofas.
Common questions
What shape centre table suits an L-shaped sofa?
Round or oval, placed in the inner corner of the L.
What size carpet for an L-shaped sofa?
6 x 9 ft, with the long side parallel to the long arm. For full coverage, a cut piece of wall-to-wall carpet.
Should the sofa touch the walls?
Leave a small gap. It looks better and makes cleaning behind it possible.
Can the chaise be on the left or the right?
Ask through the contact page before ordering, since it depends on the model.
Browse sofas and centre tables. Delivery terms are in the shipping policy.
