5 Exquisite Types of Sofa to Inspire your Living Room

All homes have one and all living rooms wouldn’t be the same without one – the humble sofa for many years has been redesigned and reimagined into a modern form that is as much about the form as the function. But all of these ideas come from classic and antique designs that were made bespoke for richly gentlemen to adorn their not-so-humble dwellings. Let’s look at some of these most exquisite, classic sofas that are coming back into fashion all around the world.

The Chesterfield Sofa

Chesterfield Sofa

The Chesterfield sofa has long been one of the best known designs for a sofa thanks to its classic lines and luxury upholstery that have made these types of sofa something of a classic when it comes to antique study furniture. It is thought that the Chesterfield gets its name from the Fourth Earl of Chesterfield who commissioned a skilled and talented furniture maker who came up with this iconic design.

Featuring a low profile, leather upholstery and iconic button placement to hold the fabrics in place, the chesterfield was as stunning today as it was when first designed. The style took off and has been a hit ever since, resulting in many of the world’s most luxurious sofa manufacturers taking the design and re-imagining it for their own collection.

The Chesterfield sofa whilst a classic design has many contemporary uses in the modern age, and is often used in modern living rooms and study rooms to offset the room’s design by featuring something classic, and timeless.

The Contemporary Sofa

Contemporary Sofa

Contemporary sofas are newly designed sofas that fit particular styles and shapes of living rooms and often feature advanced functionality over older designs. Many of these contemporary sofas are created in new styles that include modern, minimal and can sometimes feature a variety of luxury materials such as leathers, suedes, and woods.

Contemporary sofas came about due to simpler design processes and therefore can be manufactured en masse, leading to lower prices and an increase in available designs. Many contemporary sofas include clever reclining functions, and offer intelligent storage solutions within the frame of the sofa itself.

Sectional Sofas

Sectional Sofa

Sectional sofas are a great addition to a living room that has enough space to house a large seating unit, or to combine several seating places into a single point in the room. Sectional sofas are a great choice also when space is at a premium and you have an unorthodox shape to fill with your seating arrangement.

Sectional sofas are very much a modern phenomenon and have increased in popularity for the past ten to fifteen years. Whilst the classic designs of some of these sofas may resemble classic sofas, the manufacturing process, as well as some of the materials used, aim to maximize the utility of the sofa.

Sectional sofas were created to fill a void in the available sofas that meant people had to push two sofas together to fill their living room space. Whilst this makes for a simple solution, the arm rests of many sofas meant that you couldn’t use the sofa how you intended to. Sectional sofas were created to give people the maximum utility of their living room space, as well as the ability to mix and match different size sofas and units to create a unique seating space for their living rooms.

The Lawson Sofa

Lawson Sofa

This type of fabric sofa is known for its design of comfort and is still one of the most popular types of sofa bought today. Featuring a back rest that is comprised of pillows that is separate from the frame itself, the Lawson style sofa is often a smaller sofa comprising of two or three seats.

It was created by financier Thomas Lawson on the turn of the 20th century and designed for comfortable relaxation and was designed to be much less ornate and stern like the similar Victorian sofas of the time. With its relaxed and reclining back section, the support of the cushions that come with it and the many number of accents, patterns, fabrics and pillows and cushions you can add it is a real peoples’ sofa that has been popular right from the very start.

This sofa is a classic design but features so many modern and contemporary twists that it has evolved throughout its lifetime to be considered the classic, box-shaped sofa that many people first purchase.

Bridgewater Sofa

Bridgewater Sofa

This classic design features rolling arm rests that are lower than the back support which is much higher in proportion. These sofas usually come in three-seater options and are one of the most popular long length sofas currently on the market. Classically designed and comfortable to sit on, it is no wonder why many people choose a bridgewater sofa for large families.

Made on the turn of the century, their popularity took off due to their large and comfortable seating arrangements. Mainly three-seaters, you can find two and four-seater options depending on the manufacturer.

Contemporary sofas take much of their style from the classic bridgewater sofa, with many shrinking the high back and bringing in the arm rests to make a modern looking sofa with a classic design base.

Whatever your sofa needs, you are sure to find a modern or classic exquisite sofa for your living room. Choose a sofa that will match the style of your room, or choose a material or fabric to offset the look of the room to make it a center piece.

Gail P
I am a beachy type of person, living in Newport Beach, and oftentimes I’ll go for a swim with my daughter. When I’m bored, I’ll help make package boxes for my little girl’s sticker company on Etsy.