A sofa and a chaise lounger might work. One sofa and an ottoman just won't work for my families needs. My husband is 6'4. He takes up a whole sofa himself in order to get comfortable. We need this space to be livable.

A sectional will not work. How about 2 chairs and a sofa? Much less puffy than you're showing.

What bothered me with your very first picture was the sofa being off-centered with the windows. That said....yes, a smaller armed couch with chaise might work better (something like Ramona pictured).....Can you face the fireplace with your couch and put reclining swivel chairs .. one on either side facing toward each other (can swivel when watching TV).

Chairs will not work in this room. We need to be able to sit comfortably... An accent chair is the least comfortable thing that I can pick in my opinion....


I don't like how the sofa isn't centered with the window either, but it can't be.

We could face the sofa towards the fireplace, but that splits the room in half. We want it to be open. Unless you mean place the sofa on the wood wall.

I would do a sectional but in a lighter color. In a smaller room, too many furniture pieces make the room look crowded imo.

I have to wait a week for these two to be picked up and almost until the end of the month to get my money back, so I have some time to figure out what to do. Any suggestions for the wood wall? It was here when we bought the house. I've thought about staining or painting it, but I've held back for the fear of messing up the wood.

I would try to keep your doggies off of them, so they will give you a full refund :)

accent chairs would be for guests, not for you guys

accent chairs work fine for conversations, not for watching tv

some accent chairs are very comfortable

I am 5'8". I have very long legs and shorter torso.

why don't you think a good ottoman won't work but a chaise will? they are essentially the same. You need to check seat depth. Measure your husband from inseam to knee. That is the critical portion. Do the same for yourself. You'd be surprised. My six foot x was shorter from inseam to foot than I was by several inches. We joked he had short, stubby legs.

I think white washing the wood is always pretty. It will also make the room appear larger. Put a blanket under doggy please.

How about a 7' sofa along Windows and a separate chaise across from sofa, angled toward fireplace, floating a bit? Maybe not the style above but it would give hubs a place all to himself, or you, or if snuggle time is needed the sofa would fit everyone..including the cat.

If you can get at this time, a leather sofa in a warm brown would look wonderful and definitely weather the wear and tear of the pets. Example:

Lazy Boy Brand Rocker Recliner - Model is Rowan Color Natural in leather

This is the Lay Boy recliner/rockers we purchased about 5 months ago. I agreed to recliners as long as they were comfortable for me too and had a modern look because I hate the overstuffed monsters that take up so much room. Go to Lazy Boy web site for picture and size. Lazy Boy products can be purchased for less at other furniture stores..

If your budget is less, we previously had similar size cloth recliners that we purchased from Sam's Club. We had them for 5 years and they now live at my son's house. They did not rock or swivel and they were about $250. Now I see Sam's and Costco have swivel recliners for about $350 and they too are not huge. On my trip to Ikea last year I sat in their recliners which were comfortable and smaller too.

I know how frustrating furniture shopping can be when you have to take into consideration so many things. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

Puffy recliners and sofas are too big for your space IMHO.
Check out West Elm, Crate and Barrel retail stores like that. Places that have a little more up to date styles. Big Box stores and Lazy Boy typically carry very large, mass produced furniture, okay for basements and man caves if you like that look, lol. I think a 7 ft sofa facing the fireplace and two armchairs flanking the fireplace is your best bet.

I definitely like a more modern look, but I also have to keep my husband happy lol. For now I really just have to wait until these are collected. After these are gone, I've looked into the suggestion about white washing the wood wall. I believe I will do that while deciding on what furniture will go into the room because the room will be empty. We really need to be able to navigate through the room because this has entrances to the stairwell AND dining room, so options of placing a 7 ft sofa and chairs flanking the fire place are kind of not possible. My options are really limited... Starting to wish I had just kept my sectional because it at least didn't seem so awkward.

Oh no, the sectional looked very awkward, IMHO. You want to be able to move around your space and not be boxed in. I would wait on painting or changing the wood wall until you have chosen your upholstery fabric color. Even though white seems neutral, it can seem very off with some colors.
My husband is very tall too. There are more modern looking recliners from the above mentioned stores that may work, not sure if you have enough room.
Glad you are waiting on your furnishings. Take your time, so you are getting a good bang for your buck and don't regret hasty choices.

Thanks for all of the suggestions everyone. I'll updated you all when I have this set out of here.

Here are a few photographs from designs of ours which might help you in choosing a new set. Notice the colors of the sofas and chairs.

Someone suggested a bench, and I saw this amazing steal in Target... I grabbed it up to see if it'll fit in once the room is all finished. If not, I'll either return it or repurpose it in another room! ...excuse Diesel! He likes to know what's going on lol.

Another "dilemma" in this room... Our house was built in the 1928 and still has the original air vents. In the living room, there is a huge air return.

JudyG will do a floor plan for you if you give her a readable diagram and at least four pictures showing each wall,

I can't read the one you posted.

That is a cute bench but resist the impulse to buy more till all options are explored.

Just assuming big people need huge looking furniture is simply incorrect. What counts more than anything is seat depth.

As I said earlier, my 6' ex could not ride my bicycle when it was adjusted for me and I am only 5'8"

I have never said that big furniture is needed for big people, so I'm not sure where you're getting that from. Please don't post on this anymore.

Have you thought about something like the Ekornes Stressless chairs - they are recliners, but don't occupy a whole lot of space visually - and they come in different sizes, so a short person would get the smaller size, a taller person the one that's a bit higher in the back. You could fit a couple of those and a small sofa into that room, I think, and those chairs would provide extremely comfortable seating.

I agree,seat depth is key. Measure your hubby from rear to knee.

Those recliners are nice, but a bit out of our price range + my husband doesn't want a recliner. He's picky about what he wants to relax on. Thanks for the idea though! My parents are ALLL about the stressors furniture once my younger siblings are out of the nest lol. And I guess I should add too, we don't really ever just sit straight up on the sofas. More often than not, we are laying down. I understand the point of measuring us to find a comfortable depth, but that doesn't really fit our needs...

For what best fits the needs of my family, I'm 99.9% sure we are going with this sectional. It has good ratings, and we found it comfortable to sit on with enough seating for our needs. It has the clean arm rests a lot of people suggested, and it is also a much lighter color. I will be placing it in the L wall in the living room, and I might possibly add a small accent chair, or small warm leather recliner, and table next to the windows. I haven't really figured out what I'll do with that open area due to the huge air vent return. I really do appreciate all of the help I've been given, but I think I need to go with what will work for us. My husband should have his comfy place to sprawl out, and I shouldn't have to grimace every time I look in the living room. I think with a small sectional like this we all win. I still have a week or so before I'll be able to purchase anything, so I'm still open to some idea. However, I will say we need an open room, comfortable seating for three, budget friendly options (furniture not over $1200), and a livable space. Some rooms are gorgeous, but can they all really be used lol?

What's the dimensions of that sectional. I believe it looks looks too bulky and large. Your room is rather small.

Is your room 11 ft wide? If the sectional is 9 ft wide you'll have 1 ft on each side. Too big!
Good luck :)

No. That sectional is roughly 90 inches in length and depth. I'm planning to place it in the L shape of the living room. That's where the wood wall is, and the love seat is right now. This sectional is actually not bulky at all and is relatively small as far as sectionals go.

Here are the exact measurements. I still have time to mull it over. Just don't see another option really... My husband and I really want to room to be open. There have been some ideas I can totally imagine doing, but I just have a hard time seeing that work in this living room.

What about a smaller couch with a chaise on one side and an ottoman on the other side. Or put a round coffee table in front of it . Then you could add another chair facing it. I bought a small couch and a glass coffee table for my small living room and it works well,

I hope you'll post a picture of the new furniture in place. Thus has been an interesting conversation

Seriously? That's sooo hilarious. Not.

You wouldn't have any trouble physically getting it in the room. Shipping charges should be less. Don't advise wearing shorts in hot weather, and don't sew or knit on them -nothing sharp. Take off all bobby pins. Safety pins might be ok, check the manufacturers instructions. Should they pop, I'm worried you might buzz all over the room, like a balloon.

My daughter says to go for the colourless one, as it will go with anything.

Some inspiration

Your sectional was puffy and this set has rolled flared arms. Many stores have nice comfortable but more streamlined sofas and chairs. You can get comfortable smaller chairs. My favorite are from room and board, but I have gotten others from lazy boy. Go with a cool color sofa as you have a lot of wood in the room. Light grey perhaps. No coffee table. A round ottoman on wheels with a tray could be very versatile. Good luck.

Why does everyone hate love seats???

Hate and love, hmm two sides of the same coin?

Actually, it's not that I have no sense of humor. It's the fact that I came onto this site to ask for help. Not to get a "joke" about the furniture I should get. Obviously, I'm already upset with the fact that I made an expensive mistake. Then, you didn't even offer any viable options. You struck a nerve. Sorry if I'm not ready to laugh up a storm in the middle of trying to fix my mistake.

jumping in without any decorating suggestions....since you like the sectional & it fits you & your hubby(totally get the comfort factor first!), I heard it's helpful to take boxes to build a mock up couch. Lay the boxes out both horizontal and vertical to match the dimensions of your sectional. Then you'd have good sense of how it will fill your own space.

Allison, I think this thread went off the rails when a lot of the advice given, felt like it was landing on deaf ears.
Most people were giving you good constructive advice.
You had a huge sectional, replaced it with a set of sofa and loveseat that doesn't fit and now you are getting another sectional! I don't know why it was an expensive mistake, as you are returning the set. Hopefully you don't have to pay return shipping.
You have a very small space from what we can see. You have been given some good advice.Please slow down, take your time. This is a big investment, we are only trying to prevent you from making a big expensive mistake :)

That's actually really smart! Part of the shock with this set was how tall it was, so the boxes would help to see if the sectional would at least be visually pleasing. Thank you so much!

My viable option was to try to lighten the mood. I didn't have any furniture selections to suggest. It seemed pointless to try to suggest something, actually. I have no control over another's sense of humour. Nor do I have any control over another's stress level.

Other people got that my contribution was light-hearted.

Anyway, good luck with your room :-)

I hope you will find something that's comfortable and feet well in your space. My husband is 6'4" and this is his most comfortable seats in the house.

Yes it is from Ikea

Editing this comment since it no longer makes sense as you either deleted your post or it was removed.

I actually have reread the thread numerous times. I'm sorry that sticking up for myself made you uncomfortable. You can just go back to lurking.