If our dining tables could talk… we’re sure they’d have a lot to say! After all, it’s where family, partners and friends gather to not only eat but spend quality time together. This special space is truly the heartbeat of the home! From slow Sunday morning breakfasts, candlelight dinners interrupted by the pitter-patter of tiny feet above, game nights that always end up in an argument, and everything you can think of in between.
The dining table will experience so much in the span of its life, and as a key piece of furniture, it’s good to remember that it’s a genuine investment. You’ll want something that will not let you down in a couple of years, and that can withstand… life! Because let’s face it, life is messy and chaotic at times. Not only that, you want the table to be the focal point of your home. A place that people gravitate towards.
Much like choosing a sofa, knowing exactly how your dining table will be used throughout the week will determine what size, shape, material, and table style will best match your home. To help you get a better idea about what you’ll need, we’ve broken down the seven most important areas of consideration to help you find a table that you will love for many years!
An L-shaped sofa can set the whole tone of a room, and if you want to make the right investment, there’s no point cutting corners. You need to choose a sofa that’s comfortable, durable and defines your living space — and is a dream to sink into after a long day. If you’re shopping around or looking for inspiration, a corner sofa should be on your shortlist, ticking all the above boxes. But should a corner sofa be top of the list? Stretch out your legs and find out…
1) Grand stretch in the evening…
Ask any corner sofa convert for the number one benefit and they’ll tell you, as Frankie says… “relax”. L-shaped sofas can add a more social feel to a room — more than one person can stretch out, for reading or having a movie night, and the right angle means you have a more natural seating position for chatting to family and friends. And for a date night in, it’s perfect for snuggling up with that special someone, as lazing together really does feel like a time-out. Even if you’re by yourself, sinking into the corner and putting your feet up is the ultimate in relaxation after a long day. Who says “nobody puts Baby in the corner?”
Lima open-end corner sofa by Xooon
2) Sense of space
In practical terms, corner sofas don’t clutter a room as much as a regular sofa and armchairs, so you can open up a lot more space in the middle of the room, making it look bigger. But your L-shaped sofa won’t be limited to the corner — if you have an open-plan living space, it can really set a scene in the middle of the room, creating the illusion of distinctive areas. You’ll soon realise that no space is wasted with a sectional sofa.
Maryrose Simpson’s home in Stradbally, Co Laois. Pictures: Joe McCallion
3) Get creative
If you’ve been sold on the first two points, you still have some dynamic possibilities ahead. Corner sofas come in a range of different styles to choose from, so consider which type would suit your room.
Sofa with chaise:If your space is tight and your room just won’t fit a corner unit. A sofa with a chaise takes up a lot less space and still has the luxury of lying out… A great way to make movie night the ultimate in relaxation.
Typical size: 250 – 280 cm x 160
Saddler sofa with chaise
Open-end corner unit: If you have a little more space, an open-end corner unit might be the perfect solution. Sitting, lounging and watching TV from a lying position is all possible with an open-end corner unit. Typical size: 290 x 230
Natuzzi B619 open-end corner unit
Closed corner unit: A closed-corner sofa offers a very classic look with the added benefit of a second armrest so it can accommodate more people. If you really want to take advantage of that relaxational aspect, consider adding a recliner at each end, and the middle, just be sure to check your room can handle the extra size. Typical size: 290 x 290
Natuzzi C176 Closed corner unit
Modular: If you’ve got any hidden interior design talents, here’s your chance to indulge your creative side. A modular corner sofa is perfect for an open-plan living area, as you can change the sofa’s size to suit the space. — you can create an NYC loft apartment feel in your living room with some well-positioned modular pieces and a flash of inspiration!
Tod Modular corner unit
4) The right fit
Before your final decision, make sure your dream sofa measures up — it has to be the right fit for your living space. Remember your room should comfortably take a corner unit, don’t be tempted to squeeze one in. If you’re sure it will fit the space, it’s time to get specific. Take some masking tape or newspaper and map out the size and shape of the furniture on the floor, and then take a photo. Walk around the room and see how the space will flow. You’ll get an idea of what will and won’t work — and you’ll avoid any disappointing surprises later on! If you have some extra space, why not add an occasional chair to the room? It can add a splash of colour contrast, and give you a chance for more ‘me-time’, away from the kids using you as a climbing frame.
Bailey corner sofa by Collins & Hayes
5) Colour & material
Once you’ve narrowed down the shape and size of your new corner sofa, you’ve got a few last important choices to make — what colour, and what cover? For material, your main choice is between leather or fabric, which we’ve covered in a previous post. Fabric sofas feel soft, warm and cosy, while protected leather is more hard-wearing and ages well, and is easy to wipe clean if you’ve got kids or pets to keep an eye on.
Colour is your last chase to make a statement — whether that’s the colour of the sofa itself, or complementary cushions. Mix sizes and shapes of cushions so your sofa doesn’t look too formal, and think carefully about the colours — a well coordinated set of cushions can transform a room with a relatively small budget.
Mansbo sofa with chaise
What Do You Do Now?
I hope this blog post has given you a few ideas, and a decision might be around the corner. If you need more help, be sure to check out some of our FAQs below or give us a call and of course, we would love to see you in-store! We offer a vast selection of corner sofas and every other style of sofa from the world’s leading brands. Thanks for reading, and we look forward to helping you find the perfect sofa for your home.
Until next time!
Paula
Frequently asked questions
What are the main benefits of corner sofas? One of the best things about corner units is that they allow you to maximize your living space. They also make a room super cosy and great for chats.
Does a corner sofa have to go in a corner? Most corner sofas go against a wall and into a corner to maximize space. If you have an open-plan living space, corner sofas can be used as a visual room divider to create the illusion of distinctive areas.
Are corner sofas comfortable? Comfort is so personal, but there is no doubt that lying down and putting your feet up is the ultimate in relaxation.
Is a corner sofa good for a small room? Corner units require space, so it might be better to have a large sofa with a chaise in a smaller room
What is the difference between left and right-corner sofa? If you are facing a sofa with the arm on the right-hand side, this is a right-corner sofa and visa versa for a left-handed facing sofa.
Will a corner sofa fit in my room? Corner sofas come in a variety of specifications and be customised to fit into your room. For example, modular are easily delivered into tight rooms and assembled in the space. Always speak with a furniture expert to help choose the right size sofa to fit your space.
We thought we’d do something a little different for this blog post. As you know, a home is so much more than the furniture you put inside it. It’s about creating an atmosphere that not only represents your style but also how you want to feel in your home. Whether that’s, dark and moody, warm and cosy or minimalist and bright.
1933 Galley Space
We’ve floated the idea of having an art gallery in store at The 1933 Furniture Company for the past couple of years. As a part of a more holistic approach to helping our customers make their house a home. We’ve got an extensive range of furniture pieces large and small, soft furnishings and lighting. So adding artwork felt like the next natural, organic step. Enhancing the vibe of the store, and offering customers something a little different.
We knew a gallery is the only way to truly showcase art and the story behind each piece, as opposed to having artwork displayed around the store. We never found the kind of eye-catching artwork we were looking for until we saw Chris O’Hara and one of his pieces on Pippa O’Connor’s Instagram. We immediately fell in love with his work, and we think that many people who visit our store would feel the same. After reaching out, we met up with him and found him to be very warm, grounded and passionate. We knew it was a perfect fit!
Introducing Chris O’Hara
Chris O’Hara of Dublin is a former entrepreneur and has been working as a full time abstract artist since 2014. Boasting a clientele of well-known Irish personalities such as Pippa O’Connor, Vogue Williams and Lucy Kennedy. He’s even been commissioned by Royalty such as Zara Phillips, and Christy Moore. Admittedly, Christy Moore is not officially a Royal. But he’s the closest thing we’ve got to the King of Ireland!
Best known for his multi-layered, large scale, abstract, geometric and modern paintings in acrylic and mixed media. Chris is an intuitive and organic painter. His pieces are bright, colourful and full of energy. Many clients say his paintings simply make them smile. No two paintings are the same. So you get a unique interpretation of pattern, shape, texture, colour and line with each painting. Chris probably best sums up his style saying, “It’s a process of just letting go and having fun with the colours and the paint itself.”
Art For The Home
Whereas furniture in the home meets the function, artwork invokes the feeling. Adding some personality to a room, enhancing the mood, light and attitude. As well as bringing the whole design and look together. Small art pieces are the best choice for the small rooms that have less free space. However, large rooms can carry off larger abstract, colourful paintings, as well as bouncing light around a room.
From his time travelling the country meeting clients in their homes. Chris has noticed living spaces have become more minimalistic and clutter-free. Whether the colour palettes are bright and neutral, or dark and moody. Most people are looking for a large piece of art that adds a splash of colour to a room. Or to bring all the colours together to create a cohesive look in the space.
Chris O’Hara at The 1933 Furniture Co.
We have curated a unique selection of Chris O’Hara’s artwork in a variety of canvas sizes, available to view in-store in our dedicated gallery space. He’s also been working on a new collection for The 1933 Furniture Company, designed specifically with the home and interior trends in mind, which we hope to launch before the end of the year. For original and unique art, especially on such a large scale, Chris O’Hara’s work is very accessible. His pieces start from €650 and you can purchase directly from our gallery at The 1933 Furniture Company.
Bespoke Commission Artwork from Chris O’Hara
You can also contact Chris directly if you would like to commission a bespoke piece of artwork instead. He offers a free, no-obligation consultation and call out service to your home. And Chris looks after the delivery and hanging of the painting. See his website or social media for more details.
We really hope you enjoyed this post and feel inspired and a little more confident about purchasing art for your home. We’re sure you’ll love Chris O’Hara art as much as we do. We look forward to welcoming you back into our store and showcasing his new collection for The 1933 Furniture Company as soon as restrictions allow. In the meantime, we are still available to contact via phone or email.
When it comes to sofa shopping these days, it’s important to do research and plan ahead. We’re no strangers to creating Pinterest boards or saving images on Instagram for some style inspiration, so by the time we visit a furniture store, we often have a fair idea of what we’re looking for. Still, it’s our job to steer you in the right direction and help refine your choices. With more information, we can help you save time later down the road and choose a style that suits your home, family and lifestyle. So before you begin looking at sofas, take some time to consider the following five tips!
Who is the sofa for?
Take a videos/photos of your room
Calculate the room dimensions
Think about the configuration of your room
Bring samples and swatches — and Inspiration!
1. Know who the sofa is for
When customers come to us for advice we first ask who the sofa is for and how the room will be used. This gives us a chance to start thinking about functionality as well as style: How many people need to be seated at once? Do you have pets or children? Will elderly or disabled people be using the sofa?
Living spaces these days need to be multi-functional, so knowing how the space will be used throughout the week helps us determine a style and configuration that suits comfortably into your daily life. Remember — a sofa is more than somewhere to sit down!
2. Take a video/photos of your room
You might know your room off by heart, but recollections from memory get lost in translation. If you take photos and a short video clip of your room, it will really give us a sense of your space and what we have to work with. It’s also a handy reference guide when you walk through our store and try to picture a piece in your room. Make sure to do a full 360 sweep of the room, making note of the entrance and access.
Long Island sofa by Neptune
3. Calculate the room dimensions
This is when we ask you to be specific! The dimensions of the room are one of the most important pieces of information to have prepared when it comes to buying a new sofa! What is the total room size? Make sure you take measurements, twice – just to be sure!
If you already know what kind of sofa, or even the dimensions of the sofa you want. Then take some masking tape or newspaper and map out the size and shape of the furniture on the floor, and then take another photo. Walk around the room and see how the space will flow. You’ll immediately get an idea of what will and won’t work.
4. Think about the configuration of your room
Take some time to consider how a new sofa will complement your room. In more traditional rooms, sofas are usually against the wall, but in open-plan spaces, the furniture creates and defines the living area — so you may have a chance to get creative with modularsofas. Take a note of where the doors, windows, radiators, TV, fireplace and plug sockets are, as this could determine where the sofa is positioned. And even though south-facing rooms are highly desirable, the extra sunlight can lead to fading over time.
Saddler sofa by Alexander & James
5. Bring samples and swatches — and Inspiration!
Finally, we always encourage you to bring samples of your flooring, fabric, wallpaper, paint, and colour schemes. This helps coordinate the sofa and tie the whole room together, to create a finished look that complements your home, and other items you may have already picked out. Let us know if you have any Pinterest boards or inspirational images from Instagram and that will guide us on the right aesthetic path.
Remember to keep an open mind throughout the whole process — don’t limit yourself. If you fall in love with something that goes against your original idea but fits perfectly with your space and lifestyle — go for it!
We hope you found hope these tips helpful as you begin your sofa shopping journey. If you’re still doing some sofa soul searching, and would like more advice, contact us today orvisit our store in Navan. In the meantime, why not browse our collection online so you have an idea of your favourites…
Thank you for reading. Until next time, happy furniture shopping
This is the news we’ve been dying to tell you about! We’re so excited to introduce our newest brand and exciting new launch, exclusive to The 1933 Furniture Company from Dutch designers, Xooon.
New to The 1933 Furniture Company
Over recent months we’ve transformed our clearance area to accommodate the distinctive and unique collection of contemporary furniture from Xooon. As well as Coco Maison – their gorgeous accessories and soft furnishings range. Founded over 7 years ago in Holland, Xooon have over 154 stores across Europe and we’re delighted that The 1933 Furniture Company are now exclusive Irish stockists.
Why Xooon?
We wanted to introduce a more contemporary, quality and affordable range of furniture to the Irish market, and fill a gap that we felt was missing. We fell in love with Xooon because of their eclectic, distinctive style and attention to detail, without compromising on quality or price.
Following the latest international trends, colours and materials, Xooon allows you to customise and shape the character of your home, to create your own interior style that reflects your personality and taste.
Wheels of Style
Their furniture is designed around three ‘wheels of style’ (Scandinavian, Minimalist & Industrial), all of which can be mixed and matched to create the perfect look to suit your lifestyle and home. We’ve designed our Xooon area of our store to look like real life home settings. The Scandinavian style is light and natural, subtle and elegant; check out our Faneur and Maddox ranges.
The Minimalist style is all about calm and space, clean yet colourful; check out our Darwin, Glasgow and Moniz ranges.
And finally, the Industrial style is the perfect balance of tough and soft, where industrial meets functional; check out our Denmark and Colombo ranges.
How to Shop
Across all of these ranges are chairs, sofas, tables, storage, lighting, soft furnishings and accessories. Literally everything you need from floor to ceiling! Original, contemporary furniture made to a high quality, at great prices. You can shop by room, style or product.
One of our favourite things about Xooon and Coco Masion, is you can totally customise the ranges, styles and products to suit you. Because everything has been so thoughtfully designed from the in-house design team in Holland. Mixing and matching has never been easier – there’s literally no wrong way to do it!
You can check out the newest range to The 1933 Furniture Company by clicking here but we would love to see you in store to see this incredible space for yourself. It’s more than just furniture; it’s a way of living. One that we can’t wait to show you, and we just know you’re gonna love!
Thanks so much for reading, and stay tuned for more Xooon goodness over the next few weeks.
