Living Room Layout Ideas for Recliner Chairs

They say a change is as good as a holiday – and even something as simple as rearranging the furniture can brighten up a mood as well as a room. But if you’re thinking of purchasing a new recliner chair, you might also be wondering about the best place for it to go – not to mention how it’s going to fit in with all your existing bits and pieces.

How you set up a living room for a recliner will depend largely on the size and shape of the room – for example, if you have a small space, it may be worth removing one or two pieces, as your new recliner may fulfil the purpose of more than one chair anyway. For a living room layout with two riser recliner chairs or a recliner sofa, you may need to get a little bit more creative. If you need some inspiration, here are some imaginative ideas for making your new recliner chair (or chairs) feel like it was meant to be there all along.

1. Creating a social space

Pinterest @ninghanumcharity

This is a lovely social space perfect for entertaining guests, but as the two recliners are still facing the television and fire it’s also useable on quieter days. Placing the recliners slightly into the next room extends the area and makes the small, square space seem much bigger.

2. Layout with two recliners

Pinterest @gdfstudio

If you and your partner are considering new recliner chairs for a small sitting room that doesn’t have any other furniture, consider having them face the same direction, such as towards the television. You could mount the television on the wall to save space. Keep in mind that you need to allow space for the chairs to recline. Matching coffee tables at either end looks smart, plus they’re useful to have to hand. If you’ve chosen a sofa or if you have a pair of chairs, then a small, shared table in the middle may be more suitable.

3. Opening up a square space

Instagram @furnituremarts

In this space, the room is enclosed on two sides by two- and three-seater sofas, with a matching recliner on a third side, giving structure to the space without closing it off. Placing the smallest couch on the window side allows more sunlight to enter and makes the room feel brighter, despite the dark shade of the couches and opposite wall. This layout could also be achieved with a corner sofa and a recliner, or even two recliners if it’s a very large space.

4. Fitting into a rectangular living room

Pinterest @madisonsnicheNY

In this modern yet sophisticated space the three-seater sofa has been placed against the longest wall, with the two-seater against the further wall so neither are in the way. The single chair is enclosing the space on the near end where it’s easy to walk around. All three chairs are facing each other but are far enough apart so that any feature placed on the fourth wall may still be viewed easily.

5. Making the most of an L-shaped layout

Pinterest @fromh2hdesign

In an L-shaped room, the position of the doors will probably determine where a recliner sofa should be placed. This design uses the long portion of the room as the living area, with a three-seater sofa opposite the television and single recliners on either end. The small dining table on the smaller side takes advantage of the dual access to the kitchen. Alternatively, the two recliners could be placed in the smaller area to form a snug, and the sofa replaced by a long, feature dining table.

6. Fitting a recliner into a bedroom

Pinterest @jawal170

This could be a good solution if you have a large bedroom, or share a home with others and want to make the most of your private space. Place it next to a window for catching the sunlight during the day, facing a television if there is one. Ideally it should be close enough to the bed so it’s easy to move from one to the other, or with something in between you can hold onto if need be.

7. Making the most of natural light

Instagram @parkerknoll

If you’ve got a room with a view, try placing your chair like this one, at an angle so the backrest doesn’t block the natural light. This makes it perfect for enjoying hobbies such as reading, sewing or crosswords, but as it’s facing into the room it’s also suitable for socialising or watching television. Depending on your fabric, you may want to consider a throw or cover to protect it from sunlight when you’re not using it.

8. Filling a large space

Pinterest @KatFrugallyFantastic

Here, two larger sofas enclose the significant living area, leaving the smaller recliner with the prime spot – between the fire and the window, and still facing the television. The sofa opposite the television has been brought into the room slightly, making the space more intimate and creating a pathway behind it to the entertaining area outside.

The bottom line

There are plenty of reasons to change up your living area. Perhaps you are thinking of buying a new recliner chair, for example, and need to rearrange furniture to fit it in. If you’re thinking of two recliners, or even a rise and recline sofa, you may have to think about what to keep and what to get rid of to make room.

It may be that you already have a recliner, but your lifestyle has changed so you want to make the room more liveable. You may be moving house and need some ideas for setting up your new space, or you might simply feel that it’s time to mix things up a bit. Whatever the reason, it can be a fun and creative process, and may even inspire you to redecorate or change something else. Who knows, it may even feel as good as a holiday.