Choosing the colour of the sofa to furnish your living room should be done very carefully to avoid regretting it once it’s all said and done. To choose the right type of sofa, you need to understand your own needs in terms of comfort, style, and space. We could opt for a corner sofa if the size of our living room allows it, or for a sofa bed if we already know we’ll use it to host friends and family. Another important choice is, of course, the sofa’s colour. Which colour should you choose to avoid mistakes? Which colour pairs best with your furnishings and walls? In this article, we’ll try to give you some useful tips for choosing the coloured sofa that’s right for you.
Choosing the sofa colour: what to consider first
Before deciding which colour to choose when buying our new sofa, it’s a good idea to take into account some important aspects of our home—or rather, the area where the sofa will be placed:
- light: the brightness of a room is essential when choosing a coloured sofa. A bright living area can easily accommodate both sofas in delicate colours such as white, cream, or aqua green, as well as more muted or, conversely, more eccentric shades. In this case, the light will enhance the sofa’s colour and also create the feeling of a much larger room.
- Room space: having plenty of space available gives us more options, because it will be easy to choose either a dark sofa or a sofa in bright colours. In fact, even colours that might seem too eccentric or gloomy in a large room would be softened by the other furnishings and by the light coming in through the windows. A small living room, on the other hand, should not have a sofa that’s too dark, because this could darken the whole atmosphere, creating colour imbalance and therefore a sense of discomfort for those who live in it.
- Style of the living area furnishings. We can’t choose a sofa without considering the style and design of the entire home. If we’ve gone for a minimalist style, the colours that will best suit our living area will be white, grey, or black. If, instead, our furnishings lean towards a modern or contemporary style with warm colours, we could also choose a red sofa or one in a brighter shade. For shabby chic style, it’s better to go for sofas in soft, pastel colours. In short, every style has its own sofa.
- Contrasting colours. The colours that contrast with the sofa must be considered carefully. We’re talking, for example, about the colour of the walls and the floor. Parquet flooring or tiles? Classic white wall or a bold colour? If the wall the sofa will sit against has a strong colour, it’s always better to balance it with a lighter-coloured sofa.
Of course, these guidelines can’t be considered in isolation; you’ll need to evaluate them all together.
Below are some coloured sofa options we’ve selected specifically to help you choose the colour that best suits your needs.
White, black, and grey sofas. Minimal colours
When we choose minimalist-style décor, the colours that best suit the setting are shades like white, grey, or black. A grey sofa, in fact, will be ideal whether our furniture leans towards lighter tones with a few dark details, or whether the décor is total black with softer features.
Grey sofa – EVANS sofa
Black sofa – Danish sofa
Read our guide to choosing a sofa.
Red sofa and yellow sofa: a dive into colour
The red sofa is a dream for many of us: an exceptional furnishing element that shines in a room as soon as you step through the front door. Red, as we know, is a distinctive colour, and if our décor conveys warmth it can be perfect for expressing the most welcoming atmosphere possible. However, the red sofa is also very versatile: in a living area characterised by cool colours, it will still have room to be the undisputed star of our living room.
Red corner sofa - VERTIGO sofa
Want to know how to clean a sofa? Read the article.
The yellow sofa is also one of the most requested furnishing elements. As with the red sofa, the yellow sofa also needs a particular setting to be paired without looking tacky. An ethnic home, dark furnishings, and a warm atmosphere. These are the ideal décor characteristics for buying, without too many second thoughts, a yellow sofa bed like the EVANS sofa shown below.
Yellow sofa bed – EVANS sofa
Cream sofa or in soft shades
Lighter shades are the ones that work best with strong contrasts. A more striking wall, or a dark floor, perhaps in wood.
Electric recliner sofa in soft waterproof fabric - GUMMY sofa
Coloured sofas are a growing trend in interior design, as more and more people embrace the idea of introducing vibrant shades into their spaces. If neutral sofas were once the safe choice, now bright and bold colours are becoming centre stage in many people’s homes. This trend offers a unique opportunity to express your personality, create welcoming atmospheres, and make every room unique.
Choose the perfect colour for your new sofa in our store!
