Style Your Living Room with Accent Chairs
Updated 9/20/22
With so many choices for living room accent chairs with arms for living room layouts, finding the right one and styling it can be a challenge. A great accent chair can be a statement piece on its own. Or it can blend the elements of the room together. Or it can add a missing piece like texture or pattern. Decorating living rooms with accent chairs make rooms bold! Here we look at each type and share living room accent chair decoration ideas to amplify your style.
Types of Living Room Accent Chairs
To start, it helps to know something about the types of accent chairs and where they’re often seen.
• Slipper chair – A petite armless chair with a lower seat scaled for smaller spaces, the slipper chair is often used in bedrooms or in small spaces or areas where less visual weight is needed.
• Wingback chair – Traditionally large scale (but not always), this chair is a high–backed armchair that has sheltering "wings" enveloping the occupant. Historically, the wings on these chairs helped block cold drafts by the fire. Great for reading or for conversation next to a large sofa, wing chairs feature a distinctive silhouette.
• Club chair –The club chair is a roomy, fabric, or leather chair with deep seating. Generally, this chair makes a good nap chair. Modern versions of this living room accent chair are far from the stuffy men's clubs where the name originated.
• Barrel chair – With a shape based on a nail barrel, the classic barrel chair features a fully curved back and a low profile that makes a chic, comfortable design statement. Depending on the upholstery fabric or leather and details like nailhead trim, these versatile chairs can go with any décor from mid-century modern to traditional, as we’ll demonstrate with the Maxwell Chair.
• Swivel chair – Swivel-based chairs fill a space where you need flexibility, in an office, for different conversation arrangements, or in a nursery. These comfortable chairs are available in many styles, including the barrel style of the Maxwell Chair.
Living Room Accent Chair Ideas
When styling accent chair furniture for living rooms, our stylists incorporate a little life and color with plants and flowers. You can hardly go wrong with a little greenery! We also gravitate towards throws and pillows, which are like jewelry for an accent chair, adding texture, comfort, and interest. The right texture or pattern or a fun tassel detail can really elevate the chair, as you’ll notice in the Maxwell Chair examples.
Whether you’re styling a Maxwell Chair or any other accent chair furniture, these are some other elements to throw into the mix to complete the look of the room:An accent table
• A floor lamp or table lamp
• A large vase or carboy
• An interesting rug
• An ottoman
• A basket of books
• Art or a mirror
The Maxwell Chair: One Chair Six Ways
Bassett’s Maxwell Chair is a classic barrel accent chair that shows its versatility to illustrate six completely different living room accent chair ideas.
Fabric Pattern
A tribal pattern feels right at home against a whitewashed brick wall, with an airy side table and light-colored accents in the lamp and rug. In this space, the dark neutral chair fabric adds substance and helps create a thoroughly modern look.
Cool and Easy
Cool taupe velvet creates quiet modern elegance. Nailhead trim adds a casual edge. A neutral color palette in the rug and the curved slender legs of the accent table enhance the calm and stylish look.
Casual Throw
A casually draped throw adds an easy dose of style. The cozy texture of the throw plays up the warmth of the chair’s orange fabric.
Pillow Power
To add personality to your space, bring in a perky tasseled throw pillow for fun. This instant update makes the room both cozier and more inviting
The Jewel
Sometimes the fabric itself is enough. Rich jewel-toned teal velvet with nailhead trim offers just the right amount of unstuffy sophistication. Paired with an updated sunburst mirror and a slender-legged accent table in a chic champagne metal finish, the classic velvet is classy yet comfortable.
In Good Shape
The shape of the chair echoes the curve of a round cocktail table. A thick throw adds texture and contrast and plays up the soft look of the chair’s large weave fabric.
If you're looking for a way to add a dash of flair or simply define the room, exploring living room accent chair ideas can be a great jumping-off point. Will it be one chair or a pair? Matching or complementary? Stop into a Bassett Furniture showroom for more accent chair ideas to complete your living room.
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