In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to pair different furniture styles, colours, fabrics, and shapes, without sacrificing cohesion or comfort. Whether you’re working with a beloved vintage sofa or eyeing up a bold new armchair, you’ll learn how to create a balanced, inviting space that looks perfectly put together.

Is it OK to mix and match sofas and chairs?

Evie loveseat | @siaanwilliams_home

Styling mismatched pieces is not only possible, but it can also result in a living room that feels uniquely personal, inviting, and effortlessly curated. Your sofa and chair don’t need to match perfectly to look amazing together. In fact, with a few thoughtful choices, you can highlight their individual character while still creating a harmonious space.

Our Head of Buying, Elena Mellowes echoes this approach, “Mixing sofas and chairs is a great way of injecting personality into your space; blending different designs, shapes and fabrics allows you to curate your home and make the most of your space without the cost of investing in a new three piece suite.”

We’ve put together our top tips to help you confidently combine even the most unexpected pieces, making it simple to achieve a beautifully balanced and sophisticated look.

How do I make sure furniture matches?

Prioritise your personal style

Jasmine sofa | @littlehouseofannie

Start by considering the overall style of your home. Walk through each room, take in the colours, textures, and mood. Your space should feel like a true reflection of who you are, not just a collection of design rules. Matching furniture isn’t about uniformity; it’s about creating a setting that feels natural, lived-in, and welcoming. Let your choices express your personality and how you want to feel in your home.

Stay true to your existing decor

Burleigh side table | @our_wandsworth_home

That said, if your home style is more modern and minimal, a floral accent chair might feel out of place. Likewise, if your space embraces cottagecore charm or the vibrant patterns of the ’70s, cool grey tones could clash. While bold contrasts can sometimes pay off, they require a careful eye, as there’s a fine line between making a statement and making a design misstep.

Create contrast with fabrics

Iver armchair | Maine side table

One way to add interest to your living room is by adding texture. Rather than focusing on matching a specific type of fabric, try selecting a particular shape, style, or colour palette as the foundation of your furniture choices. This approach allows a variety of fabrics to work together harmoniously, enabling you to mix and match upholstery in a way that adds layers and depth to a room.

For example, sumptuous leathers, rich velvets, and corduroy pieces can look particularly stylish when paired with a linen-style fabric. You can also create a sense of balance by incorporating your chosen fabrics into soft furnishings such as decorative cushions and throws.

Elena continues, “A great way to execute this is to mix an accent chair with your sofa for a more stylised seating solution; consider a different but complementary fabric, or even a tonal leather to really make the space your own.”

If you do decide to mix different fabrics, keep the proportions of the furniture at the forefront of your mind. A brown leather sofa with a large frame will inevitably look disproportionate if paired with a smaller fabric chair. Accent chairs will mesh more successfully if they’re the same height, so that one doesn’t overshadow the other.

Maximise colour

Montgomery sofa | @renovationtowers

If contrasting shapes, styles, or fabrics isn’t your thing, you might find more joy in playing around with colour. Mixing and matching colours from a small palette is the easiest way to create contrast and inject playfulness into a space without it feeling overwhelming.

Layering variations of the same few shades throughout the room creates a sense of cohesion and calm. It conveys a feeling of intention and balance, rather than a chaotic clash of colours, making your space feel both intriguing and thoughtfully put together.

Use bold accessories

Montgomery sofa | @whingewine

If you’re just beginning to explore colour or prefer a more subtle approach, soft furnishings and accessories are an easy way to experiment. Start with a neutral base you love, then layer in subtle pops of colour through cushions, throws, or art — elements that are both flexible and easy to update as your confidence grows.

Layer patterns on patterns

Morgan sofa | @poursomecolouronme

Pairing patterns can be a delicate art, as it’s easy to go overboard. To make it work, there are two main approaches. The first is to keep things cohesive by choosing patterns that share a similar shape, style, or colour palette. For example, two floral prints in different colourways will feel far more harmonious than a floral mixed with tartan or paisley.

Alternatively, you can embrace contrast and a more maximalist aesthetic. This works best when the juxtaposition feels intentional — think a pink floral cushion paired with a leopard print throw. The interplay of colour, pattern, and texture creates an eclectic yet stylish look.

Mixing and matching sofas and chairs is a simple yet impactful way to add depth, personality, and warmth to your living room. Start small with complementary cushions or a contrasting accent chair, and build confidence as you experiment. And remember: there are no rigid rules, just choose what feels right for your home.

We’d love to see how you style your mismatched living room! Tag us on Instagram or TikTok and use #OakFurnitureland #GrowYourHome to share your look.

The post How to mix and match sofas and chairs appeared first on Oak Furnitureland Blog.

Setting up your workspace

Burleigh Desk | @thehomeofthebbs

The first hurdle you may need to overcome is how to make office space at home, especially if you’re short on it. Every  should have a surface to work on as working on the sofa or in bed with your laptop is bad for your posture and can lead to long-term issues, so ensure that, wherever you are, you have an office-standard place to work. It’s also important to create distance between your living and working spaces for the benefit of your work-life balance.

Choosing your desk

Islington Desk | Islington Chair

Small spare rooms previously used for storage, empty alcoves or unoccupied corners of bedrooms and living rooms can prove to be full of potential as small home offices. These new layouts should take into consideration desk size as a priority. Slight spaces would benefit from home office desk ideas that are slim and nimble, such as designs like the Islington desk. If you have the luxury of a bit more room to play with, you may want to consider desks with home office storage, like those from our Romsey, Parquet or Boston collections.

However, every home is different. Our dressing tables are actually shorter in width than our desks as they come with one drawer column instead of two. Many of our customers have been able to repurpose these sturdy yet compact pieces as functional desks for smaller spaces.

Selecting your desk chair

Grove desk | Grove tall bookcase | Scroll back chair in granite check 

No matter the size of your home office, you will also need a chair that prioritises comfort but doesn’t compromise on style. If you want something high-backed for comprehensive lumbar support, our Scroll back chair, available in a variety of leather and fabric upholsteries, goes with just about every desk we offer.

Home office decor

Hove desk | Hove tall bookcase | @viewof22

In small spaces, it’s important to keep your home office design to a more minimalist aesthetic, else it will look and feel crowded, thus increasing your stress levels. Keep paint light and bright to aid that spacious feeling, think clean whites, beachy blues or soft pinks. These calming colours will also create a creative office space that promotes mindfulness.

Other small home office decor ideas include a singular statement accessory like a large clock, houseplants that sit on your windowsill or frame your desk, be it hanging from the ceiling/wall or blossoming beside you on the floor, and a desk light that proves both functional and stylish.

Many people feel negative mental effects from the long, cold winter nights and, especially if you’ve built your office space in a dark corner of your home, you may also benefit from a SAD lamp.

Designed for those who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), these lamps replicate natural light to help improve your mood. They will also be useful for those who are not able to make any use of the daylight hours while working from home, something you may now miss without commuting.

Want more tips on building an invigorating office space? Read our home office checklist and shop our range of home office furniture. Head to our Instagram to see more inspiration from customers who have created the perfect WFH spaces.

The post How to create a home office in a small space appeared first on Oak Furnitureland Blog.