While the past few years favoured more angular sofa designs, more recently, sofas with curved and organic-inspired shapes have been rising in popularity. If you, too, have succumbed to the soft, relaxed and statement-making silhouettes then you’ve come to the right place for a curated shortlist of the best curved sofas I’ve tried and would recommend.
Over a year ago now, I wrote a piece about the curved sofa trend. But what may have appeared as a potentially fleeting trend at first now seems like a look that’s here to stay. Especially since there are so many different ways you can embrace the curvy look when choosing your best sofa.
‘We’ve seen a wider shift towards softer, more organic shapes across interiors, and sofas are a big part of that,’ says Monika Puccio, director of buying at Sofa Club. ‘People still want comfort, but increasingly they also want their sofa to bring personality and visual interest to the room.
'That’s coming through in curved backs, rounded arms, asymmetrical forms and softer silhouettes. There’s often a retro influence, particularly from 1970s design, but the latest interpretations feel much more refined and contemporary.’
Pros of curved sofas
If you’re not 100% convinced by curved sofas, a good thing to do is take stock of all the benefits and drawbacks of this particular sofa style. As for the pros, one of the biggest ones is the way it tends to soften the look of a room.
‘Curved sofas can introduce a softer, more sculptural feel to a room,’ says John Darling, founder at Darlings of Chelsea. ‘Without the hard lines and corners of a traditional sofa, they can help create a more relaxed and sociable atmosphere, particularly when positioned centrally rather than pushed against a wall.’
They work particularly well as an open-plan living room idea. But if you choose the right design, a curved sofa can also be a great small living room idea. ‘Curved sofas work particularly well in open-plan living spaces where the furniture can help define different zones. Rather than automatically positioning the sofa against a wall, placing a curved design more centrally can create a natural boundary between living, dining and kitchen areas while still keeping the overall space feeling open,’ Monika at Sofa Club says.
She continues, ‘They can also work beautifully in more compact rooms. You don’t necessarily need a huge space to embrace the trend – softer arms and rounded corners can introduce the look without requiring a dramatically curved sofa.’
Cons of curved sofas
As much as a curved sofa’s irregular shape is its major selling point, it’s also its biggest drawback. Especially if you’re dealing with a smaller space or are thinking long-term (as you should) about how this sofa shape might fit into your lounge if you were to move.
‘Curved sofas bring presence and warmth into a space, but they’re not one size fits all,’ starts Leah Howatson, general manager of international markets at Castlery. ‘They don’t fit flush against a wall so naturally require a larger footprint, but where space allows, they can make a room feel everything from cosy to opulent. It's also worth thinking about longevity. A curve that anchors an open-plan living room may feel oversized in a smaller next home.’
John at Darlings of Chelsea continues, ‘A curved sofa can be harder to position efficiently, particularly in smaller or unusually shaped rooms, and you may have fewer options when it comes to arranging other furniture around it. It’s worth considering the room’s proportions and layout carefully before choosing one.’
When choosing your next sofa it’s always important to think about what’s right for you, your aesthetic, your lifestyle and your living room. And it might be a curved sofa or it might be something different, whether that’s a mid-century style sofa or a modular sofa.
