Kelly Hoppen reveals the one thing you should never do with your corner sofa

The interiors expert's simple advice will improve the flow of your space

Kelly Hoppen has revealed some pearls of wisdom on where to position your sofa. Just like your bed, your sofa is a crucial piece of furniture you spend a lot of time on.

Related: 8 best sofas 2021: sitting pretty on the most stylish seating

Here's a simple corner sofa mistake to avoid.

Speaking on an Instagram video, Kelly answered a question about whether a corner sofa would work in a small, open-plan space.

living room with white wall grey sofa with cushions and white window

(Image credit: Future Publishing Ltd)

The corner sofa mistake to avoid

She said that yes, it could, but to make sure you never position the sofa with the back to the door. Kelly explains that, ideally, you don't want to walk into a room and be confronted with the back of a sofa.

'What you don't want is to walk into the back of a sofa if you can help it,' Kelly says.

'Unless you are doing it so that you can have a console table behind the sofa,' she says. This 'gives you the height, where you can put a vase and a Buddha and some books.'

living room with white wall grey sofa with designed cushions frame on wall and window

(Image credit: Future Publishing Ltd)

A console table behind the sofa, Kelly says, is a great way to create something attractive that you see as you enter the room. If you're currently mapping out an open-plan living space, our open-plan living room ideas piece will help you maximise every corner.

Kelly's sofa placement tip echoes the rules of feng shui and the idea of flow around a room. Walking into a space where a sofa faces you or is side on will always feel much more inviting.

Plus, for the people sitting in the room, it creates a more calming feel if you can see who is coming in the door, rather than feeling like someone might creep up on you.

living room and dinning area with white wall dinning table and chairs sofa sets and glass doors

(Image credit: Future Publishing Ltd)

In the short clip, the interior designer also recommends using the tried-and-tested technique of measuring out the space your sofa will take up with masking tape. This is really helpful in getting a sense of exactly how a new piece of furniture will fit in the room.

It will also highlight any areas that might form an obstruction - from open doors to skirting boards or even a sloping ceiling. For more on this, we recently spoke to experts from Heal's and Habitat about their tips for getting sofa measurements right.

Related: Kelly Hoppen’s simple wallpaper tip will streamline your busy hallway

If you ever end up with a faulty item, make sure you know your consumer rights when buying a sofa.

Get the sofa placement right, and everything else will fall into place.

Millie Hurst
Senior Content Editor

Millie Hurst was Senior Content Editor at Ideal Home from 2020-2022, and is now Section Editor at Homes & Gardens. Before stepping into the world of interiors, she worked as a Senior SEO Editor for News UK in both London and New York. You can usually find her looking up trending terms and finding real-life budget makeovers our readers love. Millie came up with the website's daily dupes article which gives readers ways to curate a stylish home for less.