The Living Room Furniture Choice That Designers Love For Making Your Space More Social

Choosing living room furniture isn't just about style. It's one of the most impactful decisions that will shape how your home looks, feels, and functions day to day. In most homes, the living room is a space where we spend time daily, whether it's to unwind, hang out with family, or enjoy gatherings with loved ones. There are plenty of living room ideas that will inspire you, but some of the best styles are those that inspire conversation as well. Whether you're focusing on furniture for a formal living room or the typical everyday family living room, having a set-up that encourages socializing is a huge advantage. Some design schemes can make conversation feel awkward, rather than open and comfortable. From hosting parties to reconnecting with your family after a long day, it can help to invest in one specific style of furniture that can make the space feel more social for every occasion — a swivel chair.

When most people think of swivel chairs, their mind might immediately go to those spinny, ergonomic office chairs; however, there are tons of stylish and living room-appropriate designs that move around just as well. When speaking with Homes & Gardens, design pro Paulina Hospod expressed, "Swivel chairs are my secret weapon – they pivot between guests or the TV in seconds, making the space feel social, flexible, and hosting-friendly." Many designers see the value in this clever seating choice, so if your living room design feels a bit stale and in need of a refresh, swivel chair seating is worth exploring.

When designing the living room, it's easy to get swept up in the style of your furniture choices and forget to consider how they will actually function in your space. In terms of socializing, the symmetrical living room layout ratio to follow that invites more conversation will help, but having an adding layer of flexibility with certain furniture pieces like a swivel chair can take your gatherings to the next level. This style is especially helpful in open layouts where conversation tends to move around often, allowing you to move your attention from space to space without breaking the flow of the room. Consider how awkward it is when you're having a conversation with someone, but the oven beeps and you need to interrupt the moment to attend to it — a quick swivel can help to just redirect the conversation to the kitchen while you move, instead of causing that awkward break.

The ideal setting for being social will be both energizing and comfortable, and swivel chairs fulfill these aspects by offering a sense of movement that brings stimulation to the mind and space, while also making it easy to shift your body around instead of feeling locked into a stiff seating position. Outside of social gatherings, these seats can be an advantage for other social purposes like extensive phone calls for work or catching up with friends. Rather than getting antsy to pace around the room, you can stay seated and focused while the ease of movement prevents you from getting distracted by the urge to move your body.

Whether you're looking to add more liveliness to your living room or simply want to make an outdated sitting room modern and work in your space, replacing strict seating with a flexible swivel chair can be a great solution. Another designer who spoke with Homes & Gardens about the benefits of swivel chairs, Kailee Blalock recommended, "Use a pair of matching chairs instead of a love seat, it's more versatile for both conversation and scale." Designs with 360-degree rotation will offer the most movement flexibility, but rather than placing it against a wall, move it further away so there's more space to take advantage of for conversing. In the case of open concept homes where a bar sits between the living room and kitchen, replacing the seating with swivel bar stools can be a great way to connect the spaces for a more open, conversational flow.

In formal living rooms that aren't used daily, you might aim for a sleek, contemporary style with a hidden base for a modern touch, or a mid-century modern chair with a brass or wooden base and bright fabric for an artistic, vintage appeal. Consider the best fabric for your living room, like durable and easy-to-clean materials for high-traffic areas that are prone to mess, or versatile choices like velvet and leather that are stylish and comfortable for hosting gatherings and regular relaxing. If you want to add even more social potential to your living room, a vibrant colored or patterned swivel chair can become a conversation piece in itself.