Holiday Living Room Seating: Plan for Guests After Dinner

Dinner ends, people carry their drinks into the living room, and the chair you meant to use is already covered in coats. Planning that part of the evening takes a little more than counting places at the table.

Start with the seats you have and the people likely to stay after the meal.

Make it easy to join the conversation

Place an extra chair where its occupant can face the group. Pull it out to the position it will be used in, and leave a route around it.

Think about the chaise too. Someone stretched out uses that space differently from a person sitting upright to talk. Plan around the positions people will actually take instead of turning sofa width into a guest count.

If you're already choosing a couch for the room, our 96-inch L-shaped couch has a chaise beside the regular seating area. Place that shape in the room with your existing chairs before deciding where everyone will sit.

Give drinks somewhere to go

Keep a stable surface within reach of the seats you'll use. A guest shouldn't have to hold a cup all evening or pass it across someone else's lap to put it down.

Move the serving area away from the narrow gap beside the couch. People stopping to pour a drink need space without blocking those walking through.

Find a place for coats and bags before they arrive. Keeping them off the spare chair gives that chair back to the person you counted it for.

Try the room with people in it

Sit on the couch, pull out the extra chair, and walk from the doorway toward the kitchen. Check whether extended feet or a small table get in the way. Move the table now, while there's time to choose a better spot.

Keep a workable arrangement with your current furniture if the gathering is already scheduled. Check delivery estimates before relying on a new order for a particular date.

Once the chairs and tables are in their tested positions, leave them there for the evening. You'll have one less thing to rearrange when dinner is ready.