Most living rooms are planned around the sofa, but the armchair often decides how the room actually feels. A tall wingback makes a corner formal and quiet; a low club chair makes the same corner relaxed. Choosing the type first and the model second saves a lot of second-guessing later.
This guide walks through the four armchair types we are asked about most, what each one brings to a room, and how to pair an armchair with a sofa, either in the same leather or in a deliberate contrast. The focus here is character and combination rather than a full buying checklist.
Wingback: a room within the room
The wingback is recognisable by the side panels, the "wings", that rise from the arms to the top of a high back. They were originally there to shield the sitter from draughts; today they frame the head and give a sense of privacy. A typical wingback has a back height of around 100–115 cm and a fairly upright seat, which makes it a natural reading chair.
- Where it works: beside a fireplace, in a library corner, at the foot of a large bedroom.
- What it brings: height and structure, useful in rooms where everything else is low.
- Watch out for: visual weight. A pair of wingbacks facing a sofa can close a room off; in smaller spaces one is often enough.
Club chair: low, deep and relaxed
The club chair is lower and wider, with a deep seat and thick arms that sit close to the height of the back. Overall height is typically 75–85 cm and seat depth 55–60 cm. In leather it is closely related to the Chesterfield family, and it is the type most people picture when they think of a leather armchair in a study.
- Where it works: a study, a lounge, an office seating corner.
- What it brings: a settled, comfortable look, especially in leather that softens with use.
- Watch out for: depth. A deep seat suits lounging more than upright reading, so if you are shorter, test it with a cushion behind your back before deciding.
Lounge chair: built for long sitting
A lounge armchair tilts the back further and usually lowers the seat to around 38–42 cm, compared with 43–46 cm on a more upright chair. The body rests rather than sits. Wrap-around backs, swivel bases and a matching pouf or footstool are common features of this type.
Lounge chairs need space: allow roughly 90 × 90 cm of floor for the chair itself and more if a footstool is added. They work well in a TV room, beside a window with a view, or in a bedroom corner where they are used for long, unhurried sessions rather than quick conversations.
Accent chair: the deliberate contrast
An accent chair is chosen less for long sitting than for what it adds to the room: a colour, a curve, a different material. It is usually more compact, often 65–75 cm wide, so it fits where a full armchair would crowd the space, such as an entrance, a bedroom or the open side of a seating group. Because it is a supporting piece, it can take risks a sofa cannot: a strong leather colour, a sculptural back, a textured fabric.
A good example is the cognac leather armchair with a dark wooden frame that we showed on our stand at IIFF 2026. Warm leather against dark wood reads as one clear accent in an otherwise neutral room.
Pairing an armchair with a sofa
Once the type is clear, the next question is whether the armchair should match the sofa or stand apart from it. Both approaches work; they simply give different results.
Matching leather
The same leather and colour on sofa and armchairs gives a calm, unified group. It suits formal living rooms, offices and spaces where the furniture should step back and let the architecture or the art lead. With a sofa such as the Platon sofa, two armchairs in the same leather facing it across a coffee table make a classic conversation layout. A common rule is to keep about 45 cm between the seat edge and the coffee table, and 80–100 cm of walkway behind the chairs.
Contrasting leather or material
Contrast works when it is clearly intentional. Three approaches are easy to get right:
- Same colour family, different tone: a dark brown sofa with cognac armchairs. With 76 leather colours in 12 colour families, this kind of tonal step is simple to choose from samples.
- Neutral sofa, coloured chairs: a cream or grey sofa with armchairs in green, burgundy or tan leather.
- Leather and fabric together: a fabric sofa with leather armchairs, or the reverse, when the room needs both a soft and a structured surface.
One rule keeps contrast from looking accidental: repeat the armchair colour at least once elsewhere in the room, in a cushion, a rug or a lamp. For more on colour choice, see our guide to colours that stay current on a leather sofa set.
From type to model
With the type and the pairing decided, browse our armchair collection and compare back height, arm shape and leg detail with the sofa you have or plan to order. The Jackson armchair is a useful reference point when comparing proportions side by side.
Every Sitdesign armchair is handmade in our own factory in Büyükçekmece, Istanbul, on a kiln-dried beech frame with high-resilience (HR) foam and sprung seating. We use genuine leather only, with Italian leathers forming our top leather group; fabric upholstery and customer's own material (COM) are also possible, and custom dimensions are available on request. Upholstered pieces are typically ready in 3–4 weeks.
If you are deciding between matching and contrasting leather, the quickest way is to see the colours side by side. Contact us for leather samples and a quote for your sofa and armchair combination.
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