The science of sitting: six rules for choosing a comfortable sofa

Falling in love is easy. When eyes meet tufting over a crowded showroom, the beauty of a sofa’s slender legs, soft fabric skin and inviting curves is like a siren song, blinding you from the truth. Then, six-eight weeks after the night before, the bubble bursts.

There’s nothing better after a hard day than cosying up on a comfortable sofa. In fact, there’s nothing better after an easy day either. But what if that settee stunner you fell head over cushion for, isn’t as nice to live with when you get it home? In order to avoid relationship pain (and neck and back), and ensure long-term compatibility, here are some rules for selecting the right sofa.

Sitting comes so naturally that we just do it, without really thinking about how. But people actually have many different styles of sitting, from those with pious posture who like to keep their feet flat and back straight, to those who lie, those who lounge, those who tuck and many more.

Sofas with deep seats allow users to curl up their legs, but other users may wish to put theirs down on the floor. The Eduard New curved sofa from Valentini is a deep-seated sofa at one end – wider than a king-size bed, and a shallow-seated version at the other, bringing comfort to all.

How high should a sofa be? Low-slung sofas have a stylish, aloof demeanour, while staying in line with light, minimalist interiors. But if the seat is too low, legs tend to come out rather than down, and the lower back slumps under a lack of support. If the seat is too high, however, legs dangle off its edge, also making it short on support.

With its short feet, the Erei sofa from De Padova retains a low-slung look, but uses a thick seat to make up the height. Alternatively, Vibieffe’s 770 Level Sofa adds slender cushions and frame to longer legs, reaching a similar height but with a lighter look.

Another issue surrounding sofa selection blunders, is the height of the back. Too high, and the look of the sofa has an overbearing effect on the interior, especially when placed in the centre of a room. But too low, and there’s insufficient upper back, head and neck support, putting more strain on the lower back.

Mixing up different back heights, Vitra’s Polder Sofa provides high-backed sitting, while keeping a low line. Meanwhile, high-backed sofas like the Carlton from Giovannetti Collezioni prove supportive seating can have aesthetic qualities too, with a high wraparound back that encloses the user in a cosy be-cushioned palace of comfort.

Sofas with sturdy straight backs like the AC Lounge sofa from B&B Italia are great for posture, especially when sat up in conversation or reading, but if you’re the type of relaxer who’s inclined to recline, doing so on a straight-backed seat causes slouching and a curved spine, in turn loading more work on to the neck and shoulder muscles.

Sofas with adjustable backs, like Brühl’s amber sofa, ensure reading, talking and lounging can all be enjoyed without the long-term build-up of pressure and pain. Meanwhile, amber’s adjustable armrests also allow the sofa to transform into an open-ended chaise longue.

Much of the pain caused by sitting on a sofa comes not from bad design, but poor positioning. Sectional corner or U-shaped sofa systems provide a multitude of angles for multiple users to sit, watch and talk together, without needing to twist or shift. But sectional configurations are often placed away from walls, leaving their backs exposed. Unlike sofa fronts, the backs are not as well-known for their good looks.

It’s often advisable, then, to cover up a comfortable sectional sofa from behind. Poliform’s Mondrian seating system, for example, adds a slim console table and shelving behind, to fill its rear view with decorative treasures or obscuring storage.

There’s nothing more frustrating, when you’ve just got yourself settled into the perfect sitting position with the right cushion support, and realise your drink, book or the remote control is way over on the coffee table, out of reach. You lean forward to get it and return as quickly as possible, but it’s never the same.

Sofa systems with integrated side tables, like Moya’s Lost range, ensure important items remain to hand in the immediate vicinity, accessible over low or no armrests. Lost’s high armrests on the opposing sides, meanwhile, are ideal for positioning the upper back and aligning the spine.

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