At face value, lounge seating areas are a beautiful place for guests to sit amongst your incredible event design. But the real magic of lounge areas is how they always become the center of conversation, laughing, and connection at any wedding and event. That’s why we love using our unique inventory of furniture and decor rentals to create these spaces. Here are our best tips to set your event up for success.
The Essential Furniture Pieces
There’s no one right or wrong way to create a lounge area. You’ll likely need:
- multiple pieces of soft seating to give guests a comfortable place to relax
- a coffee table or end tables so they can put a drink or purse down
- a rug to ground the space and connect all of the pieces
- soft goods like pillows and poufs to add powerful pops of color or texture
No matter what your event aesthetic is, every lounge needs at least one stand-out piece that becomes the focal point. Sometimes, it’s a stunning sofa or settee (like the Hamilton Sofa in luxe gray velvet, or the Rupert Loveseat with its unusual curved shape). Other times, it’s the rug beneath the entire lounge that carries through colors and themes from the entire look. Whatever it is, it needs to have “I can’t live without this piece!” energy.
Matchy-Matchy & Other Trends
Lounge areas are everyone’s favorite place to gather at weddings and events, so we always encourage you to go all-out on the design.
One of our most-recommended looks is having two lounges mirroring each other. But lately, we’ve noticed event designers taking this style one step further and having four or more matching lounges! These matchy-matchy soft seating groups are loads of fun because they offer even more room for everyone to get in on the action, and typically have a defining characteristic. A monochromatic lounge (especially in sage green), a specific wood tone in the frames, or striped upholstery are just a few of the looks that have grabbed our attention lately.
Another growing trend in lounge seating is to choose a deep, saturated color and coordinate it with a variety of specific textures. This bold look is one for the rule-breakers, and we’re here for it! All-over color and texture, from woven overhead lighting to bold upholstered colors, have captured our hearts.
Conversational Seating For the Win
The furniture pieces you include in a lounge may make it approachable, but the placement of each item is key if you want to make sure your lounges are enjoyed all night long. We always recommend placing two sofas facing each other, or one sofa facing two arm chairs. This layout is called conversational seating, and it’s the best way to layout a space to encourage large groups to chat throughout cocktail hour or dinner.
Incorporating soft seating in the dining experience, like the Bentwood Chair With Round Neutral Seat Pad, is another way to make sure your guests linger longer and spend their time talking with friends and family.
Defining An Open-Concept Venue
If you’re planning an event at an open-concept or outdoor venue, lounge areas play an especially important role in defining your space. Like a living room ensemble, they make guests feel comfortable and make the larger space feel more homey and welcoming. We recommend placing lounge areas around the perimeter of your tent to keep guests engaged in the action but far enough away from the band or DJ that they can still enjoy a conversation. Placing lounge areas strategically around the bar can also be a way to create continuity for guests who start mingling while in line for a cocktail.
The Lounge Seating Experts: Paisley & Jade
Lounge areas that are as fun to look at as they are comfortable to relax in are our specialty at Paisley & Jade. Our unique rental inventory includes a collection of sofas, settees, upholstered chairs, rugs, and soft goods that will become everyone’s favorite lounge area at your wedding or event. Whether you have a distinct aesthetic vision for your event, or you’d like input from our expert team, we are so excited to see how our rentals transform your space!
Photography Credit:
Feature Image: Brett Denfeld Photography | Images 1 & 2: Alex C. Tenser | Image 3: Micah Cook Photography | Image 4: Anna + Mateo | Image 5: Danielle J. Norton | Image 6: The Tuckers Photography
