Sectional Sofa Pieces: What Do They All Mean?

Shopping for a sectional can be like navigating a foreign land: There are a lot of unfamiliar terms and if you mix them up, you’ll end up facing the wrong way. A sectional is a sofa that comes in, you guessed it, sections. It’s typically two pieces, but can be more than that if you add in seats or come up with a more unique layout. Learning the following sectional lingo will help ensure you get the right pieces to create the layout that’s best for you. And once you figure that out, head over to thestatedhome.com to shop our selection!

Sectional Terminology

L-Sectional: A sectional that looks like two sofas stuck together. Each side has seats and a back and there are sofa arms at the ends. The two sides can be the same length or one side can be longer than the other.

Chaise Sectional: A sectional made up of half a normal sofa and half a chaise, which is a long chair designed for putting your feet up.

Two-Chaise Sectional: A sectional with two chaises, one on each end.

Double Width Chaise: A sectional chaise piece that is wider than an average chaise. Two people who like to sit close to each other could fit, no problem.

Bumper Chaise: A sectional chaise piece with a normal back that goes a portion of the way and then stops, leaving the end backless and open.

One-Arm: Sectional pieces are often described as a one-arm (a one-arm sofa, one-arm chair, or one-arm chaise). This refers to the fact that those pieces have only one arm because the other side is left open to join with other sectional pieces.

Armless: To make a sectional side longer, you can insert armless pieces in between the two other sections. An armless chair has one seat and an armless sofa or loveseat has two seats.

Right-Facing and Left-Facing: This refers to the side the arm is on when looking at the sofa. For example, let’s say you want a chaise sectional with the chaise on the right (as you are looking at it). You will need a left-facing, one-arm sofa and a right-facing, one-arm chaise. (Confused? Contact us! We’ll help you figure it out.)

Modular Sectional: A modular sectional is made out of various pieces that are all the size of a single seat, meaning it can be reconfigured easily.

Sectional Configurations

You may need a sectional that’s a little out of the ordinary–maybe you want one side longer than the other or a piece to be a sofa bed. Most sectionals come with a variety of pieces so you can create exactly what you need. At The Stated Home, our standard L-sectionals come with sides the same length and our chaise sectionals typically come in two different length options: one with three seats and one with four. We can substitute in other pieces and combinations to make one side longer or shorter if you’d like! Contact us if this is something you need.

Like what you read? Visit thestatedhome.com to shop our collection of made-in-America furnishings.