Somewhere to curl up with a book, the perfect finishing touch to living room seating or a bold accent to brighten a dull corner – an armchair is a highly versatile piece of furniture that can perform many different functions in the home.

It's also an opportunity to be a little selfish. Unlike buying a sofa, where the focus is on providing comfort for a crowd, choosing an armchair allows you to put your preferences front and centre. Best of all, if you've been itching to experiment with colour, pattern or form, an armchair is a great place to start.

"Placing an armchair in a room is an alternative to painting a feature wall or hanging artwork and can be used to add personality to a space," says Triana Odone, trends expert at King Living. "The appeal of a single chair is its ability to be placed anywhere – it could be a cosy reading nook in the bedroom, a peaceful vantage point from which to gaze out the window or a statement piece in the living area."

Pick your living room chairs based on the style chosen for the rest of the room. In a modern living room, stylish chairs like the Eden or Mag can add a sculptural touch to the decor. Their designs are simple but also a bit eye-catching thanks to the unexpected shapes. Depending on how the rest of the room is decorated, these chairs can either blend in or stand out.

It’s important for the chairs and sofa to be comfortable. So collections such as the Ghost are great options. They’re dressed in luxurious fabric and look and feel very cozy and comfortable. Choose brocade fabric for a stand out look or the simpler white linen version for a clean and fresh look.

Armchairs such as this one from the Ungaro Home collection are perfect for cozy reading nooks. The shape of the chairs allows multiple comfortable seating positions, especially when paired with a matching footstool or ottoman. For increased comfort, add more accent pillows.

Designs such as Jill can make wonderful accent chairs for living room decors that look and feel inviting. In fact, the design is versatile and simple enough to also look beautiful in other settings such as in a bedroom or home office.

A living room chair can be a source of color for this space. In fact, chairs in general can fulfill this role in a lot of stylish ways. The possibilities are numerous. One option is to choose one or more accent chairs in the selected accent color for that particular room. Another idea is to consider pieces such as the Joya armchair that add more than color to the room.

When decorating a room, try to arrange the furniture in such a way to optimize face-to-face conversation. For example, have the sofa and chairs positioned one in front of the other, with a coffee table in between. This also applies when you’re only using chairs with no sofa or sectional in the picture. Ondaretta will offer you a few unique design options in this case.

So there you have it! If you consider each one of these components when selecting an armchair, you can be a lot more confident that you’ll love what you get and it will be something that will keep you happy for years to come. Hope this is helpful for you next time you need to snag a cute chair for your home sweet home!