Designing a magazine-ready room takes attention to detail, but it can be hard to keep all the rules straight. For example, you probably haven't heard much about or given a lot of thought to the legs of your furniture. But now that you are thinking about it, you're probably wondering: should all legs in the same room match? We went looking for the answer to save you the time fretting over this particular detail.
The good news is, no, furniture legs don't have to match. However, there are a couple of tricks to bringing a bunch of different pieces together in harmony. To do this, you should consider:
- The height of the leg
- The material
- The design
Worried you're even less prepared to decorate a room when it comes to furniture legs? Fear not! We're going to guide you through the process.
The General Rule
When it comes to furniture legs, there should be some visual element grouping them all together. So while they don't have to match perfectly, there should be a pervading sense that all the pieces belong in the same room.
What do we mean by that, exactly? Well, you can have pieces featuring legs with the same design and made with the same material but with a bunch of differing heights in the same room. Or you could place a bunch of chairs that are all the same height together, but with the legs all designed differently.
Take this living room, for example.
Notice how the sofa's legs are metal, while the rest of the room's furniture has wooden legs. However, the room still feels cohesive because all the legs share the same simple, straight design.
Here's another good example:
We may include affiliate links and curated AI content to highlight top design styles.
All the legs in this room are made out of the same material and share a similar design, but the different heights offer visual intrigue.
Height
When it comes to mixing and matching furniture with different leg heights, you'll want to consider functionality first. Meaning, all sofas, chairs, beds, and stools should be chosen primarily based on the height of the people in your family. If you or your partner are taller than average, getting a squat sofa simply because the rest of the furniture in your living room is tall would be poorly thought out, for example.
Items like coffee tables, dressers, and even servers provide the ideal outlet for creative leg height, as their function is less dependent on people being able to get on and off of them with ease.
If you're looking for a simple way to mix up furniture height in your living room, for example, consider these nesting coffee tables.
Click here to see these nesting end tables on Amazon.
Material
While getting creative with material is primarily about switching things up between metal and wood, you can also play around with the material's tone to create dynamism in your room. For example, adding pieces with dark wood legs to a room full of blonde-washed wood is a great way to add a bit of interest. Pairing gold and silver metals achieve a similar effect.
Does Wood Furniture Have to Match Wood Flooring?
Another aspect to keep in mind when considering the material is how your furniture legs will look against your flooring. This is particularly relevant if you have hardwood floors.
The short answer to the question of whether you should make your furniture match your floors is, no, you don't have to do that. In fact, designing a room that's too one-note puts the eye off and gets boring very quickly. However, you will want to search for some complementary coloring.
For example, if you have espresso flooring in your bedroom, you might want to consider adding this piece as your chest of drawers.
Click here to see this chest on Amazon.
The lighter wash will pop against the dark flooring, while the dark-colored handles will tie the whole look together.
Design
There are so many different types of leg designs on the market. Scrolled legs, twists, cabriole style, straight, fluted, tapered, and reeded—to name a few. Some are ornate and draw a lot of attention to themselves, such as scrolled legs, while some are fairly straightforward in look, like tapered legs. The key to mixing and matching designs is to balance the ornate with the simple.
Take this piece, for example.
Check here to see this accent chair on Amazon.
If you add this chair to your front hall as a place for people to sit and remove shoes, you want your hall table to have a much simpler silhouette, like this.
Click here to see this table on Amazon.
Notice the way the material and coloring of these two items are similar. That helps emphasize the difference in design.
Do Dining Chair Legs Have to Match the Table?
Those of you catching onto the pattern will know by now that the answer is no; dining chair legs do not have to match the table legs. However, there should still be some visual element that links the two pieces together in your mind's eye.
Keep in mind that playing with height is less of an option here. If the chairs are not at a compatible height with the table, your dining set becomes unusable. But you can still play with material and style to put your own fun spin on the decor! You don't even have to make sure the individual chairs match, though there are tricks to pulling off this look if you choose to pursue it. Check out our article on the subject to guide you along.
What Do You Call the Things You Put Under Furniture Legs?
Now that you have your furniture all picked out and all the pieces complement both each other and your beautiful hardwood floor, you're going to want to take steps to protect your flooring. This means adding a rug to your floor, putting covers on the bottom of your furniture legs, or both.
You have several options when it comes to putting something under your furniture legs. Furniture pads are a common choice.
Click here to see these furniture pads on Amazon.
Typically, furniture pads are made of felt and adhere right to the bottom of the legs.
Sliders are a similar product that works well on carpets.
Click here to see these furniture sliders on Amazon.
The vinyl-like material makes moving pieces around easier, hence the name.
Finally, you can use furniture glides to protect your flooring.
Click here to see these furniture glides on Amazon.
Installation of these is a bit more intense, but they're less likely to fall out with extended use.
Since you have options, it's easy to find a product that suits exactly your needs and the needs of your flooring.
Are Sofa Legs Interchangeable?
Like you can extend the life of your hardwood floors by adding pads to the bottom of your furniture's legs, you can extend the life of your sofa by replacing the legs. Of course, if you're looking to change your couch legs for more cosmetic purposes, that's valid, too!
Not all sofa legs are completely interchangeable, though. The good news is, you can pick up mounting plates to make the installation of new legs a breeze.
Click here to see these leg mounting plates on Amazon.
For even more tips on how to care for and extend your furniture's longevity, you can read up on how to disinfect your wood pieces without stripping the finish.
Moving Forward
Now that you've mastered the art of decorating with various types of furniture legs, you're ready to design that magazine-ready room. Your attention to detail will pay off with an interior design that'll wow all your friends and make you feel right at home.
