The Best Sofa to Go With an Eames Chair

Husband and wife Charles and Ray Eames were innovative furniture and architecture designers in the 1940s and '50s. They did away with massive, intricate, dark wood pieces and incorporated sleek, contemporary furnishings into the world of interior design. Their unconventional and simplistic styles were a combination of art, science and imagination, according to Design Within Reach. The best sofas to coordinate with Eames chairs support the same modern, streamlined design.

Metal Legs

Opt for a sofa that has short chrome or brushed silver metal legs. Eames chairs often have slender, rounded chrome legs that pair well with other metal-leg furnishings. Metal-leg furniture has a polished, modern design element that coordinates with contemporary furnishings of the machine age. Select a sofa with oak or cedar legs if you prefer the warmth of wood over metal. Choose a fold-open, futon-style sofa with metal or light-colored wooden legs for a casual and relaxed living room style to match your Eames chair.

Uniform Bench Cushions

Eames chairs are typically made from bent plywood or molded fiberglass and have a smooth, organic, one-piece design. Select a sofa that has a uniform, solid bench seat and a benchlike back, rather than individual fluffy cushions. Opt for a tufted seat back with minimal padding or a straight, sleek, nontextured bench cushion and matching seat back to coordinate with simple, streamlined decor elements. Choose a sofa or a sectional with a low seat back so it doesn't overpower your smaller, contoured Eames chair.

Solid Color Upholstery

Choose a vintage sofa or a modern remake in a solid-color fabric. Avoid upholstery in busy patterns, stripes, floral designs or paisleys. Select stapled or nailed upholstery in simple fabrics, such as leather, faux leather, polyester or a rayon blend for the best option with a simple, curved plywood Eames chair. Opt for sturdy, durable upholstery fabrics in trendy 1950s colors such as turquoise, beige, yellow-gold, rust, pea green, off-white, olive or melon. Or, choose an earth-tone upholstery color such as mocha brown, gray, black or taupe for a contemporary remake.

Minimalistic Arms

Some Eames chairs are armless and others have small, narrow, desk-chair arms. Select a sofa that also has minimalistic arms and avoid stuffed, oversized, cushioned arms. Choose an armless style for a lounge, cafe theme; a low-arm style for a more formal, structured living room; or a sofa with curved arms to support an Art Deco motif. Eames chairs have a small footprint, so you don't want a sofa that is so bulky and massive that you don't notice the chair.