Oriental Arabic Sofa in Utah: Raised Majlis & Floor Seating

How many guests does a U or an L seat, and how tall should it sit?

A standard L seats five to six adults and up to seven; a U seats eight to nine, and up to twelve when guests sit close. In a Utah living room where grandparents and teenagers share one row, seat height decides who rises easily, and the four heights can be compared among our Arabic majlis sets.

Guests	Seat run needed	Shape that gets there
5 to 6	About 142 in (360 cm)	A standard L, 75 × 102 in (190 × 260 cm) of floor
8 to 9	About 213 in (540 cm)	A standard U, sides of 75 in (190 cm), 130 in (330 cm) and 75 in (190 cm)
12	About 283 in (720 cm)	A U on longer walls, each split into equal seats

Charcoal gray velvet low sectional turning a corner, with square backrests, a gray ottoman and three floor cushions — A gray velvet L with two armrests, back pillows, an ottoman and floor cushions on a white rug.

From the atelier

Questions buyers ask

I want a seat higher than 8 in (20 cm). Can you make it 16 in (40 cm)?: A raised majlis usually tops out at 16 in (40 cm), about the seat height of a regular sofa, and the ottoman or table is made to match so the set lines up.
Can I see a set in person in Utah before I order?: Nothing is on display in Utah, because custom sets are made to order in Istanbul. Ask us about fabric swatches and a foam sample before you order. We don't have a showroom; ask us for a sample box or a video call.

How do floor vents change a majlis layout?

Measure each floor vent from the nearest corner and note its length; a vent under a run can get an opening built into the base.
Mark the vents, outlets and the swing of every door on your sketch before you send it.
Photograph each vent with the tape across it, so the designer can read its size.
Ask for a short video of a finished piece with vent openings if you want to see how they look.

From the atelier: A family in Utah started from a standard corner floor sofa and asked to swap a 59 in (150 cm) seat for a 75 in (190 cm) one and to get six straight armrests instead of four. The team suggested a fully custom set instead and asked for a room photo and wall-to-wall measurements: a U of 144 in (366 cm) by 183 in (465 cm) by 144 in (366 cm). Proposals came in 12 in (30 cm) and 16 in (40 cm) full-sponge versions with backrests, pillows and two armrest types. After production had started, the family realized the U would cover floor AC vents and asked to switch to an L. Instead, the team asked for the vent positions and had the tailor build openings into the right-side pieces, a solution the workshop had used before, then sent a video showing how the openings would look so the U layout could stay.

Utah

Measure the walls themselves, marking doors, corners and floor vents on the sketch; the drawing and approval steps for a custom order are explained in how we work.

Which seat height suits older guests, and should the ottoman rise with it?

For parents with stiff knees and for tall guests, choose a seat of 12 in (30 cm) or more; 16 in (40 cm) sits close to a regular sofa. Low seats of 4 in (10 cm) to 8 in (20 cm) keep the classic floor look, but they are harder to sit down on and rise from through a long evening. Wooden-base models are built at about 14.5 in (37 cm) to 16 in (40 cm) and are not made lower.

The ottoman table is made to match the seating: about 8 in (20 cm) high on standard sets and up to 16 in (40 cm) next to a raised majlis.

Moving into a new apartment: when do you measure, and when do you order?

Measure once you have the keys; a floor plan from a listing is not a measurement. Production time depends on your layout and the season — ask us for the current schedule. Until you have the keys, fabric and seat height can already be settled from swatches and a video call with the designer.

What do Utah coffee shops need from a bench or a floor set?

A wooden bench is 75 × 27.5 × 16 in (190 × 70 × 40 cm) including its seat cushion. I would run benches along the wall where guests turn over quickly and keep floor sets for the corner where they settle in.

From the atelier: A business owner opening a coffee shop in Utah wanted eight single wooden bench sofas and seven single floor seating sets at 4 in (10 cm). Before committing, the owner asked for fabric samples in two colors, a brown and a palace-style green, to compare inside the new store under its own lighting. The team mailed swatches with a piece of the seat foam and filmed both colors side by side, because a live call across time zones was hard to schedule. The owner chose a color and placed the order. On delivery the owner counted the pieces box by box: all sixteen backrests were there, but only seven of sixteen side pillows had arrived and one seat cushion was damaged. Tracing the missing box took several weeks. The owner later asked whether cushions could be made in custom sizes for the venue.

Utah

Our floor sofa sets show the standard floor layouts that can be considered alongside a bench run for the café.

How do ordering, calls and delivery work for Utah addresses?

Large sets travel in several vacuum-packed boxes, each with its own tracking number, so check each box against the packing list the day it arrives. If anything arrives damaged or missing, message us with photos as soon as you can and we'll put it right.

Delivery to the US and Canada is by tracked express courier — ask us for the current transit estimate.

Ask us

Import duties for US deliveries are set by US Customs — ask us how they apply to your order before you pay.

Ask us

Utah mornings fall in the Istanbul evening, because Istanbul is nine hours ahead in summer and ten in winter. Ask us for a design consultation — we can talk through your room on a video call.

Utah time	Istanbul is ahead by	When it is 9 a.m. in Utah, Istanbul reads
Mountain time, summer	9 hours	6 p.m.
Mountain time, winter	10 hours	7 p.m.

How large are Utah's Arab, Sudanese and Somali communities?

The census counts Utah's Arab ancestries one by one, and Sudanese and Somali households are tallied separately.

Place	What the figures show	Source
Utah	About 9,098 residents report Arab ancestry, about 0.27%	ACS 5-year
Utah	About 15,710 counted as Middle Eastern or North African, about 0.48%	2020 Census
Utah	Lebanese about 2,951, Iraqi about 1,542, Other Arab about 1,344	ACS 5-year
Utah	Sudanese about 2,338 and Somali about 1,855, counted apart	ACS 5-year
Utah homes	66.5% single-family detached, 70.2% owner-occupied, median year built 1992	ACS 5-year
Salt Lake City	January high about 39°F (4°C), July high about 93°F (34°C), about 52 in (132 cm) of snow a year	Station normals 1991-2020

Long winters and four patio months: which room does the majlis take?

Only May, June, September and October have average highs between 64°F (18°C) and 90°F (32°C) in Utah, so a majlis here is an indoor room for most of the year. Standard upholstery is for indoor rooms; a patio set would use the water-repellent outdoor fabric, mostly in plain colors.

Local questions

Do benches come in single-seat lengths, or only full length?

Bench frames come in fixed lengths of about 47 in (120 cm), 59 in (150 cm), 71 in (180 cm) and 75 in (190 cm), so a shorter frame suits a single seat at a table. The cushions on top can be made to size.

Can I swap a shorter piece for a longer one and add more armrests?

In a raised majlis design the straight seats come in 75 in (190 cm) and 59 in (150 cm) lengths, so one section can swap for another, and straight armrests of 10 × 10 × 21.5 in (25 × 25 × 55 cm) can be added in the number you need. Send your wall-to-wall measurements so the lengths can be checked.

My last majlis cushions went flat within a year. How do yours hold up?

Seats use high-density polyurethane foam — ask us for the exact density for your build. The foam is firm to medium-firm, so you sit on the cushion rather than sinking into it, and replacement foam can be ordered any time.

Which style suits a home prayer room: traditional or modern floor seating?

Low floor seating of 4 in (10 cm) to 8 in (20 cm) keeps a prayer room open: a modern diwan in a plain fabric reads calm, while a classic Arabic floor set with a pattern feels warmer. If prayer rugs already cover the floor, order the set without its rug.