For a majlis sofa in Washington, D.C., order direct from Sofhu, the manufacturer. Sets are made in Türkiye to the measurements of your room, whether a row-house parlour, an apartment or an embassy reception, with 32 kg/m³ high-density foam and removable covers. Shipping to the District is free, and the first step is a quote by measurement or a WhatsApp message.
- Made by
- Sofhu, manufacturer, in Türkiye
- For
- Row houses, apartments, embassies, offices, restaurants
- Sizing
- Built to the room's measurements
- Products
- Raised Arabic majlis or low floor sofa
- Foam
- 32 kg/m³ (32 DNS) high-density, no springs
- Shipping to D.C.
- Free
On this page
Washington is a city where a majlis is as likely to be ordered for a reception room as for a family room. Diplomats, visiting delegations and professionals from Arab countries live and work here. A majlis sofa in Washington, D.C. therefore has two kinds of buyer: the household and the institution. Sofhu makes sets for both, to measure, in Türkiye, and ships them free.
A capital of diplomats, with families in the suburbs
The District itself has a large diplomatic and professional community from the Arab world. Many Arab and Afghan families in the wider region live outside the city line, in the Virginia and Maryland suburbs.
If you are in the suburbs, the pages on oriental sofas in Virginia and oriental Arabic sofas in Maryland speak to those homes. This page deals with the city: its row houses, its apartments and its official rooms. The national picture is on the United States page.
Row houses and apartments: making a narrow room work
In the District, plan for length, not width. Row houses and apartments dominate the housing, and a row-house room tends to be longer than it is wide.
- A single row on the long wall gives the most seats while keeping a path through the room.
- Two facing rows suit a wider parlour and make conversation easy across a low table.
- An L-shape uses the end wall too, if no door interrupts it.
Sofhu makes two products for these rooms. The Arabic majlis is raised to sofa height, fully upholstered, with a solid base and fixed backs. The Arabic floor sofa is a low set of seat mattresses and loose back cushions. Both are planned against a wall, so a row cannot float in the middle of an open-plan floor. Ask about a wooden bench-frame set as the alternative there.
The pair above shows the same room before and after: two ordinary sofas replaced by a caramel and black majlis along two walls, with marble tables and a bordered rug.
Reception rooms for embassies, cultural centres and offices
For an official room, ask for the raised majlis in a restrained fabric. Guests in suits and formal dress sit more easily at sofa height, and the room still reads clearly as a majlis. Embassies, cultural centres and Gulf-facing offices are natural places for one.
The guide to an office and embassy majlis reception covers seating order, tables and spacing. The Saudi majlis page describes the Gulf reception room that many such spaces follow. Projects with several rooms can go through the wholesale majlis enquiry.
Sofhu builds each order for its room and offers design support by video call, which helps when a facilities manager, not the end user, is doing the ordering. The custom majlis page lists what can be specified: dimensions, fabric, colour, pattern, stitching and embroidery.
Restaurants and lounges
A restaurant that wants a floor-seating section or a private dining room in the Arabic style orders the same way. Give the wall lengths of the area, the number of covers and the kind of service. Covers that zip off and wash matter more in a dining room than anywhere else. See floor seating restaurant design and Sofhu’s page on Arabic jalsah for restaurants.
Choosing the look
Formal rooms tend toward velvet with a little gold or silver trim; family rooms toward patterned weaves that hide daily use. The khaki green majlis below, with bolster armrests, sits between the two.
Whatever the cover, the filling is the same: 32 kg/m³ high-density foam with no springs. Denser foam generally keeps its height and support longer, a real advantage in a reception room that is in use every day. Firmness can be chosen separately. For the choice between a low and a raised seat, read floor seating vs raised diwan.
Ordering for a D.C. address
Sofhu has no store in Washington. It is a manufacturer and every set is built to order.
- Measure each wall at floor level, or send the floor plan.
- Photograph the room and note doors, heaters and windows.
- State the use: family room, guest room, reception or dining.
- Request a quote by measurement or write on WhatsApp.
Shipping is free. Cushions arrive vacuum packed, which helps on narrow row-house stairs. Duties or taxes may apply under United States rules, so ask before ordering. For another dense East Coast city, see the New York City page.
