Ottomans are a common sight in many households. These attractive and functional pieces of furniture offer not just comfort, but (depending on the ottoman) storage space as well. These modern footstools serve those purposes, and they can also improve the look of your house. An ottoman is a small footstool for resting ones feet but it also adds to the décor of one's home. Here are five reasons why an ottoman is a great addition to your house.

1. An ottoman offers additional seating without the need for a larger piece of furniture, thus helping to avoid overcrowding in a room. Yes, ottomans are traditionally used as footstools, but today's ottomans are often large and upholstered, and double as extra seating.

When placed at the base of a chair, an ottoman functions as a footstool, but when removed from the chair and placed elsewhere in the room, it can function as a seat. When the need for extra seating is no longer necessary, it can be placed back at the base of a chair. Its size makes it very easy to move.

2. An ottoman can function as an attractive coffee table, again helping to ease overcrowding in a room. Coffee tables are not always necessary, but sometimes they come in handy when serving beverages or food in the living room. They can however, be cumbersome in a small room, and leave little room for walking around.

An ottoman can take the place of a coffee table if need be. By placing a flat serving tray on top of the ottoman, it can be turned into the perfect place to rest a cup of coffee or an appetizer. If you move it to the front of the couch, there is an excellent resting place for a bowl of popcorn when watching a movie. When the movie is done, move it back to its original spot, and the flow of traffic in the room can move once again. This works best with a rectangular shaped ottoman that is made of hard leather since it is more difficult for the drink to spill.

3. An ottoman can also help improve the organization of a room because many ottomans are designed with storage space inside of them. The seat of the ottoman can lift up to reveal a hidden compartment. This compartment can be used to store blankets, magazines, children's toys, or other items that can clutter up a room.

Some people buy two matching ottoman storage cubes so they can store separate things in them. All the while, they hide what otherwise could be scattered around the room. This is also useful for a larger room since it can add a stylish flair to the room that is not obtained with only one ottoman.

4. An ottoman can add a splash of color, pattern, or texture to a room with matching furniture. When an ottoman and chair are purchased together, they often have matching upholstery. However, when purchased separately, an ottoman can have a completely different, yet complementary fabric, than the rest of the furniture.

If a room has a sofa and a chair that use the same pattern, you can choose a color from that design for you ottoman. A solid color ottoman in that color can complement the seating well. If most of the furniture in a room is covered in fabric, a wooden ottoman can bring an additional texture into the room, helping to improve how interesting the room appears.

5. Since ottomans are small and usually square or rectangular (although some are circular), they are usually easier and less expensive to re-upholster than other pieces of furniture. It would be easy to change the look of a room just by changing the fabric on the ottoman and perhaps rearranging the rest of the furniture. It would be one of the most inexpensive ways to change up a room.

Ottomans are also very easy to slipcover because of their boxy shape. Many low-cost slipcover options are even less expensive than reupholstering. By having a couple of different slipcover options, the look of a room could be changed frequently. A bonus is that a slipcover can be removed and washed easily so dirt from the bottom of shoes that have rested on the ottoman can be cleaned off easily.

An ottoman is one small piece of furniture with many different functions. Adding one to any room in the house is sure to improve the look of a home by adding style, storage, and extra space. These ottomans are a great option because although stylish, you can easily change their look if you decide to change the theme of your room. These benefits make owning an ottoman well worth it and their ability to act as a storage container is excellent.