In the 18th century a fashionable woman spent real hours at her toilette, the V&A says, preparing for "an endless series of entertainments and social appearances." The museum shows an oak dressing table by Pierre Migeon, made in France in 1760 to 70, with drawers you could lock to protect private letters.

The seat has its own history. By Marie Antoinette's time there was a chair designed just for the toilette, the fauteuil de toilette, and by the 1930s the woman at her dressing table was deeply entwined with the glamour of cinema. Drawers, mirror and somewhere to sit: that was the recognisable trio. A good vanity chair is that third part, and it is the one people buy last and regret first.

Start the search with the ones that have backs. The Uptown in green gingham is skirted and pleated to the floor, so it hides the legs and suits a bedroom corner in October. The Cloud Puff in cream chenille and the Petal Back in cream faux fur are the soft, rounded options, while the Jonna in ivory has a button-tufted back and turned wood legs. For a little color I would look at the green velvet low-back chair, or the dusty blue vine stripe Bee, which is fully upholstered and comes in 12 fabrics. The Azalea Park in golden bronze has an open oval back and a padded white seat, and the Mercer41 chair has a fold-down back and storage under the seat.

A buying guide gives 17 to 19 inches of seat height for a standard 30 inch vanity. Measure from the floor to the underside of your tabletop, subtract 11 to 13 inches, and you have your range. The Uptown (20 in) and the Bee (20.5 in) sit above it, so they suit a taller table.

Migeon's table was a piece of storage with a mirror attached, and a stool is the modern answer to that: small, quiet, out of the way when you stand. These are the seats I would choose for a narrow table or a console you also use as a desk.

The West Elm Emma Chamberlain stool in sage gingham is 16 inches across and about 19 inches high, so it fits the 30 inch table rule at the upper end. The Pottery Barn Estelle is square, matte black and 19 inches high, with a 4 inch cushion, which reads smartly with a dark wood table. The two CB2 stools, one in cream shearling and one in white and light brown, stand 17 inches high on slim hand-forged iron legs. Lower again is the George Oliver round stool on three gold legs at 17.5 in. The Mercer41 Azalea Park bench is 18.7 in with a blue padded seat, the NFusion Bronson in beige linen is tufted at 18.1 in, and the SONGMICS ribbed stool at 19.7 in lifts open for storage.

Check how the cushion sits when you press it. A thick seat loses an inch or more under you, so a stool listed at 19 inches behaves like 18. Then slide it under your table and check your knees clear the apron.

What I would skip: a stool taller than 19.5 inches if your table has a drawer front, because it will bump your thighs every time you lean toward the mirror.

A swivel stool earns its place when the mirror is on one wall and the window is on another. You turn to check a sleeve in daylight and turn back, with no scraping of legs on the floor.

The West Elm Pierce and Ward is a small round stool, 14 inches across and 19.25 inches high, with a striped seat on a carved burl wood base. The Pottery Barn Jake is wider, at 20 inches across, in an oatmeal fabric that suits a linen bedroom. The George Oliver 18.5 inch round stool is the one I would measure first, since 18.5 sits right in the middle of the 17 to 19 inch range. If your table is shared, the VASAGLE adjusts from 17.9 to 22.6 inches and spins 360 degrees on a chrome base. The Zipcode Design Highfill has a tufted faux leather seat at 16.7 inches. For more support, the Costway barrel chair, the Panipeachy butterfly back and the LumiSource Marla all give you a back as well as the swivel, at 17, 16 and 18.5 inches.

Spin it with your weight on it, if you can, before you commit. A good pedestal should turn without a wobble or a squeak. Also try tipping back an inch: a low barrel back should hold you without rocking.

What I would skip: a swivel on a thick high-pile rug, where the base drags and the turn stops being smooth.

Velvet has been the dressing table fabric for a long time, and in October it comes back into the bedroom with everything else warm. Bouclé is the newer relative: looped, nubbly and a little sculptural.

The CB2 stools come in terracotta red and sage green velvet, both about 17 inches high on that slim black iron frame. The George Oliver stool is a dusty blue velvet with stacked round cushions, 17.5 inches high. For a back, the Karl Home Glam in pink velvet has a scalloped petal back, a pillow and gold-tone legs at 18.1 inches. The FURNILIVING in beige velvet has a curved cut-out back at 18.5 inches, and the GustoWave is a rounded beige velvet barrel with 30 liters of hidden storage. For bouclé there is the VINGLI petal back in cream at 19.3 inches and the Yaheetech in black, a cloud-shaped back on wheels that adjusts from 18 to 22 inches.

Run your hand against the pile at the store or on the swatch. If it flattens and stays flat, that is where your makeup will leave its mark. Lighter colors show powder, and darker velvet shows lint, so pick the one you can tolerate wiping down.

I would pair the black bouclé with a mirror with a thin frame, and the pink with a dark wood table so it doesn't turn sweet.

What I would skip: a pale cream bouclé if the table is where you do foundation and hair color.

Natural materials change the room more quietly than velvet. A woven top on a wood frame suits a table you also sit at in daylight, and it does not mind a damp hairbrush.

The JONATHAN Y Rowan is a hand-woven rattan stool with scalloped legs and a white cushion, 19.7 inches to the seat. The Costway bamboo stool has a woven rattan top and tapered legs, 17 inches high. The Hearth & Hand with Magnolia stool has a cane insert and a small shelf below, 18 inches. The Bay Isle Home Ascano pairs a round hand-woven seat with a black frame at 17.5 inches. In plain wood, the Threshold designed with Studio McGee Thatcher is natural rubberwood with chunky legs, and the Latitude Run Lumi has solid oak legs and a cream linen seat at 16.5 inches. The Vecelo is solid beech with a padded seat, and the George Oliver Anita Aevah is solid walnut with a saddle cushion, both 16.5 inches.

Flip each stool over and look at the joints. Cane and rattan should be tight and smooth with no snags that catch tights, and wooden legs should not twist when you push the seat sideways.

Most of these sit at 16.5 to 18 inches, which suits a lower table around 28 inches, and the Rowan at 19.7 is for a taller one.

What I would skip: a rattan seat in a steamy bathroom, since it will not like the damp air.

Measure the table first. Floor to the underside of the top, then subtract 11 to 13 inches, and write the range on your phone before you open a single tab.

Then decide on a back. If you sit for ten minutes, a stool does the job. If you sit for the whole morning, I would look at the Cloud Puff or the Jonna and let the back do some of the work. In a small room, a CB2 stool tucks away and disappears.

Fashionable women have been spending their mornings at a toilette for 250 years or so. The least we can do is give them somewhere good to sit. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together How To Choose An Accent Chair and The Best Shampoo for Men, From a 1994 Chicago Barber Chair.