Six Tips for Choosing the Perfect Sofa
Here's How to Get the Big, Comfy Couch You Really Want
Like everything else in this era of endless choice, there seem to be infinite options when it comes to choosing a sofa. You might think you know exactly what you want, but once you walk into a shop or browse images online, the styles, shapes, and customization alternatives can become overwhelming. Save yourself the time, money, and potential buyer's remorse and use these tips to get a clear idea of what you want (and what you need!) before you start the hunt.
| 1. Consider size first. If you have a bigger living room, you'll need to decide exactly how much of the living room you want your couch to fill. Do you want to include other couches or chairs? Do you want a coffee table? If so, a simple sofa, or one with a slight L-shape is probably the best fit. If you're looking for a sofa that will be the focal point of your living room, look for rounder couch shapes that take up a bit more room and provide a lot of seating. Here's a great example of a strong and simple sofa from Crate & Barrel.
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by Jan Skacelik
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| If you have a small living room, odds are you'll need a smaller couch. With less space, any couch or sofa is going to be in the spotlight, so it's important to pick something that is practical, but is also of a strong design that carries and complements the rest of the space.
Design Within Reach has a perfect two-seater for a small living room. |
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| 2. Decide exactly how the sofa will be oriented. Successfully organizing a living space starts with analyzing your lifestyle. What do you do the most in that space? Do you like to wind down in front of the TV? Make sure your couch faces that direction. Love hosting game or wine nights? Create a semi circle (or even full circle) around a central table.
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Does your family use the living room to lounge, relax and read? Surround your sofa with chairs and cushions to create multiple seating areas that can be enjoyed individually, or as a large group.
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| 3. Determine which shape will suit the room best. Now that you've decided your sofa's function, it's time to figure out which shape will help it fulfill that purpose. A clean L-shape this one from IKEA is great for open areas that need to be divided — such as separating the living room from the dining room. |
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| A rounder shape is a bit more conducive for a smaller space meant to serve as a gathering area for groups of people, but could also be perfect for a media room.
Check out this unique curved sofa from Sears. |
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If you want to implement more chairs and tables in your living room, a chaise or a daybed could be a good alternative to a traditional couch. It still provides seating for several people, but is compact and can work as a more sophisticated version of the futon. Here's a perfectly classic chaise from Crate & Barrel.
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by twenty7 design
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| 4. Research upholstery materials. Which will be best for you? Aesthetic is important, but functionality is key when it comes to choosing a material for your sofa. A lot of us that would love to indulge in a plush, white suede sofa —they're so gorgeous, but so dangerous. Suede can be a poor choice if you have pets or small children who will cause some serious damage. |
| Leather — particularly in darker colors — is consistently in style, generally wears well with age, and can be fairly easy to clean.
Pottery Barn has a great leather sofa that could be used in a pair, similar to the previous photo. |
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| Another choice is to opt to have your couch upholstered in an outdoor fabric. Many companies now carry Sunbrella fabrics, which resist stains, water and fading from the sun. Many outdoor furniture companies also have outdoor couches and love seats that are so simple and classic in design that they could easily be used indoors. |
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| 5. Choose a style that complements your home. It can be a little hard to nail down your own personal style, but go with your gut instinct when picking the type of couch that will fit naturally in your home. If your style is sleek and modern, pick something that reflects that in clean lines and dramatic colors. |
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by Vintage Renewal
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| If your home is an eclectic mix of colors and designs, a couch that combines several styles (such as a vintage couch re-upholstered in a colorful fabric, or a more modern shape with traditional accents) could be the perfect expression of your taste. |
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| If your look is a little more traditional, a classically structured sofa in a durable and neutral fabric will stand the test of time and will work well with various colors and complementing pieces.
West Elm has a nice (and affordable!) example of a simple couch shape that will always stay in style. |
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| 6. Pick a color: bright, printed, or neutral? Re-upholstering furniture has become a relatively inexpensive option for anyone who wants to personalize a piece of furniture. |
by Niche Interiors
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Don't be afraid to choose a couch with a fun or unique print! It can add a surprisingly personal touch and quickly transform the feel of the entire room. Urban Outfitters has a similar chaise in beautiful fabrics, at a perfect price point.
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| If you're too nervous to experiment with bolder colors and patterns in your sofa, you can always opt for a funky ottoman that can double as a coffee table. It'll add a more subtle sense of diversity to your living room, while complementing more classic couches and chairs. Consider this exotic ottoman from Anthropologie.
Next: Browse photos of living room designs on Houzz |
Ideabook published on April 19, 2011.
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Great post though, currently searching for a longer lasting sofa to replace the shoddy one.
expensive fabric nor is my existing sofa overly large or complex to reupholster.
Although my sofa is very high quality, it doesn't make good economic sense to
recover it for $2000 when I can buy a new sofa of equal quality for approximately
$3000. So, yes, sofas can cost $5000, but I would never spend that much for a casual everyday sofa for my great room where my 2 doggies join me every evening. I had considered a slipcover instead, but my upholsterer charges the same labor price for slipcovers as for reupholstery. Having used him several times in the past I know he does very high quality work. His prices must be competitive because he stays very, very busy! For some reason, almost no other workrooms do slipcovers. I am simply
offering this as food for thought and suggesting it might NOT be wise to assume that reupholstering is an economical alternative. Others may have a different opinion or a different experience!
jan
http://montana.ie/blog/2012/08/25/how-to-choose-a-quality-sofa-or-corner-sofa/ and found really good information here. This posts is also very nice and gave me some nice tips to choose the perfect sofa for me. Thanks for sharing it here.