my thoughts would be that the children would not sit on the couch? and would not be a place to randomly sit?

I had a velvet couch and it was the worst fabric for wear. I have heard on Houzz that the sunbrella fabrics are very durable and attractive. They can be used outdoors but don't look like patio furniture fabrics.

my point was that there would be adults filling it.

Hello!
We are l'Opificio from Italy, designing and producing high-quality,
100% Made Italy fabrics and velvets for home decoration and also soft furnishings.

As
you are looking for durable but also stylish fabrics for your sofa,
we suggest you to have a look at our dedicated webpage here below:

http://lopificio.it/en/furnishing-fabrics/
,

If
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link to our website http://lopificio.it/en/.

For
any further information, don't hesitate to contact us at this email
address

export@lopificio.it

-l'Opificio Staff

All cotton velvet are the worst for wear and stain, some synthetic could be better but not always. The best is wool, you can see it used in theatre chairs and it last forever. I don't think West Elm would use wool as it very pricy... Select couch with microfiber always easy to clean.

I had 2 chairs made very similar to the orange sofa in your photo which I had in our coastal home. They were upholstered in ultra suede and held up extremely well to kids, etc, but also looked stylish. The style is Vladimir Kagan and if you look at vintage pieces many of them were upholstered in ultra suede,too

I am a firm believer that you need to sit in a chair or sofa first before buying one. Therefore, my suggestion would be to visit your local furniture store and find a style and sit on it first. Many better furniture stores can show you the fabrics available from the furniture manufacturer and you can make an educated selection and be happy with it. Also, your local vendor is right there with customer service, usually free delivery, and a happy ending for all. Happy shopping!

I believe some of the furniture stores with a significant presence online do have retail shops in most in big cities, like Crate and Barrel and West Elm. Lots of times, the custom made orders go directly to the customer from the manufacturer if the store is a distance. Good luck with your search!

don't forget there are several more stores you wouldn't think of. target delivers to store along with walmart, pier one and home depot. or they often deliver to home and returns are free from there. remember most of those have far more on line then in store.