Monday, October 1, 2007

The Great Sofa Dilemma

Picking out my first sofa shouldn't take as long as picking out my first house, but it's looking like it might. Those closest to me know that I'm terribly, painfully slow at making big decisions, especially those involving large amounts of MY MONEY. It's taken me months to find a serious contender for my new sofa. I've been to every major furniture store (and most of the smaller ones) at LEAST twice. My boyfriend is threatening to start charging my mother for all the time he's had to spend sofa shopping because "she made me this way" (his words mom, his words). Who knew it would be so difficult, almost impossible really, to find a comfortable tan sofa with clean lines, covered in a durable fabric, that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? But finally, finally, I have two finalists.


The second runner up is Macy's Corona. The lines aren't quite my idea of perfection, but they're darn close. It's quite comfortable, surprisingly so considering how streamlined it is. The only downfall, and the reason why it's my second runner up and not already on order, is the fabric. The "acrylic, polyester, nylon blend" feels a bit bit scratchy, but worse yet I'm sure our three cats will scratch and snag the heck out of it. This is the kind of fabric that would irresistibly satisfying to sink your claws in, even I can see that. And while it comes in three fab colors, it isn't available in any other fabrics. So *sniff" it's no Corona for me.


The first place contender is Macy's Kensington. It's new, our friendly salesperson told us, and isn't listed on the Web site. It's made by Bauhaus, but I can't find it on any Bauhaus site either, or anywhere on the Web period. Hence my crappy pic with even crappier Macy's mood lighting. The Kensington is comfty, although a little too cushiony for me and comes in a wide range of microfibers. The one fabric pictured above is actually a small, tasteful herringbone (unlike the hideous herringbone couch my boyfriend loved at another store - gag), not a solid tan, which is what I'm leaning towards. So the Kensington seems to be the best combination of comfort, style, durability and price that I've seen, but it's still not quite perfect. :( I'd love to find a review from someone who has this sofa!

My second big decision is whether to get a loveseat too, a Kensington chair, or entirely different chairs. I grew up in a couch-n-loveseat household, and I inherited couch and loveseat sets, so I'm kind of nervous about bucking tradition, but the chair is really comfortable. Better than the couch really.


Decisions, decisions. Did I mention the Macy's saleslady said they get totally new sofa designs in every few weeks? Maybe I should just wait. The perfect couch might be just a few weeks away! Just kidding, honey, just kidding.

9 comments:

  1. Two years to choose a front door,
    four for a car,
    three for a sewing machine,
    shall I go on ? And suddenly, one day, here it is, the perfect one, and I purchase it in a couple of seconds :-)

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  2. I have a Bauhaus couch from Macy's VERY similar to that one. I got mine at a closeout, it is discontinued. I am thinking that this one replaced it! I love it. I only have one dog--but it cleans up easy. If you spill, just take a damp cloth and it dries without spots. I do lint roll it to get dog hair off. I love my couch. Hope this helps!

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  3. Marit - That does make me feel better, thanks. Of course I just had to go to your Flickr and check it out. It does look really similar. Now I feel like an Internet stalker or something.

    verbirdie - Thank god it's not just me. I'm keeping your comment as proof.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am looking at both sofas too.

    While the kensington is obviously a microfiber sofa, the corona has better lines. I also found out from the Macy's salesperson that the fabric is indeed a microfiber with a tweed feel which for me is a win/win.

    Which did you end up buying?

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  5. I didn't get either one. Love the Corona's shape and feel, but the fabric would not have held up to three cats.

    I ended up with a set from JC Penney outlet, similar in shape to the Kensington with a slightly different non-microfiber fabric that still holds up well to pets.

    I'm pretty satisfied.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I had a sofa dilemma myself. Took me forever to decide as well! I ended up getting the Corona. See, I have 5 cats and I have found that the slightly nubbly fabric is actually perfect for HIDING cat claw snags. Much better than microfiber/smooth fabric anything in that respect. Plus I take a little embroidery hook once a week and just pull the occassional really visible snags through the fabric to the back side. Works like a charm. Same principle as sweater snag repair. I just so loved the lines of the Corona too!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I JUST PURCHASED A LIGHT BEIGE "BAUHAUS" COUCH AT LEON'S , I'M CONCERNED ABOUT HOW TO GET RID OF STAINS, IF ANY !!! - DO I JUST TAKE A DAMP CLOTH AND WIPE OR DO I NEED A SPECIAL CLEANING SOLUTION?
    I'VE HEARD THAT IF ANY SPILLS SHOULD HAPPEN SODA WATER WOULD GET IT OUT.
    A REPLY WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.
    GISI

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anon - I'm not a stain specialist, and it probably depends on the fabric of your couch, what the stain is, etc. I would turn to my friend, Google for stain advice.

    That said, I'm a fan of trying the least possibly-damaging method first, so I use water on stains before turning to chemicals. Also, the more quickly the stain is addressed the better.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I bought the Kensington sofa bed (also from Macys) and really, but now I want the matching chair too and can't find one anywhere. Does anyone have any suggestions?

    ReplyDelete

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