Sofa Shopping and the Woman who Survived it

Now that my stress about getting ready for Lucketts is over, I can turn my attention to our home.  Because the flood we had warped the wood floor in the foyer, and because the foyer flows into the dining room and living room, our home insurance is covering refinishing of all the floors in the front of the house.  Woohoo! And since it's not that much more to have the kitchen and family room done at the same time, we've decided to get those floors done too. Double woohoo!

You have no idea how happy this makes me!  (Well maybe you do after reading the woohoos!) The floors needed to be refinished when we moved in nine years ago, but with all of our animals, the hassle and cost just didn't seem worth it.  So I've been living with these floors for years--all the while having serious floor envy when I see photos other bloggers have posted of their homes, or when I'm in someone else's house with nice wood floors.

As part of the renovation, the walls and ceiling are also getting a new coat of paint. All of this has inspired me to make some decor changes (big surprise, right?)

The first thing that has to go is the sofa in the living room.  It's lived a good life and served us well, but now it's tired, stained, and has lost its poof.

Careful positioning of pillows and throw hides wear and tear!

I like its style because the lines are simple and it can go with pretty much any decorating scheme. It's a Rowe, which is a well-made brand, and I briefly considered having it reupholstered.  Very briefly once I got an estimate on how much it would cost! 

One of these days I'll learn how to reupholster something other than a chair seat, but until then it costs less to buy a new sofa than to have this one reupholstered!

Now you know I hate to pay full price on anything, so I decided to take advantage of the Memorial Day weekend sales going on. The Memorial Day holiday is traditionally a good time to shop for furniture or mattresses. Retailers are getting ready for new fall inventory, so they mark down what they have.

 

I found a bargain hunters paradise at a local store (at least I think it's just local) called Belforts, which advertises that they have over 300 sofas to choose from. Really. 300. I didn't actually count them all, but I looked at every single sofa they had in all three buildings, and it certainly felt like 300!

This is just one of the three buildings!

Apparently 300 sofas aren't enough for this girl though.  After I looked at all the sofas there, I went to another store.  And another.

I think I've established in this blog that I like to shop.  A lot. But even I was worn out.  My feet hurt and my head whirled.

Every place had this style, which is similar to my sofa except the cushions are detached. (Please excuse the quality of the photos, they were taken with my cell phone and I was trying to take them quickly!)

But while I wanted something transitional, I also wanted something with some detailing to make it stand out.

I liked this one because of the added button detail on the bottom.  There was a nice selection of fabrics to choose from, and at $1200 it was in my price range.

Then I fell in love with this sofa.  It was one of some floor samples the store had brought back after a shopping trip to High Point.  The samples are all part of their new fall merchandise. 

It was beautifully made--a hand-tied frame with comfy down pillows, ruching detail on the arms, and lovely cording.  You can't see it from the photo, but the front of the sofa is slightly scalloped.

This photo shows the fabric and cording.  Because it was a floor sample it was actually a very good price.  You'd pay around $3000 or more for it this fall, depending on where you buy it.

I had originally thought I wanted a well-made, quality sofa that would last for years, and I was ready to buy this one.  But then I got to thinking ... We'll be buying a new house in about five years when my husband retires. In a new place I'll probably want to start from scratch in terms of decorating.

The living room in our house now is right off of the entry, and fairly formal.  The only time we really use it is when we have company over.  The family room, which is right off of the kitchen, is more casual and where we tend to hang out.  Depending on our next house's layout, this sofa may not work.  For instance, if the house has a great room I'll probably want to go with larger furniture--this one is 80" long. 

But then again, it could work.

You see?  A dilemma!  Did I really want to pay over $2000 with tax and delivery for something I may not want down the road?

So I ended up choosing this sofa from Macys.  I like the simple lines, but the tufting detail and flared arms gives it some panache and makes it look a bit vintage. The upholstery is a thick microfiber that feels like velvet.

And the price?  $649 with the additional 10% off the sale price. I mean seriously, it may not be as high of quality, but at that price for a sofa that's not used that much, how could I go wrong?  I added in a seven-year warranty that covers everything, frame, upholstery--even spills and stains.  If they can't fix it, they'll replace it with a new sofa.

It also comes in seafoam, which I absolutely love, but I went with the ivory.  I like white or neutral furniture because then I can change out pillows and accessories as the mood strikes me.

With the warranty, tax and delivery, the final cost was around $800.  The way I see it, since I was going to buy the $2000 sofa, that leaves me with around $1200 to buy new accessories and accent pieces! 

For some reason my husband never understands this logic!
:-)