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Why are most sofas so bad?

dwell.com

31–40 of 762 posts

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#32
Most are cheap junk bought sight unseen. My stressless couches are built from real wood, full grain leather, etc... My eames chair likewise. But you're adding a 5-10x multiplyer to furniture costs for that quality.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#33
post #6

Are any sofa manufacturers out there that still produce good quality for around $1000, preferably from Europe ?

$1k just ain't what it used to be. My wife and I just spent $5k on a sectional from West Elm a year ago and the fabric is already starting to pill.

Oof! For $5k you could get something from Herman Miller, Hay, or Design Within Reach[1].

[1] https://www.dwr.com/living-sofas-sectionals/quilton-chaise-s...

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#34
I hear this a lot, but my fairly inexpensive IKEA sofa is about eight years old with no problems at all so far.

EDIT: Actually, in general I've found that my IKEA furniture has done pretty well (basically everything in the house is IKEA) with the sole exception of a "Lack" coffee table, whose surface is kinda disintegrating after 8 years (I think it's basically made of cardboard with a veneer...). The name should perhaps have been a warning.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#35
post #26

Are any sofa manufacturers out there that still produce good quality for around $1000, preferably from Europe ?

Ikea. Can't beat price/quality.

I do agree with this. When you build them yourself and see the underneath of them they really aren’t that awful compared to a store couch that is possibly using even worse construction techniques.

The only problem I have with them is that they have almost no couch designs that have a more plush style. Almost all of them are firmer foams and just plain not appealing designs.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#36

Are any sofa manufacturers out there that still produce good quality for around $1000, preferably from Europe ?

Probably not for $1000.

$2700 is what I got mine for. I think price might have been lowered to $2300 now.

It's built in Poland. Solid wood with steel reinforcement in the form of steel tubing in places, springs, and then a pillow system on top of that. The firm making it is the Swedish company SITS.

But I think one has to actually sit in a bunch of couches to see whether they're good.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#38

I hear this a lot, but my fairly inexpensive IKEA sofa is about eight years old with no problems at all so far. EDIT: Actually, in general I've found that my IKEA furniture has done pretty well (basically everything in the house is IKEA) with the sole exception of a "Lack" coffee table, whose surface is kinda disintegrating after 8 years (I think it's basically made of cardboard with a veneer...). The name should per…

I got an IKEA couch about 9 years ago. It was like... $700? The construction is definitely very cheap and you can tell if you flip it on its back, but it's very comfortable and sturdy enough that it still feels solid in normal use.

I don't think "cheap" construction is necessarily a bad thing, honestly. There's ways to do cheap construction such that it works just fine.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#39
Made the mistake of buying a couch off Wayfair for a little nook in my office. It lasted a year before I got rid of it. Never again. Couches really are one of those areas where you get what you pay for. With the possible exception of Ikea. Got an Ikea couch for my 10 year old's room and its holding up remarkably well.

Re: Why are most sofas so bad?

#40
post #33
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$1k just ain't what it used to be. My wife and I just spent $5k on a sectional from West Elm a year ago and the fabric is already starting to pill.

Oof! For $5k you could get something from Herman Miller, Hay, or Design Within Reach[1]. [1] https://www.dwr.com/living-sofas-sectionals/quilton-chaise-s...

I think even showy luxury brands like RH do better than West Elm. CB2 as well, which is a slight step up from Crate and Barrel.

West Elm and the whole Pottery Barn set of brands are just worse versions of Crate and Barrel, with terrible customer service to go with it. They had some of the most mean and rude customer service agents I’ve ever talked to. They acted like the store was an entirely different company, then the store acted like I needed to call the national call line. Plus, they outsource deliveries in a very annoying blame-shifting way.

At least at RH you get a single human point of contact who can handle everything like a concierge experience.

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