Seat depth, frame, fabric and the one measurement everybody forgets: the front door.
Start with the door. Measure the narrowest point between the street and the room, then measure it again — more sofas are returned for a stairwell than for a colour.
Seat depth decides how you sit
A deep seat, 60 cm or more, is for lying down and pulling your feet up. A shallow one, around 52 cm, is for sitting upright and talking. Decide which room you are furnishing before you fall for a shape.
Sit on it for ten minutes, not ten seconds. Comfort shows up in minute six.
Look under the cushions
Ask what the frame is made of and how it is joined. Solid hardwood with glued and pegged joints outlasts staples and chipboard by decades, and can be repaired.
- Solid oak or beech frame, not particleboard
- Webbing or springs you can see and touch
- Covers that unzip, so a spill is a wash
Choose the fabric last
Order samples and live with them for a week, in daylight and lamplight. The swatch that looks safe in a shop often looks flat at home.
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Lighting a living room with three lampsWhy the big light is the problem, and where the three small ones should go.
Inside the workshop in JutlandEleven makers, one kiln, and a travertine saw that takes a morning to cut a single top.
Start with the fabric
Order up to six fabric swatches and three wood finishes. Hold them against your wall, your floor and your dog — then decide.
- White-glove deliveryCarried in, assembled, boxes gone
- 10-year guaranteeOn every frame and joint
- Repairs for lifeBy the workshop that made it