We take upholstery very seriously at Lark. After a good quality mattress, a sofa is the most important furniture purchase you’ll make. At Lark, we attend High Point market in North Carolina every fall and sit on everything. And I mean EVERYTHING. We return home with phones full of photos of us giving different upholstery pieces a thumbs-up or thumbs-down. We do our research, so our clients never wind up with a thumbs-down couch. We don’t want that to happen to your either. So we’re sharing our top tips for successful sofa shopping. Believe me when I say you’ll need them. Because sofa shopping is stressful — just ask the comedian Mike Birbiglia. So how do you buy a sofa? What do you look for in your great couch-search? We’ve narrowed it down to what matters and what doesn’t. After A LOT of experience.

“I want to tell you about my couch. I love my couch. It’s first thing I ever dropped money on in my life. In your twenties, you just sort of get a couch… on the street. Like, it’s garbage. And then, you bring it home to your six roommates. And they’re like, “Nice!” And then, you reach an age… For me, I was… I was 25. I was living in Astoria, Queens, and I was just like, “I’m a goddamn man. I’m gonna buy a goddamn couch.”

And I went to a department store and I was like, “Wait. How much is it? A thousand dollars? Is there gonna be a sale? This is the sale?”

I thought about this a lot. I think the reason a couch is so expensive is that it’s a deceptively sophisticated piece of technology. It’s a… It’s a bed… that hugs you.”

-Mike Birbiglia, “The New One”

We all get to a point where we need to bit the bullet and, like Mike, buy a g-d couch. It’s an adulthood right of passage. And it’s not a cheap one. Here’s how to avoid buyer’s remorse when making that very adult, very expensive purchase.

Tip 1: Buy a sofa with a hardwood frame

Do you know that lots of furniture frames these days are made with MDF or even CARDBOARD frames (I’m looking at you Target!) Not only does real wood look and feel like nothing else, it is FAR more durable than these less expensive alternatives. So if you’d liked to be able to plop down on your couch after a long day — without worrying about it buckling underneath — ensure it’s frame is made of real hardwood.

Tip 2: It’s All About that Cushion

At Lark, we do not joke around with sofa seat cushions. We attend market in Highpoint, North Carolina every year and sit on everything in every one of our vendor’s showrooms. After all that sitting, we know what makes a good cushion. And here it is. The secret to a cushion that is soft, but firm enough that it won’t go flat over time: spring foam wrapped in down. That’s right. Do not, I repeat, do NOT get sucked into an all-down seat cushion (ahem, RH Cloud). It seems like a good idea at first. It might feel like a cloud in the showroom. But that thing is going to go flat as a pancake within a month and require constant fluffing to avoid looking like it just got dropped from a third story window. I repeat, spring foam wrapped in down. For back cushions we like either a blend down (with is a combination of man-made fibers and down) OR 90/10 (which is a combination of feathers and down).

Tip 3: Fabric, Fabric, Fabric!

The fabric you choose plays such an important role in the duration and durability of your couch.

If a realtor’s mantra is “location, location, location,” a designer’s is “fabric, fabric, fabric.” Seriously - fabric will make all the difference on a sofa. For your primary sofa — the one that you’ll spill popcorn and coffee on — we always recommend a performance fabric (for more on this, here’s our guide to performance fabrics.) And remember, “performance fabric” is a generic term. Some of these fabrics repel stains, some don’t. Some can be cleaned with bleach, some can’t. Some can practically survive a nuclear apocalypse (I’m looking at you, Inside-Out), and some won’t even hold up to your dog. (Again - go read our guide to performance fabrics linked above.

We also recommend checking the rub count (known as the Wyzenbeck scale) of a fabric. This is how many times the fabric can be rubbed before it tears. A good rub count for a high-use piece is 35k+. The higher the better! Lastly, check the content of the fabric. If you see the word “viscose” run like you’re running from the plague. Seriously - viscose is fabric manufacturer’s favorite and a consumer’s worst nightmare. It will pill the moment liquid hits it. No. Viscose. Ever.

So where do I buy this magical unicorn of a perfect sofa?

From a designer. I know. It sounds self-serving. But we truly do have the best resources. I often get asked for sources on social media. Every designer does. People think we are stingy because we don’t share them — but the real reason we don’t share them is they aren’t something the average person has access to buy. We work directly with upholstery companies to select everything from the shape of the sofas we buy, to the fabric, to the stitching on the seams, to the wood finish on the legs, to the fill of the seat cushions. We know our sofas. So if it’s an option for you, buy from a designer. I promise you won’t regret it.

However, if working with a designer isn’t an option for you, I recommend finding a local, boutique furniture store. Here in Dallas, I recommend Mecox Gardens or Mary Cates & Co.. In Ft Worth, I love Simple Things. The sales people in these stores are educated on the product and can help you find a sofa that meets all the requirements I’ve listed above.

If you’re buying online or from a big box store, be an educated consumer. Talk to a manager or someone who really understands the product they are selling. Don’t fall for silly “upgrades” (ahem, marketing nonsense) like “luxe” without truly knowing what that means. (Restoration Hardware, I’m looking at you. Making a sofa deeper doesn’t make it “luxe”. It’s just deeper.) Check fabric contents, ask about rub counts, and make the sales staff talk you through cushion construction. A sofa is a big purchase. Be your own advocate and make sure you’re spending those furniture dollars wisely. Because you don’t want to be making this face when your new sofa arrives:

Make sure you check out our top tips for buying a couch before you make your investment!

I hope you feel more empowered and equipped to go out there and get the perfect sofa for your family. If you feel like you’re ready to just have an expert take over- go ahead and fill out a contact form and we will be in touch!

What’s our very best design tip?

What’s the very best design tip of all? Hire an interior designer! Interior designers can save you money, time, and your sanity. Learn more from the blog post linked below.