How to choose upholstered furniture?

After the repair, the next step is the selection of comfortable and high-quality furniture. It would seem that could be easier? He came, saw, won, that is, acquired. But in practice, everything is much more complicated. From the assortment of upholstered furniture in the store, my head is spinning. If earlier there was a standard choice - a sofa and two armchairs, now the concept of upholstered furniture can include a variety of ottomans, transforming armchairs, soft chairs, built-in shelves and tables and other elements. How to choose upholstered furniture so that it is of high quality, functional, stylish and does not completely empty the family budget for several years in advance? With our helpful tips from this article, you can easily get the job done.

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Useful Tips

How to choose upholstered furniture, what you need to pay attention to first of all? Here, tips from professionals in this matter will help you:

• First of all, choosing, it is advisable to give preference to shops and specialized shopping centers that are well-established.
• You must also keep in mind the following fact: the better the product, the more expensive it costs. Behind a low price, poorly selected materials are usually hidden. Do not hope that such furniture will last you a long period.
• Correlate your choice with the size of the room for which you select furniture. After all, what looks good in the storeroom or salon may look different in your room.

The main criteria by which upholstered furniture should be selected are the materials from which the frame is made, the upholstery material, as well as the type of filler.

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Choose furniture upholstery

Let's look at the upholstery of furniture.

Leather

Genuine leather is an excellent choice for those who want to purchase high-quality and beautiful furniture. Leather products can serve you faithfully for many years with proper care and the right choice of quality of the upholstery itself.

Important! Often, customers refuse the model they like because of the presence of spots or scars on the upholstery. But it turns out that these traces only prove the naturalness of the material.

Typically, goat, pig or horse skin is used for upholstery. All kinds of decorative folds are created for a reason. Their goal is to hide seams and various small flaws.

If the upholstery is sewn from different pieces, it is better to refuse such a product. Over time, it simply sprawls at the seams. If you buy such furniture, then you must ensure proper care.

Important! Do not buy furniture with leather upholstery, if the house has animals.

Leatherette

A cheaper option is leatherette upholstery. In its production, a special material is used - polyvinyl chloride, which is applied to the fabric base. The base itself may be natural or artificial.

Important! Nowadays, leather substitutes are very difficult to distinguish from their leather “counterparts”. Such products have a pleasant appearance and do not require such thorough care as real skin.

Upholstery

The most common type of upholstery is fabric. Advantages of such upholstery:

• environmental friendliness;
• simplicity in leaving;
• density and abrasion resistance, as well as resistance to spooling;
• resistance to sunshine.

Upholstery fabrics, contrary to popular belief, there are not so many. Consider the most popular:

• Would you like upholstery, which will be easy and troublesome to clean from dust and dirt? Then the flock is the best option for you. This fabric withstands cleaning procedures and retains its original appearance for a long time.
• Another classic fleecy upholstery fabric is chenille. It has been used in furniture manufacturing for over 200 years. It is a dense and durable fabric that is half cotton. So in terms of environmental friendliness among the upholstery materials, it can claim one of the first places.

Important! Teflon impregnation is desirable for any of the fabrics. Such impregnation will protect your furniture from moisture.

• If you like smooth upholstery, then you should opt for a tapestry. This natural cotton material features a woven pattern.

Important! Check with the consultant when buying that it is cotton that predominates in the material, and not cheaper synthetic fibers. Such material will serve you for many years, in addition, it is very pleasant to the touch.

• The maximum care in handling requires furniture upholstered in jacquard. Such furniture does not like frequent cleanings.

Important! Remember that another indicator of the quality of the furniture is its upholstery on the back. The back wall must be neatly covered with the same material as the front.

Materials for the frame

It is the frame that takes on all the loads, so it is important that it is durable:

• Frames made of chipboard or fiberboard are the most affordable, but quality will not surprise you. Their durability leaves much to be desired. In addition, these materials may contain toxic substances that could be harmful to your health. Since such a material itself is not able to ensure the strength of the structure, the main details of the frame are still made of strong wood.
• Products with a wooden frame will cost an order of magnitude more expensive. But it will serve you much longer. The price may vary depending on the different species of wood that were used for the frame. Timber for the frame must be dry and well processed.

Important! If the manufacturer is confident in their quality, then some structural elements will be left open so that the buyer can verify the quality of the product.

• The most practical is a metal frame. It is reliable, practical, durable and relatively inexpensive.
• You can also find combined options - metal structures in combination with chipboard elements.

Furniture Fillers

The main thing here is that the material is resilient, that is, it can quickly recover after deformation, but at the same time it must also be soft. It is also important that it is hypoallergenic and environmentally friendly.

Unfortunately, it is not always possible to check the quality of the filler. Although some manufacturers provide this opportunity by inserting a zipper into the upholstery. What are the filler options, and how to choose, based on this, high-quality furniture?

• The simplest and cheapest option is multi-layer foam. In another way it is called polyurethane foam. But it does not inspire with its characteristics, it refers to low-quality materials. The quality of this material largely depends on the density - the higher it is, the higher the quality indicators, respectively.
• The most reliable option is filled springs. When choosing furniture with such a frame, make sure that there are no creaks or other suspicious sounds.
• Latex filler is very popular and in demand. It serves for a long time, does not cause allergic reactions and is characterized by reliability and durability.
• Such a filler as polystyrene balls is suitable only for certain types of products, for example, poufs. It does not differ either in long service life, or in any special quality indicators.

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Design and color of furniture

What color and design you need to choose furniture is entirely your task.They say that the taste and color of a friend is not. We can give only a few useful tips to help you make the right choice:

• Choose a color in such a way that it fits into the design of the room and does not seem alien to its background. Do not buy too flashy colors.
• The size of the furniture also matters. Of course, I really want to buy a huge, stylish and comfortable sofa. But it is hardly suitable for a small room, and - on the contrary, in a huge room a small, albeit a cozy sofa will look lonely.
• If rounded shapes prevail in your living room, then furniture with the same shape will fit perfectly into your interior.

Important! If you doubt your abilities, you can always invite a designer or take advantage of advice from the seller of the store.

• An angular sofa will be an excellent solution in both a large and a small room. It can be supplemented with a suitable chair, and if there is enough free space, then even two.
• If you buy a sofa based on sleeping places, then pay attention to the folding mechanism. Structural elements must be made of quality materials.
• Recently gaining transformer kits. This is a kind of soft designer, consisting of independent elements from which you yourself can assemble sofas, chairs of the sizes you need.

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Stock footage

There is nothing excessive for a person who has firmly set a goal for himself. Therefore, it is very easy to even choose upholstered furniture for the home, provided that you will clearly understand what exactly you need. Good luck