New Member (Thank You for Site!)Question - Sofa!

Hi, I live in Southern Maryland, not to be confused with Baltimore or Northern Maryland. I live in St. Mary's County, and we are starving for good quality furniture stores in our area. Consequently, I have to either venture over Wilson Bridge to Virginia or go to Northern Maryland for mid to higher end quality case goods or upholstery. I have been known to travel to High Point, NC or Hickory in order to see,touch and feel furniture. I have done quite well in the past with purchasing furniture down there, but now the shipping prices are starting to rise. Purchasing furniture is a frightening experience now with so many stores going under. I went to Gallaghans in Fredericksburg, VA about three weeks ago. The salesperson was nice, but the store looked like it was in complete disaray. I mentioned that to the salesperson, and she advised me that they were restructuring the store. Of course, now I see a TV ad this week mentioning that they are going out of business! I am in the market for a contemporary/transitional sofa. Thank goodness I didn't see anything at Gallaghan's. I have seen a sofa that I like from Ethan Allan. It is not 8 hand way tied, but it sits good. I looked up Ethan Allan in Consumer Affairs and have seen quite a few complaints about their workmanship and not making good on repairs. I am afraid they may go under next, and would hate to purchase something from them and have all sorts of problems. Wesley Hall has what appears to be the identical sofa, but I can't find a store so I can actually sit on the sofa. It is important to me that a sofa is constructed well and is also comfortable to sit on. I am confused as to what is better - a two cushioned sofa or three cushioned sofa. Are sinuous springs a good substitute for a great 8 hand way tied sofa? By the way, I found out about this site because of "That Home Site" forum. While I was not a member, I often read many of the posts since 2000. So there must be something about this site that made me want to become a member! Thanks!

Welcome! I moved your post to UPHOLSTERY since it contains questions specific to sofa construction.

Yes, Gallahan's is going under, and you happen to pass right by my store on the way to them! :D

I don't think you'll have to worry about Ethan Allen going under, but they are largely resting on the reputation they built many decades ago and are not known for building high-quality pieces these days. That doesn't mean they make poor furniture, but they don't build 'em like they did in the 60's.

Two cushion vs three cushion is really a matter of aesthetics. Some designs look better in one form or another, and its mainly a design factor for a given frame.

As to springs, there is definitely a difference. Eight-Way Hand-tied is the gold standard and also the most expensive when done in the old-school manor of individual springs set into the web, then hand-tied and knotted as each loop. They provide better and firmer deck support, allow far less side-to-side roll, and give the frame designer the option to use stiffe springs near the armrests to keep folks from falling 'in the crack'.

There are sinuous springs that are almost always pre-made as 'drop-in' units and while they can be both good and bad in comfort and performance, they are quite a bit less expensive to product then an 8-way hand-tied setup.

Thank you for your prompt response. I will definitely have to stop by your store the next time I am in the Fredericksburg area. Question - Do you sell transitional/contemporary sofas and if so, in fabric not just leather? Getting back to Ethan Allan - How do you know really how a sofa is constructed internally? I know you have been asked this question before. Some manufacturers are starting to be rather secretive about this information and usually I am more informed that the sales people. How do you feel about the durability of a velvet fabric? Should that be a blend as well?

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Originally Posted by Securegal

Thank you for your prompt response. I will definitely have to stop by your store the next time I am in the Fredericksburg area. Question - Do you sell transitional/contemporary sofas and if so, in fabric not just leather? Getting back to Ethan Allan - How do you know really how a sofa is constructed internally? I know you have been asked this question before. Some manufacturers are starting to be rather secretive about this information and usually I am more informed that the sales people. How do you feel about the durability of a velvet fabric? Should that be a blend as well?

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I'm actually near historic Mt. Vernon, south of Alexandria, but please stop in!

I don't floor transitional/contemporary pieces as my store is geared towards Period and Traditional pieces, but I do have access to those styles from many suppliers.

You've asked the million dollar question, and the answer short of going to the factory to see how its made, or sawing it in two is....you don't!

Your best bet is to look at the master dealer catalog. Most will have a cutaway drawing inside of it (you'd be surprised how many salespeople don't even bother to look). If you can't get access to that, or if they don't have the drawing, then you'll just have to use your best judgment on what you can see. I'll preface this with my subjective opinion that anything coming out of China is not particularly well-made. If you see a "Made in China" label on it and are seeking high quality, stop and go elsewhere.

Read my BASICS post in this forum if you haven't already. That will give you a primer on construction. Also note that when you sit upon a good sofa you should not 'sink' in. Sofas should be supportive and comfortable. On a sofa that is properly sprung as you sit near the arms and where the seat cushions come together or meet the edge, you should not have a tendency to 'fall in' to the cracks.

At the end of the day there are two constants at work:

1) What are you getting relative to price paid? We'd not expect a $ 1,000 sofa to perform like a $ 3,000 one. The key is to get value for your dollar spent. What you want to avoid is paying $ 3,000 for a sofa that is only worth $ 1,000.

2) Everything looks great when new. Even the COSTCO sofas look nice right out of the box. The larger issue is how will they look and perform in five years? Many pieces can break down quickly with use. Proper construction and quality components equal longevity.

It's probably a bit late to add this comment to the forum but I wanted upholstered furniture purchasers to be aware of a product produced overseas called a drop-in 8 way hand-tied coil system. Basically this consists of self-supporting coils that are quickly tied together by unskilled labor in a random pattern that does not help the coils support each other. It is much faster and much less expensive to produce than a legitimate 8 way hand-tied system; however because the coils are actually tied together, some dealers feel justified in merchandising it as an 8 way hand-tied system. The bogus coil is most often found in sofas in the $1000 - $1500 price range. It is very difficult to tell whether a particular sofa has the real or fake coil without removing the dust cover. If you see loose or saggging twine, you've probably got the bogus coil. The best way for most people to tell the difference is by the comfort of the seat. Genuine 8 way hand tied coils have a flexible, comfortable seating that is unmatched by other support systems. Incidentally, it will not help to ask the salesperson. Unless that salesperson is the owner or buyer for the store, they are probably unaware of whether their products contain the genuine or imitation coil.