bernhardt...need to get something else it seems

[wendy oh]

hi--I didn't do enough homework apparently before I bought a new sofa and matching chair recently. I just did the comfort test in person, been keeping my eye out for a couple years for some comfortable furniture...have some pain and sensitivity issues. I have just been checking out stuff in my vicinity that I can sit on in person, a couch needs to be as comfy as a bed for me so can watch movies Anyway I bought a bernhardt, it looked super smart and modern and was low to ground which is good for me (short) and has sleek lines and felt the best of all the ones I have plopped down in I thought. It has a mix of down and foam. I had realized there is some really harsh cheap foam out there when I bought a loveseat from Pier One last year, it feels ok at first sit but after half an hour its terrible.....well I am starting to wonder if they used the same cheap foam in the bernhardt and it doesn't seem like there is much down in there. Fortunately I should be able to return it per store policy timewise.
I tried to post a photo but it didnt seem to upload, does having a mac matter? I could post a link to it at a store, its made out of material looks sort of tweedish gray with two large seat and back cushions.

I need to get a couch though.....I understand about quality being important especially w/sensitivity spine issues etc....I didnt realize there is so much american good furniture around until discovered this site. at a local store a lady was showing me Hickory something line the Bentley collection and said they are good......I may need to go with leather though I think to get the comfort i want. What I basically would like is something like a pillowtop bed comfortwise, i love the sleek look of say scandanavian furniture but for lying down watching a movie I think I need good foundation but then with very soft on top where you can sink in, and I am a small female so it needs to be soft to sink in. Bizarrely the most comfortable seeming couches when I looked around town again today are these ones by HTL from China that have the poofy loose leather pillowtop, i think fashionwise they are not so great looking but comfortwise it felt great. Are there any american made (less chemicals too?) quality couches like that in moderate price range? I think a little memory type foam in the topping would feel great too. The saleslady said HTL even tho made in China and using the box style seating technique, hold up alright because they make them to withstand being shipped from China.

I have an old Natuzzi loveseat leather that was from Italy when they still were that i got about 12 years ago, it has held up but honestly a regular leather couch that doesnt have super soft top just doesnt feel comfy enough for me. I am more interested how it feels lying down than sitting up (for sitting, say with a laptop, I will go to a chair). When I am home relaxing with netflix usually on the couch. Bottom line is comfort no. 1 and looks no. 2---both are bonus, and I am willing to pay a bit more if need be to try to get the right one.

Interestingly yesterday I went to the other store in town that sells same Bernhardt to ask some questions and look around and there was a really nice Rowe there called Cindy collection I think, cost more than the Bern, it also had down, and I opened the cushions both up on both the Bernhardt and the Rowe and I would swear they were made in same factory, seemed to have identical process of inner foam with a little down inside a plastic case----I really wonder if there is some big factory in china that stamps out these couches and puts dif names on them. Scary state of materialism these days...I don't think the average person that goes to the mid range furn store realizes this. And the sales people do not seem knowledgeable about the art of furniture at all at these places. They used to be but seem to have retired. I am no Martha Stewart but I need a fabulously comfortable couch.

Any thoughts appreciated! thanks.

[wendy oh]

Furniture is fascinating...learning a lot about it lately!

So I found out my Bernhardt is type made in US, its the good higher end from the Carolinas, so my instincts were good, but unfortunately there is just not quite enough down or right sort of foam in there to make it comfortable for me for long periods. I give the place credit they give you 2 weeks to return refund, not a bad deal. I wasn't going to trade it because I dont like most of their other stuff even tho huge midrange store.....but I went one more time and the one couch that I thought might be comfy and looked nice turned out to be their only Robin Bruce part of Rowe, they are just trying the line out but have a few Rowes. It is also made in US and I took apart cushions on both Bernhardt and Rowe and this time i gota knowledgeable sales guy who told me what to look for,that there were layers of foam inside the Robin Bruce that were probably nicer quality for what I want for comfort. I felt that I sink down into this couch better than the Bernhardt, it has more cushiony feel to it, thicker cushions. I might go for it, feel better about buying within country than getting an HTL leather couch from China. The sales guy says most customers never think or ask about the things I was looking into. He also said Rowe's higher end stuff like Robin Bruce and Clayton Marcus they dont usually sell--he says that is more of east coast taste. I am in midwest. I have felt that people's taste here runs traditional and more on boring side even though I grew up here.

So perhaps I am too verbose but if anyone hung with this and has any feedback on Rowe or Robin Bruce or thoughts on what brand or sort of couch could provide quality with cushiony sink in feel to seat cushions....would love to hear it, but I will probably decide pretty soon whether to trade or just return and keep searching.

[drcollie]

Most the time sitting comfort is not do to the cushion foam or internals, its the underlying suspension. If the suspension is sub-par, then the best cushion on the planet won't make it sit well. Next time you go to the store remove the cushions on brands you are comparing and sit on the deck. Avoid ones that sink. Once you find a sofa with a good suspension the cushions are easy. Good luck.

[wendy oh]

hey thanks drcollie....good to know! I went back to the store and tried that out and could tell difference in higher end Rowes and the stores really cheap bad brand couches.

Do you know anything about the Cindy Line of Robin Bruce a division of Rowe? http://st.houzz.com/simgs/8b012b670f...onal-sofas.jpg
As far as I can tell the suspension ok. Maybe I need to go to Ethan Allen or Century House with the expensive Danish furniture to compare. We don't have other high end in our area that I can think of.

Tonight the sales guy was trying to tell me that in the nicer Rowes and Broyhills etc that having springs in the cushions is better than not for feeling comfortable and holding up over time. Do you agree that springs in seat cushions is agood thing? That one Cindy Couch I like I don' t think has springs but it had several dif types of foam in the cushion as well as a little down. I could see where a lot of down and if its not put in there the right way could flatten over time, but do you think a little down can be a positive thing for comfort?