My wife and I are looking at purchasing a sectional for the living room in our new house.

Here are a few things that we've discovered while researching or preparing for this purchase:

  1. Given the available space, we need the piece to be less than 110"x110."
  2. My wife's preference is fabric.
  3. Due to the nature of the room, we had to mount the TV above the fireplace, so I prefer a sectional that has a slightly higher back (similar to the Room & Board Orson model [we liked this couch, but didn't like the standard fabric options]) so that I can rest my head back when I lounge and watch TV.
  4. While shopping around we also found we really liked the Arhaus Remington Petite (the 40" depth version, not the 46" depth one). Unfortunately this is a bit beyond what I feel comfortable spending at this time. I would prefer to keep this purchase under $5,000. It seems like Lee Industries makes Arhaus furniture, so I wonder if there is a way to get this same model couch through another channel (not Arhaus) that has a smaller markup that would bring it within budget.
  5. We also like the clean lines of a track arm style (6" or 3" probably -- basically not really wide).
  6. Not a fan of skirts, we like the idea of legged versions so we can have our robot vacuum clean underneath it (we have a dog [who won't be on the couch] and world love to vacuum out the hair on a frequent basis without needing to move the couch).
  7. The Remington model had a 'spring supported down-blend" cushion that was quite comfortable - we'd like something that will hold it's shape over time and be comfortable to lay on. I'd say a solid medium to medium-firm density is what I'd prefer



I do have a few questions:
  1. Based on the descriptions above, are there any makes/models that might fit the bill? We have been to Basset Furniture (we like the idea of customizing the couch to our liking, but don't know about the quality of the furniture given the fact they're somewhat on the pricier side), Room & Board (we like the Orson and York (though this doesn't have the higher back) but we don't really like the feel of the fabric. I've also seen a lot of mention on here about Taylor King and Hancock and Moore. Unfortunately I haven't been able to sit on any and don't know the different models. I'm also not sure if it's possible to order the same Arhaus Remington couch directly from Lee Furniture (I've read they make Arhaus sofas) or another vendor (of course it'd be under a different model name and without any of the warranty's or anything like that). I've also come across other names like CoCoCo, and Swaim Furniture. Any other manufacturers that would be within budget that may meet most of the criteria we're looking for?
  2. What are the pros and cons of different fabric types? For instance, The R&B Orson couch came with a polypropylene fabric which was pretty scratchy when we sat on it. I'd prefer something that's soft. In addition, we liked the feel of a linen couch, but we're concerned that it might stretch over time and not be as "tight" on the seat or back cushions. Any fabric types that we should consider? We do like the idea of performance fabric because of the ease of cleaning. We don't have kids yet, but we do have family with young kids (1-3 years old) who come over and we do want to make sure we can clean any messes.
  3. We live in Atlanta, 4 hours away from FurnitureLand South and other very large furniture stores in North Carolina. How important would it be to make this drive and spend a weekend trying out a bunch and exposing myself to a lot of new manufacturers that I haven't found at any traditional bricks and mortar store in Atlanta?



Thanks for such a helpful forum