Interested in purchasing a sectional

[onthebay]

I am new to the forum, but have been lurking for several weeks. It has been very informative.

We need some help with finding a sectional to meet our needs. We like more contemporary styles. We have young children (two in diapers). My husband does not want leather. He thinks it will be cold in the winter and that he will stick to it in the summer. We don't really have a budget yet. We are willing to pay for quality, but are not sure if that is appropriate for us yet. My boys are very destructive with everything. So, I'm not sure if we should buy something to last a few years or if we should buy higher quality pieces now.

We'd like a large, almost u-shaped, sectional for our family room. The left side could be a max length of 90 inches. Along the wall, we'd like something around 135 to 140 inches. On the right side, we'd like for it to be from 100 to 110 inches. We want L shaped corners.

After reading the forum, I looked at the Taylor King Cozy Creations Design Your Own pieces. To get dimensions that are similar to those described above, I think we would need 1 LAF loveseat, 1 armless loveseat, and a corner seat (for the long part of the couch); 1 armless loveseat (for the left side); and 1 RAF loveseat (for the right side). I know pricing would depend on the fabric and other options chosen and that Taylor King has many fabrics. But, what would the price range be for this arrangement?

Also, is there anything else that you might suggest as an alternative?

Thank you!

[onthebay]

After posting my original message, I saw a post that said that Duane would not give quotes in the public forum. I apologize if I made a mistake in my posting. However, I'm not actually looking for an exact quote yet.

We really are trying to decide if we should get something of medium quality (if there is such a thing) or if we should buy something that is high quality. Obviously, one of the factors is going to be the price difference. So, I'm just trying to find out what the price range is for a large, high quality, fabric sectional.

Also, I think the sectional we want is fairly large. I haven't seen anything as big as we would like it to be. Are we going to have to do a design your own to get the size we want or is there a brand that makes a large sectional?

Again, I apologize if I have broken any forum rules.

[drcollie]

Your husband is thinking about cheap Costco-like leathers that have so much artificial top coating on them that they feel like plastic. Better leathers really don't exhibit those Summer/Sticking Winter/Cold characteristics and the bonus is the leather will outlast fabric by a ratio of 4 to 1. For busy boys, its the best cover possible because they really can't damage the cover unless they are poking at it with very sharp objects. Leather is wipe n'' go, and easy for Moms to clean.

Most sectionals can easily be built up to just about any size, especially from the better makers. For a Large, U-Shaped Sectional I'd be shopping Taylor King myself. Top quality, and they make a lot of styles in that configuration. Price is so hard to determine though because cover influences it greatly. As a general guide, in a high end sectional (premium quality) figure $ 7K to $ 10K. Mid grade $ 5K to $ 7K. And I'd not even bother in a lower end maker, it will never fit or look right in that size in a lower grade.

The main difference between a high end sectional and mid grade is going to be the frame construction and springs/spring bases. You're going to get a solid hardwood frame in a high end sectional with 8-way hand-tied springs and a taut spring base. In the mid-grade, the frame is going to be engineered hardwood laminate (a form of plywood) and the spring deck will be softer or use webbing, and the 8-ways will be looped, not hand-tied. As a practical matter, the hardwood frames and proper spring base are much stiffer...and that manifests itself as less flex and more support when you sit on it. As the piece ages, the high quality unit will perform MUCH better at say the 6 or 7 year mark than the other...and keep the performance even when its 20 years old.

Everything looks good when its new. Its how it looks and feels when its been used for ten years that shows the difference in quality. Granted, fabric covers will need to be replaced by then, but the leather will still be going strong.

Here's an example of the configuration you are looking for. Most all sectionals from the better makers can be built up like this - its like Lego Blocks - just keep adding pieces until you get what you want!

http://www.taylorking.com/details.ph...ype=SECTIONALS

[onthebay]

Thank you for your help. I have a few more questions.

When you mention mid-grade above, which makers would you consider to be mid-grade?

Also, would it be possible to go from a fabric cover in a high quality sectional to a leather cover years later or would that be too cost prohibitive? I think I have seen other posts where you have mentioned that reupholstering a sectional is costly.

Thank you!

[drcollie]

Its difficult to say by maker, because its all about construction. Basically you need to step through each maker's details on how they build it to determine where they would be. There are hundreds of makers, maybe thousands. I don't have a list...sorry.

It would be quite costly to recover a sectional in leather. Pretty much you would be able to buy a new one for the reupholstery cost.