Need help!!

[beachbabs]

Hi Duane -

I'm new to this site and am so glad I found it. I recently checked out H & M in a local store - they had nothing to sit on, just big rings of leather samples. I asked about seat firmness and they said they could look it up in the catalog. So I felt on my own.

We already have a H & M chair and ottoman and if my husband had taken care of it, it would look a lot better than it does. But it's still very comfortable. I want to purchase a H & M sofa and loveseat - the foam cushions in my present no-name pieces sink to the floor. I want protected leather, but noticed that you discouraged someone from picking "Document" in another post. Are there any Class II Protected leathers that you recommend? If not, any other ideas?

Also, is a certain cusion firmness standard, or can you get a little firmer? If so, extra cost? I don't want to feel I'm sitting on a marshmallow. I'm also looking at models with a decent seat height, and have looked at (pictures of) Harbeson, Charter, City, and Campaign. Besides the class of leather, I assume the cost also depends on how much yardage it takes. Pros or cons with any of these models?

Lastly, but I'm sure not for the last time, can the pieces be made without the nail heads? Or is there an extra cost?

Thanks for any advice you can give, and I'm glad you enjoyed your vacation.

[drcollie]

HA! I wonder why so-called 'dealers' even bother with a line of they don't floor some pieces and give you an off-the-cuff remark to 'look it up in the catalog'. They sure are not interested in earning your business. I also wonder why H&M lets them continue as a dealership with no product on display.

You know, its not the cushions causing you problems on the no-name set if you sink to the floor - its the suspension system. its costly to make a good suspension system, and that's where manufacturers take shortcuts, as even really poor suspension builds will be good for a little while.

Don't get hung up on 'protected' leather. I dislike that term more and more as the years go by because it makes folks think its 'armored', when in fact its not. 'Protected' leather simply means top coated with a chemical coating such as paint - nothing more. All painted and corrected and finished leathers are 'protected'. Finer leathers don't have sprayed on topcoats, but the industry is risk-adverse to customers freaking out if they get a small stain on the leather (98% of the time they disappear in less than a week) and so they call those 'unprotected'. In truth, you are denying yourself the better leathers - because if you are into the 'art' of leather furniture you will always be buying leathers that are not spray top-coated.

GR 2 leathers I would buy? Kipling, Atticus, Ryan, Yardley. If I had to have a top-coated leather then Aspen gets the nod in GR2.

H&M uses a 16 oz core as standard. You can ask for a 21 oz extra firm core as a no cost option, and use it in the seat only or both seat and back. A number of customers do. You can also go to a 28 oz core but I don't recommend it.

You can ask for nail delete on any piece - no charge to do so.

Only comment on those sofas you are looking at is to mind the size - some are larger than others.

[beachbabs]

Thanks for your advice. Turns out what they showed me wasn't the catalog - it was something that had the description of the 4-Ss (softness, surface grain, special effects, and serviceability). Right after that was a good description of each leather. Of course I only got to peek at that. Is this something a mere moral like me is allowed to see? So it looks like I shouldn't be too hung up on "protected" over "unprotected." We get a lot of company so I wanted to keep the furniture looking great forever. Now to get the UV film put up on the south-facing wall of windows. Thanks again.