Ready to Step Up! H+M sofa Tuft or not?

[Superking]

So grateful to find this forum and becoming educated on quality furniture.

We are in the early stages of searching for a Hancock and Moore sofa. Yesterday we were able to see 3 models in a store and appreciate the build quality and attention to detail. Now we are in the process of narrowing down and would appreciate any advice.

Here are basics:

The sofa would be for a room that is about 13x13 feet in size with high ceiling. This is most used room with TV, fireplace etc.

I am 6'6" and go 290 and wife is 5'6". We have one daughter age 11. No pets.

Budget in the 5-8 k range.

While neither of us have back issues, we generally prefer firmer back support when sitting. Tufted back chairs and sofas almost always feel better to us when sitting.

The style we are looking for is more traditional, but really liked the Sundance sofa styling.

Any advice on tufted vs. attached back? Deciding on this feature may be our first category in decision making. Thanks in advance.

[Danw99]

I have two H&M sofas, one is fabric and 'regular' style with removable cushions, Evening model:




And a leather tufted sofa, Chesterfield model:



Note these are not my colors. Both are very comfortable but for day to day sitting and watching TV, etc... we use the Evening sofa. It is more cushy and better to sink in to a little and get comfortable. Also at 290 pounds, another probable benefit for you with the traditional cushions is you will be able to rotate them and replace the cores as they wear out over the years.

[Kyracer57]

Here's some that sort of meet the "traditional yet stylish" preference.
http://hancockandmoore.com/Products/...as/Carmen-Sofa
http://hancockandmoore.com/Products/...as/Copley-Sofa
http://hancockandmoore.com/Products/...ofas/Rita-Sofa
http://hancockandmoore.com/Products/...Southport-Sofa
http://hancockandmoore.com/New-Produ...n-Quilted-Sofa

Good Hunting!

[drcollie]

In a 13' x 13' size room, you want to keep the sofa towards the smaller size, and avoid the ones where overall depth is deep. HOWEVER, at your height you are probably not going to be real comfortable one the smaller/ mid size units to the question becomes which way to you want to bias the decision? Lean towards one that fits the scale of the room, or one that fits you even if it pushed the room dimensions a bit out of proportion?

You should not have to spend $ 5k to $ 8k on an H&M sofa. Shop around a bit!

Cushions on leather sofas are not rotatable. They are made for one position and have an air vent on the bottom of each one (seats and backs). However cushion cores are guaranteed with free replacement to the original owner for as long as you own the sofa.

That Chesterfield is VERY small. Too small. The Evening is pretty 'cushy', If you like a tight back / tufted let me suggest these:

http://www.hancockandmoore.com/Produ...th-Tapered-Leg

http://www.hancockandmoore.com/New-P...so-Tufted-Sofa

http://www.hancockandmoore.com/New-P...2753/Rita-Sofa

[wisejd]

Superking, We spent over a year, learning about and then selecting our H&M Sofa. Little did we know what we didn't know as we began our search. This Furniture Forum provided for us the best education in furniture selecting and buying that we could have ever hoped for. As we began our search we never even knew that a sofa could be as interestingly styled as the Sundance, (#4716) but that is what we ultimately selected. Our prior choices certainly were more traditional ...but the Sundance was truly exciting. Our most used room (with a TV and Fire Place) was about 14' X 17 1/2', with the Sundance placed on the opposite wall from the TV (approx. 13' was a perfect viewing distance). We have since downsized homes while we still had the strength to give away half our furniture and unload an attic full of our parents and middle-aged children's possessions. Our current home has a living room that is about 14' X 18' but now the Sundance is across from the TV about 17' away (may need to move up from our 46" TV). I guess the point of all this is that the Sundance proved to be an excellent style and comfort selection. I think your room may be just large enough to support it (the Sundance). H&M offers so many gorgeous styles that I don't know that you can go wrong. My second favorite style which I never did get to see in person was the Rugby Club but it was a tad wider and about 20 - 25% more costly than the Sundance at the time. Best of luck with your selection process!

[MJZ01]

We have a tufted Chancellor sofa and everyone that sits in it loves it. It is not being used every night, so I can not offer input relative to one that is used daily.

[Superking]

The process of buying can take a person on a journey, we are finding out. I do appreciate the replies and advice. Thank you to all!

The room is actually larger than 13x13 than I originally posted. The living room is part of a great room shared with the kitchen/dining area it is more like 17x17. But the area for furniture, allowing for entry and walkway is more like 13x13. Size wise, I think we will be fine. Our current sofa with rolled arms is 38"D x 90"L and love seat is 38"D x 69"L.

The Sundance 4716 measures Width 84", Depth 49.5"

It is easy to distort in scope furniture in a show room versus one's living room. The depth of the Sundance is about 12" deeper than our current sofa. That is significant.

What I realize about the Sundance is the deep seating and sitting height on it was comfortable to my long legs. The attached back cushions compress for larger and taller people, allowing for even more depth. The cushion didn't compress as much for the wife. This 'feature' allows for the sofa to accommodate different sized people in a way. Where as the firm backed sofas are not as forgiving. So now we are reconsidering the whole firmer/tuft option completely.

I know the seats cushions that you sit on can be ordered in greater firmness. Could the back cushions be ordered and made with increased firmness as well?

[Kevin]

I agree with WISEJD, I also found choosing the “right” furniture became a journey.

When I decided to move up to H&M, I had a living room full of cheaply made, over-stuffed leather furniture popular in the early to mid-2000s. At first, I gravitated toward boxy sofas and chairs with very little exposed wood. After about a year of looking, I began to appreciate how H&M successfully married leather with exposed wood in many of their pieces of furniture.

Another year later, I began appreciating the curves and lines of several chairs. I ended up purchasing a pair of Neko chairs and a pair of Vestige chairs.

Choosing the “right” sofa took even longer. I asked Duane for advice several times about his thoughts on several of my sofa choices that I thought would match my chairs, he kindly pointed out several reasons why I would not be happy with my choices. Finally, I showed one of the pictures Duane posted after he visited High Point in the Spring 2015 to my wife. We both immediately fell in love with the Chantal sofa and I asked Duane on his thoughts about the Chantal sofa and if he could provide some suggestions on finish and leathers.

We have had the Chantal sofa for about 6 months and this weekend as I performed the semi-annual leather maintenance routine, my wife and I repeatedly said that we are so glad we took our time selecting our chairs and sofa and that we upgraded to the Quintessence leather.

One unforeseen benefit of a long furniture selection journey is the additional time spent choosing the right sofa also allows you to slowly set aside extra money and add it to a “furniture” fund. I found the extra funds came in handy when I decided to upgrade to a higher grade of leather and a premium finish.

[drcollie]

Superking: The Sundance is a very deep (50") sofa that is designed to float in the room and is all about the back appearance. If you push it up against a wall, two things happen.... 1) you are paying for the primary feature that you cannot see. All that back tufting is why its 50" deep, its not for the comfort. 2) the sofa has a gentle curve on the back, and looks a bit odd pushed up against a wall. So it depends on how you are going to position that piece. There are better choices - equally as comfortable - for a wall placement sofa. Keep in mind as well that a Sundance needs a 35" width door opening to get into a room.

Seat cores are 18oz standard and one step up in firmness is 21 oz, and no charge for that, you just have to ask for it. Backs are fiber fill, so if you want more there you simply ask for extra full cushions and again -- no charge for that.

[wisejd]

Counter-Point: The Sundance actually does not look "a bit odd" when placed against a wall. I am certain that many styles and designs look a bit odd to some observers ...but not to all observers. The curve of the Sundance offers a distinctive design 'even' when placed against a wall. Duane, You may place your Porsche on a circular platform or on a rectangular platform and I will bet good money it will never look "a bit odd". Hey, I'm just saying...