Well here we are in week whatever number. My last posts have been about the cleanliness of the bathroom for washing hands and the bed being a place to relax and now we have the haven of a comfy couch. It is the focal point for coffee, catching up with what other craziness is happening and for propping up phones and laptops to talk to friends and family. I have written about choosing a sofa and the key tip is – sit on it!
Sofas On a Budget
Don’t discount IKEA. We had to buy sofas quickly when we lived in Penang and IKEA was the only option. We bought the highest quality we could and had to choose between a dull blue or white. We chose white and had them re-covered and they were really comfortable. 15 years later, we needed to buy a sofa for our French apartment for the future and we bought the same sofa. We currently have an expensive one from Bo Concept which we love, but that wasn’t in our budget. We tried other sofa stores and finally went back to IKEA. You can dress the sofa up with inexpensive cushions and throws from Zara Home or Maison du Monde.
The Ideal Sofa
Go and try it out. When we moved in to our first home, we bought two lovely sofas having only tentatively sat on them in the store. After six months, we sold them. My husband likes a good back support without an angle. I like to be able to put my feet up and stretch out and these couches didn’t meet our needs. We haven’t made that mistake again. Our current Bo Concept 3-seater has been wonderful. Another tip is to  measure your space where it is going including how you are getting the sofa in to the house or room. We once made a big mistake when we didn’t consider getting it up a staircase and had to place it in a basement room.
Where Should We Sit?
If you have read my other posts, you know I am a Feng Shui practitioner. Place the sofa in a position with a wall behind as this is seen as supporting your back. If you can’t do that, place a screen behind or a piece of furniture such as a sideboard, this gives a feeling of your back being protected. It doesn’t have to be directly behind. Also, make sure you can see the main entrance of the room. When you consider this, it is common sense. Most of us wouldn’t feel comfortable with our back to the door or a main window. Move it around until you feel comfortable and then sit back and relax.
