The mix of this nice weather and hosting Clara’s party outside have us on The Outdoor Update Train. Chugga chugga, infant. Only picture me wearing spit-up-stained overalls with a striped hat to color my mom-to-an-adorable-baby-who-wakes-up-all-night eyes. It is especially exciting since we worked for a few months last year to renovate the sunroom by simply ripping up the old carpet, eliminating the old broken doors, lofting the ceiling, obtaining some electric work done, installing a plank ceiling, hanging two lovers, and tiling the floor.
There’s currently a daybed out there (an indoor daybed from West Elm, that has no long-term company being outdoors) and an early Ikea coffee table. And just two of our dining room chairs have not made it back inside as the birthday celebration.
We stole those 2 seats, and four of their brethren in the dining room for additional party seating (they are outdoor chairs out of Target) — and viewing the space filled up with all that temporary/borrowed/mismatched furniture actually got us craving some more durable pieces out there. And thus the search for an outdoor couch began which is a lifestyle priority for households.
We figured that buying the biggest piece first might help us determine what other things we will have to fill out things. And since we have a dining table with an umbrella on the deck, we all thought a cushy lounge area at the color of the sunroom-turned-veranda was in order.
We knew we needed that woven wicker looks over something wooden or metal (we fell hard for the Arhaus furniture at the showhouse, but it was more than we wanted to invest ). We also desired Sunbrella fabric, which we hear is super long-lasting and durable, so here are a few of the things we checked out.
1. We enjoyed the appearance of this couch from Crate & Barrel, but we heard from a few friends with similar sofas that two-piece or three-piece bases can float apart, so we’d rather have a sofa that is all one piece. We did like that it arrived with Sunbrella fabric, and we loved that it had been available, though it was.
2. This Pottery Barn sofa looked amazing to us. So luxe and cushy. When we first saw it, it was selling for about $2,000 I believe — it was more to update into Sunbrella fabric — and it’s no longer available. Womp.
3. That is another Pottery Barn option that is still available, however, the $1,400 version (pictured above) is more of a loveseat. Our distance would require the larger alternative, but neither of these arrived together with Sunbrella fabric, which was an additional upcharge of $300+.
4.We watched this one on Amazon for $489 (so much cheaper than the others!) Using a really promising 4.5 star rating. I excitedly read about how much people loved it… but then I discovered the 1 star reviews from people who had theirs for over 1 season. Apparently, the wicker fell apart after one summer of usage for numerous people. Another womp.
5. We’ve seen this baby from Restoration Hardware from the showroom and it’s stunning! However, the simple fact that it is sold with no cushions (it is $1500 for the wicker part and an extra $555 for the Sunbrella cushions) was kind of a bummer.
While on our little couch hunt, we also checked places like Craigslist, Joss & Main, Overstock, Hayneedle, and Wayfair but didn’t see anything we liked just as much. We really appreciated being able to see as many of our options in person as we could — just to be sure they were comfy, not too low into the floor, and the cloth wasn’t scratchy.
In reality, when we stumbled upon a floor model of this Home Depot/Brown Jordan alternative (technically it was the seat from that place ) it pushed us over the border. It was comfortable and it looked great in person. Boom, this guy was on his way to our home.
Even though the price is nothing to sneeze at, we expect that it will be a wonderful long-lasting selection for us, that’s the goal with all the sunroom (there is no Stage 2 out there now ). Its arrival should function as a kick-start to some other upgrades that we’ve meaning to get moving back there.
Such as making a coffee table, installing some sconces for lighting/ambiance, including an outdoor-friendly table to complete another side of the room, and introducing some finishing touches (potted plants, side tables, etc).
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