IKEA sofas anyone?

[USAmma]

Anyone bought one? Are you happy with it?

We are doing major decluttering, and I'm about to trade my dad for our three-piece sofa set (*very* nice, bought pre- kids) for a simple IKEA sofa or something similar. These current sofas are just too big and too much for our needs, awkward to arrange, and require constant cleaning. We have allergies and I'm sure they are big dust-catchers. As we have already removed the carpet, curtains, and encased our bedding in allergy-proof covers, we needs something allergy-friendly as a replacement sofa.

I was thinking this one would suit our needs. I thought I can encase the cushions with vinyl and then put the covers on. I am just worried that this sofa- for this low price-- may get wobbly or the cushions may flatten before their time. I would love to know if anyone has bought this from IKEA or if you have bought other sofas there.

[muttcutter]

We have lots of furniture from Ikea. Most of our house is furnished by them . We have the Ektorp sofa with removable covers and LOVE it! I wash the covers in cold water and hang them dry. We have 2 or 3 sets for each sofa. Ikeas quality is good...not great..but for the $ you can't beat it .

[bobica]

ooh, i like it! we have our ikea sofa since 1999. it's held up beautifully and is very comfy. our ikea chair hasn't held up as well & feels a little saggy so it may be a piece by piece basis.

to complete our living room Ikea triecta, we have the poang chair in fabric. also as old. also held up beautifully. overall, we've been very happy with the quality from them

[kdmama33]

The sofa in our playroom is one that I purchased from Ikea in 1998. It's been through 2 moves (1 international move, even) and 3 kids. It is still in excellent condition. Every time someone new comes over and sits on it, they want to take it home with them because it is so, so comfy. It still has a lot of spring and the cushions are still relatively full. It's been a great piece of furniture for us.

[USAmma]

Thanks so much for the input! About 75% of our furniture is from IKEA. We have just never purchased anything with cushions.

[traceface]

I have to say, it depends on the piece. Go to Ikea and wobble it with your hands and really see if it's sturdy. We have a kitchen table we love from there, but have bought & returned dressers that we put together and realized that they were just not sturdy.

it's great to declutter but having dinky/wobbly furniture takes away from the satisfaction! So plan a trip to Ikea and really test all the sofas you like. (go with a couple adults so you can concentrate on deciding on the best one without your kids scrambling around and distracting you!)

[lisalulu]

We had an IKEA sofa for a long time and the only complaint I have is the fabric. We got one with kind of a twill-ish fabric that could be machine washed and we got it in black. So when we washed it, it faded really bad. More recently we have bought an ottoman from them with a washable removable cover in a red-orange color and I've washed it several times and no fading??

Other than the fabric, it was a great couch that we had for several years- we only got rid of it because we had to downsize to a loveseat when we moved. Otherwise I may have tried to dye the fabric to a true black again.
Lisa

[celestialdreamer]

We have an IKEA Ektorp corner sofa. I really do like it for the $ but we've had 2 problems. First problem was that the back piece of wood frame broke after we'd only had it a month, but you couldn't really tell. Dh was able to fix it in about an hour but he's also Mr. Fixit. It had broken right at a knot in the wood, so it probably is not a common flaw, and just was a fluke because of that piece of wood. The first slipcover/cushion covers we had were machine washable beige twill, but the backsides to all the cushion covers were this tissue paper like material instead of the twill so after being washed 7-8 times over the course of 2 years, they started ripping so I couldn't wash them again. That said, instead of buying a new sofa recently, we just replaced the slipcover because we *do* really like it. Luckily it seems they have changed their cushion cover materials to be the same on both side like a normal sofa, so we won't have the same problem again. I think that our issues with the sofa were specifically issues that only we have had, and if I had it to do over again, I'd still buy it.

Our home is 75% IKEA and so far we really do love it minus the 2 small easily fixed issues on our sofa. Everything we have gotten has been decent quality, had nice style and been easy on our budget. I'd go for it.

[SusannahM]

We have a Mysinge sofa and really like it. It's frame is all metal, so it's really sturdy. We got it for a greatly reduced price (we got it for $219, normally $399), it was in their scratch and dent section, even though it was just a floor model and that's why it was there. There's no bottom cushions on it to flatten, and it's still pretty comfortable. We took the table off, because we didn't like how it looked, and turned the foot around where the table had been attached (we examined it in the store before buying it to make sure we could do that, since we thought the table attached looked really stupid).

[Hazelnut]

We have the ektorp sofa that's a pull-out bed as well. I have trouble getting the covers off to wash, and the cusions are a little too firm, but I agree that for the price you can't beat it. It feels sturdy and is pretty comfy. The sofa bed isn't super comfy though.

[Llyra]

I have pretty nearly that exact same couch, and it's served us well for about 6 years. It is looking pretty shabby by now, though. The fabric has started to shred away from the zippers, so that the cushion covers have to be pinned on. The middle seat's bottom collaped out because of the wood warping, but DH fixed it with a simple piece of twine. And I'm constantly adjusting the cushions because the horizontal ones slide out and the vertical ones slip behind them and the whole couch droops.

Ours is plenty sturdy though, and because it's white I've found I can sun stains out just like you would with a diaper . For allergy concerns, it's terrific, actually. And really it's held up remarkably well for the abuse it's taken over the years.

It's great for the money, but honestly if I could afford something better I'd buy it.

[binxsmom]

we have an ikea couch and it is holding up very well. i believe that the frame has a 10 or 20 year warrenty. and we chose microfibre fabric which washes up very, very well. so far, so good.

[artsyfartsymama]

I am so glad I read this thread. We are going couch shopping soon and I was definately leaning towards going to IKEA.

[Malva]

We have this sofa in beige instead of black and totally love it. Leather is so easily maintained!

Best thing is: I had been looking at that sofa for a very long time and one day, there was an already assembled one with a light scratch on the back and one wobbly leg in the AS-IS section of the store for a price we could afford. It's been 4 years and we still love it.

[BornInSeptember]

If I was going to buy one of thier sofas, I would buy one of the ones with numerous colors of covers. That way I could change it each season, that would be so fun. Although not the most frugal. Go with a color that will hide dirt and fuzz well. Not black or white.

[St. Margaret]

My MIL loves her ikea sofa and chair. They're white and have held up well (she loves the whitewashed beach house look and has no small children besides nephews visiting). They are comfy, too!

[Kerlowyn]

USAmma, we have the EXACT sofa from IKEA. Our house is beginning to look like an IKEA showroom

We really like the sofa. The covers come off the cushins and wash up nice. The only thing I would tell you is to be sure you get some pillows. The angle of the couch leaves little lower back support for long term sitting, but a nice pillow does the trick!

[Mizelenius]

If you haven't already, I would suggest you go and sit on it. To me, that is a major factor!

Another place to look for a sofa is Craigslist. We got a perfect sofa from there for our playroom . . .for $15!

[shannon0218]

We have 2 ikea sofas that were purchased in 1992!!! They have finally been relegated to the kennel room. My parents bought them (white--what were they thinking??) and they stayed with them through 3 moves. My mom shampoo'd them regularily, then when Molly was born they came here, then we were given a lazyboy sofa so we put one in the kennel and one in the baby's room. Just last week we put the second one down in the kennel as well. One of the daycare dogs ate half of it...but I can't blame that on Ikea!