Why aren't you considering reupholstering them?

I wasn't considering reupholstering them due to the cost, for one thing. We're in the middle of a complete gut remodel of our main bathroom, and also in the middle of DIY painting our house.

Also, the couch and loveseat are probably not going to both fit in the living room...I am going to go measure them later today, if I can get good measurements -- they are both nested together in the truck. I can't even read the furniture maker label.

They are sturdy, but I'm not sure my DH liked the style/feel of them enough to consider putting much money into it. Maybe we just need to finish the painting, then they can go on the back porch for vacuuming/cleaning and "test-sitting" :-)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the shape, the style...I love the blue! I never thought there would be a chance to have them, so this felt like an amazing opportunity. It's also sad, she had three days to get her stuff out of his house before she lost access (according to her lawyer, I haven't asked a lot of questions). I love my grandma, I'd rather have her than the furniture, but since she said we could take them I jumped.

If it's from the 1970s, it is probably worth reupholstering. Have a pro take a look at the structure. One quick way to tell if it's worth doing over is if it's very heavy.

I didn't carry them, but I'll ask my DH if he thought they were heavy. I did notice they have wheels on the front and legs in back, which implies they might be heavy LOL! IHe did have help moving them, so they probably were.

Edit -- I need to add that there is some "bad blood" between DH and I regarding vintage furniture. When we got married and bought our home, he brought several vintage things from his parents home. I didn't appreciate any of it, and as soon as we could afford a new dining set/sofa/dressers...I insisted upon myself. The old dining set went to his brother, so it's not a total loss. They weren't, IMHO, "classic" vintage items. But DH doesn't seem to get it, old is old and they all just look old to him.

SO that might be another barrier to reupholstering. Of course, if I can save up enough of my own money to pay for it I guess it won't matter as much to him (I have a tiny from-home biz).

This post was edited by melle_sacto on Mon, Jul 28, 14 at 20:17

Now, I would not guarantee that heavy stuff. I have seen some stuff so heavy they used forklifts to get it off the boat from China. Let a professional look at it.

Bumping for update with photos and brand

Looks like my sofa, except mine is longer. The low back works for us because it fits right under the bay window where we have it...

I bought mine second hand and reupholstered it myself, which takes time but is not hard to do. In your other thread you mentioned you sew, so if you had the time and inclination, you could definitely handle it. ( and you need a staple gun and a couple inexpensive upholstery supplies)

This is tough if it is not a washable fabric. I've used Stanley Steemer for upholstery but I would not trust steam cleaning on vintage fabrics.

I know they are not the most aesthetic, but maybe you could just buy a Surefit slipcover in the interim once you try an appropriate cleaner. I have used them, and I recommend the styles with high spandex because otherwise, they can look bad. The plushy one on our office loveseat looks pretty good.

Here is a link that might be useful: Surefit

coll_123 --> what about when you want to lean back? DH leaned back (no wall behind the loveseat) and demonstrated that he has no upper back/neck/head support.

The sofa (longer, standing on end in the pic) will be against the wall. The loveseat, however, would not be against a wall.

I could reupholster it eventually, but we'll need to use as-is for a few years. I love the blue!

I was going to thoroughly vacuum, then gently wash it w/an upholstery attachment on the vacuum using cold water. In fact, I could just gently mist it w/water, spot clean anything totally unsightly, and then use the vacuum to remove excess wetness.

No, you can't lean back and rest your head...not that kind of sofa. But I love taking naps on mine! And the low back makes it perfect for my dogs to climb onto the window ledge .

I think people are trying to tell you in a nice way that they need to be reupholstered and need new cushions. Right now they look dirty and saggy. Sorry.

Well if they are unusable as-is, then they will probably go out to the curb because we can't store them until such time as we can afford to have them re-done (or redo myself). Especially since DH isn't liking them more than what we have already.

Edit --> i could probably make slipcovers for the meantime

This post was edited by melle_sacto on Sat, Sep 20, 14 at 16:05

If they are really uncomfortable for your DH I would not use them. There is nothing as miserable as sitting on a sofa with an uncomfortable back.

You're probably right. I wish we had a bigger house :-( i think these are more comfortable than our current set. They are nice and firm, not squishy and unsupportive.

He wants to be able to sprawl back into a squishy sofa. Why are we so darned different? We both love or very firm mattress ;-)

I always feel bad for my dad when he comes to visit...there are no la-z-boys in sight!

There's a solution to every problem; however, some folks just don't want a solution!

That sofa is classic and I doubt the upholstery is "velour"; it is most like velvet, cotton velvet - which is darn near indestructible. I had a 9' golden yellow velvet sofa a few years ago. It was probably someone's grandma's sofa from a high end house. I got tired of fighting over it with the cats and sold it. So, for heaven's sake, if you don't keep it, sell it. And don't sell it cheap, either.

Here is a link that might be useful: headrests for low back sofas

Tomatofreak thank you for the headrest pillow link! THAT'S a very practical solution. I really don't see how DH could complain about it, plus a separate pillow will be easier to clean and maintain

All i know about the fabric is grandma said it's velour. Hopefully it will clean up well...I'll find out on Monday when i give it a shot.

Curiosity may not kill the cat, but it may well kill me! I can't resist a good search.

Stratford Furniture Co. was started by Morris Futorian in Illinois, but relocated to New Albany, MS (incidentally, my home state). I could not find the blue velvet sofa, but here's an example of price for a vintage piece by Stratford. Btw, there is no doubt that fabric is velvet, cotton velvet for sure. Can you read anything on that wrinkled cloth tag or has it worn off?

Futorian was one of the original inductees into the American Furniture Hall of Fame. http://andspeakingofwhich.blogspot.com/2012/03/henry-ford-of-furniture.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Stratford sectional

Thats a very pretty blue. I like woolight oxyclean. I live on a farm with a whitish carpet in the living room and its always done a really good job of cleaning anything on it. What ever you use test it in a hidden area first.

Oops, double post.

This post was edited by tomatofreak on Sun, Sep 21, 14 at 1:34

I'm cheap. I mean, I'm downright cheap and I always think I should do things myself BUT I have been learning recently that is not ALWAYS true.

I would check with a professional cleaner (search for carpet cleaners) and get a bid. If it's at all reasonable, I'd try to go that route.

I recently "cleaned" an item I'd gotten from a neighbor. It was a super nice item, not really ever even used but had been stored in a house with 3 chain smokers for 5 years. I struggled for a really long time to get the smell out. I spent several hours researching how to clean it, drove here and there to buy specialty sprays and when I was about ready to give up, I called a place that specialized in fire/smoke restoration and found out that they wouldn't have charged any more than I spent buying all that crap and wasting all that time and they would have been done and gone in a couple hours.

I'm slowly learning that SOME things are worth at least getting a professional opinion/bid on. :)

Tomatofreak -- thanks for that interesting info on the Stratford Company. And you're right, the fabric probably is cotton velvet not velour. It doesn't have any stretch. The tag says "Body - Blended Cotton Felt 80%" (not sure if that is the upholstery fabric, but the rest of the tag is definitely about the insides).

madeyna -- Great tip! I don't have Woolite Oxiclean, but I do have Woolite Dark so I'll try that first, it won't foam too much. It sounds like one issue with velvet is maintaining the fabric nap, so I'll have to clean very meticulously and go with the grain, and maybe brush it too!

beth0301 -- I appreciate you sharing your story. Since I'm not certain we'll use this set, I don't want to spend any money on it yet. Also I'm not dealing with any major odors other than a sort of musty smell from it being inside a home that was not lived in very often (grandma's main house is in a different state). The main issues are that it looks like some of the fabric has faded, and a few places have spills or something on them.

Our pets have loved having the set on the patio, I covered it w/a sheet for protection for now.

And as much as I like the style and find them to be more comfortable than the set we have now...DH is convinced I'm blinded by sentimentality and don't see them for as bad as he seems to think they are *sigh*

Just last night, he reminded me that we spent about $1500 on our current set -- 9 years ago -- sofa, chair, ottoman (all too big for the space, a big mistake since our house is small) and why would I want to be so wasteful as to get rid of what WE bought TOGETHER with our OWN MONEY, for something OLD and DIRTY.

Hence why I want to try to clean them up as best I can without spending any money ;-)

Since re-covering isn't really in the budget, and maybe the best I could do is to make some slipcovers until such time as we can have them re-done...