Sandyponder, your blue sofa reassures me that being blue instead of a more standard color is a feature, not a problem. Thanks so much for posting that! The color adds something. my3dogs, your doggies always look so cute. I've admired your cl leather furniture before. I can't find a picture of the rug now. I'll have to post one later. The rug goes great with burgundy colored furniture because it has some in the rug. I haven't tried it with navy and if it has any navy, it's not much. It's pretty neutral rug though. The subtle burgundy piping on the leather couch (which I can't even see in the photos) may be good for matching it to the rug. I think that the blue chair probably would look better in the room simply because the leather recliners would take up a lot of space and they have a heavier look. I wish I could use all the chairs, but I think two chairs would fit best. My hunch is that two identical upholstered gold chairs would be best. But I love leather and I love a deal. And that blue wingback would match. What to do? I don't have the space for everything. I think a blue sofa flanked with one gold chair and one blue chair potentially could look unbalanced because the blues are so much darker than the gold, which reflects light. I'll see all the furniture in person tomorrow. The recliners have got to be big though. I could accommodate the footstool sizewise.

Like said above CL, goodwill, moving sales ect... Today I scored a brand new black leather lined Bentley Prince Street Carpet Company 8x8 area rug for $60, the owner/ designer won it at a show. Last week I scored a like brand new NS design leather sofa with black piping for $150. I also found a chair in the exact lines of sofa in fabric by (Sheril sp?) at my local goodwill for $85 but think I can get it cheaper. I'm getting things for my son and want to do a sort of kinda Jonathon Adler look. I'm having a blast looking for things and can't wait to find some cool stuff with color and other things needed. I literally sit pushing the refresh button on CL while having my tea, you have to be fast. http://i1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/b7267bed.jpg" target="_blank"> http://i1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/4d8bbec8.jpg" target="_blank">

One more voice in favor of the Baker. I have a 37 year old Baker sofa in need of reupholstering. Mt sofa was used very heavily since I took from my parents' house. I have four children. It could well be that on top of your children getting older, better sofas will handle the wear and tear much better. As for the velvet, sunlight bleaches wood. I had a mahogany Henredon drum table next to a window and a 3" roundish portion abutting the window sill became extremely discolored in the direct sunlight. I don't know if indirect light would be so harsh. Are the protectors you can get for furniture fabric like stain guard, for sunlight? A peacock blue sofa sounds dreamy.

I don't have any experience with the brands you mentioned, but we are thrilled with the quality and durability of our Stickley sofas. We have the Prairie Settle sofa and love seat in leather (with exposed wood frame), but they have many fabric options as well. We have cats, and it's great not to have to worry about them clawing the fabric like they did with our previous sofas. All of our Stickley pieces have stood up amazingly to kids, pets, and daily heavy use. They are made in America and while they're not cheap, I'm confident they will outlive us so we will never have to replace them. We have had them for about 13 years and they look as good as new. My husband wipes them down with leather conditioner about every other month and there is a slight patina on the leather where we sit on them, but it doesn't detract from the look at all. The wood is so hard it doesn't get dented and scratched from things banging into it.