What was the warranty on the sofa ? That IMO is where you start. The coffee table fading is from too much sun which can be controlled with the proper shades . The window treatments I would need to see the issues. Honestly 2 yrs is a long time to ask a designer to keep dealing with issues. Who is in there the other 6 months of the year and how many people are there when you are ? I need more info but honestly what did the 100K cover in this job is for sure what I need to begin with

"Honestly 2 yrs is a long time to ask a designer to keep dealing with issues."

Wow. Really? For custom items, @Patricia Colwell Consulting?

Thank you both for your comments. I should be clear. We travel 6 months out of the year and no one in in this house when we are gone. Just the two of us live here and we have no pets.

My designer was aware of this issue prior to this past year but we preferred that no one come into the house during Covid.

We have roman shades in the living room that are completely closed when we are not here. Also, we have tinted windows in all rooms to prevent fading. I don't think a $10,000 sofa should have collapsed cushions and ripped cording at this point. Frustrating for me. I will look into the warranty on the sofa.

I truly feel that a professional designer should stand behind a product he recommended and ordered. I think I should be able to expect that these would last far longer.

Again, thanks for your input.

I can’t answer your question but after reading it I do have a comment. I’ve had many sofas over the course of my lifetime. Most I’ve kept for a decade. Then one of my children took them. I have never had any issues with any of them. I’ve had children, , dogs, etc and not anything wrong. My price point is much much much lower than yours. I I have bought brands such as Flexsteel and LazyBoy. So, you have every reason to be upset.

IF the home is located in certain types of climate (AZ, CO, UT, NV, NM) "sun rot", combined with "low/no" indoor humidity, might be the cause of fabric and finish failure. The uninitiated have NO idea of the destruction these conditions can cause. Example - the soles of many womens' shoes are glued to the uppers. After 4 months in Phoenix AZ, (unconditioned house) the soles will separate. The same happens with high-end antique wood furniture, it cracks and the lacquer begins to alligator and flake. Tinted windows (low-E glass or sun-screened) do not prevent these issues. Homes in these climates require year-round indoor humidity. If present only half the year I suggest "hurricane aka security shutters" to protect fabrics on windows and furniture in your absence.

Thank you. We live just outside NYC.

Who placed the order for the sofa? If your designer did, then designer is responsible for insuring the product stands up to its warranties. He, most likely, has an account with the vendor. (Designer gets the sofa at cost, and marks it up, probably 33% for your cost.).

Whose workroom made the window treatments? Designer's? Then he is responsible for the work done. He is the contractor; workroom is his sub. He recommended the fabric. If blinds are falling apart, then either the workroom and/or the fabric is at fault.

What brand is the coffee table? Same suggestion as for sofa.

$100,000.00 is quite a large amount for a sofa, window treatments, coffee table, and the designer's fee. It is too large to take advantage of small claims court.

I would write one last letter to your designer. Be polite, but firm. Tell him if he doesn't act on your complaints, your first step is to write a dunning review. If that doesn't motivate him, for $100,000.00 and his non-response, go to court.

Hey, is he on houzz? If so, can you imagine what a bad review would do to his business?

One caveat: you are not renting your house for the six months you are gone or loaning it to friends?

@pnusser - NYC??? I would be furious!

i suggest you add up the cost of repairs or replacements for the substandard items and have a lawyer draw up a bill for the entire amount to send to the desgner, with the assurance that if the bill is not paid within xx days, a lawsuit will be filed. If you go down this path you need to be clear in your own mind and upfront with your lawyer about how far you are prepared to go to win this fight. Lawyers are not free and an honest one will tell you upfront your chance of winning at what cost.

if you conclude you don’t really want to win as much as you want to let go of the aggravation, and maybe not throw good money after bad, just fix what needs to be fixed, don’t stew, don’t listen to people who tell you that they never would have let such a thing happen to them , ha ha, and enjoy your home, health and life. It is a service to the rest of us and your neighbors to tell us what happened in detail, and name the designer and the vendors he used. However, you do owe it to the vendors to hear their side of the story before trashing their reputations.

Yeah I'd say that this is negligent on the part of the designer. I'd be on the phone to my workrooms with photos of the problems the minute you raised the issue with me. Most reputable workrooms will stand by their work and will remediate if warranted, assuming grace period has not lapsed. It could mean that you go without your items for a month or so while the repairs are being made. If the sofa, for example, was made in North Carolina (like so many of them are), the manufacturer might have the designer send the sofa to a local upholsterer for repair, then the be reimbursed by the manufacturer.

At any rate, yes, you should send the designer a certified letter that requires a signature with your complaints and photos of the problems.

Meanwhile, if you continue to travel for six months out of the year, I'd invest in some furniture covers to keep the sun from damaging your upholstery while you're gone.

Thank you all for your helpful comments. The house is empty when we are away and the shades are closed completely. As they are triple lined, I doubt any sun damage would be possible. I mentioned that the custom sofa by Century sofa cost of $10,000. The coffee table, by Currey, has a custom finish and cost $1,600. Each window treatment was over $1,000/each and they are not large windows. All are about two years old.

It will cost quite a bit to fix these problems. I would hope that it would not be my problem to contact these vendors and/or fix the problems. I don't know who they are.

I will send a certified letter to the designer. Any ideas as to how it should be worded would be much appreciated.

He is on Houzz!

Thank you all!

Only a lawyer can tell you how to phrase your complaint in a way that sets the stage for further action if you are not satisfied with the response. It’s worth talking this over with a lawyer because I think your designer will with his.

This furniture and window coverings are only 2 years old. Not quite sure he can fight that.

I‘ve been assuming both parties signed a contract. What matters is how the language of that contract can be interpreted, and that only matters IF you are prepared to sue the designer if he doesn’t fix what you want fixed or give you enough money to get it fixed. If you are not inclined to sue, then don’t bother paying a lawyer anything. You can try other tactics to get what you want from the designer. I haven’t got any suggestions because I don’t know him or you!

thank you for taking your time to help me.

Thank you so much. It truly bothers me that this has become MY job.

I would say you got TAKEN!? The cheapest sofas I have ever heard of last more than a year--and that's in a college dorm situation!!! Me personally, I would not assume a designer is responsible to ensure the products longevity, but about now I would be demanding where it was purchased from and proof you got what you paid for. Something is not adding up here.