My new, big, grey, plain, ugly as sin couch!

[eyeamdry]

We stopped by a furniture store one day last week and they were having a big tent sale.  They have these tent sales about every week.  I have been saying I was getting new living room furniture this summer.  In particular, a new sofa.  I'd had a pastel colored nice sofa for a long time, maybe 15 years.  I paid $900 for it and had it for 15 years.

When we first went to the "tent sale" area, we looked around and didn't see anything that I wanted.
In the back was a big, dark grey sofa and it was $297.  I looked at it and noticed it has a sofa bed and I thought that was a great deal.  The couch was just plain and ugly grey, but really nothing wrong with it.  Our carpeting is a grey mottled pattern and this sofa would look fine.  We went inside and saw nothing that caught my attention.  We went back to the area outside with the ugly grey sofa.  I had an aha moment.  I wanted that sofa.  I knew it was ugly, but would work in our living room and even after that, could put in our spare room and have company sleep on it with the pull out sofa.  If it's in the spare room, no one will notice what color it is, but will still be comfortable and pay it's way by being  an extra bed.

I paid for the sofa and told them they should pay me to be taking this ugly thing off their hands.  They didn't think so.  My husband went and picked it up today.  They couldn't find it for a long time and it was probably in the "to be trashed dept."  It is extra heavy with the bed inside.  He had to find two neighbor guys to help carry it in.  It was so heavy it took 3 men.  I had mixed feelings as they were bringing it in.  They put it in place and went back outside.  I was there by myself and staring at this thing I had just bought.  My sofa is a big white elephant that is grey.  I made sure it was long enough for me to lie down on, as this is my favorite place in the whole house and I spend most of my days there.  I wanted it long enough, but not much longer.  It's perfect.  It is also very firm right now as it's new and not broken in yet.

I had a nap on my new couch already.  It couldn't have slept any better.  So, now I'm still trying to get used to my sofa and "like it."  I will have to wait and see when we have visitors, if they notice our new sofa and say anything.  Now, I'm thinking what will go with the gray/charcoal colored sofa?  I am in the process of looking at chairs and/or recliners.  Now I will have to take a picture of this big old sofa and take to the furniture store to match it.  Or, maybe I'll move the couch in the spare room and buy a new, beautiful sofa.  I'll just have to wait and see.  This will take awhile to know if I'm going to settle on liking this dreadful piece of furniture.  I knew I might have Buyer's Remorse, but it's only $300.

Lucy

[irish]

Lucy, I love your couch and I haven't even seen it. You did what you wanted to!!!

I did have to laugh though as I have a similar issue with my couch. We had a corner couch with 2 recliners and it is about 15 years old also. We had it in our smaller family room. It was perfect. Hubby and I could both sit in our recliners (me- with my hearing ear towards him) and we could also each take a nap Sunday afternoons at the same time. Well, progress changed that.

We had an old garge that needed lots of work. I was also not attached to the house and I was having increased difficulty carrying the groceries through the snow banks. I issued an ultimatum---There will be a double garage built with an entry between the house and the garage that would become our main entrance. I had been saving for this for years.

Well, the kids built it for us and it was a huge task because of the horribly hot weather. We had to put a doorway in the outside wall of the family room where the couch sat. We moved that couch here and there and everywhere and it drove me nuts. No way did it work in that room anymore but hubby was emotionally attached to it.

Enter my 24 year old brown multiflowered couch that I would not get rid of because I told the kids I would use it in my old age. Well, old age has come and I love that old couch. It now sits in my famly room. The corner couch has sat stacked in the entry way waiting for a son to come and pick it up to use. So that is the way life turns. My "new" couch cost me nothing. Don't care if anyone else likes it or not. I love it. Sleeps good. It is long and firm and has a low back so I can put it in front of the picture window and still see out. I sleep out there sometimes and I can watch the stars.

Hope I didn't steal your thunder, Lucy, cause I loved your story. Guess we old girls do things different!!! Irish

[Crymeariver]

Nothing wrong with neutral furniture.  Just think what you can do with colors for the pillows, drapes and rugs.  Bed Bath and Beyond has some cool pillows - none of which will go with our sage green couch    What a bargin for a sleeper sofa!

[Carebear]

Hi Lucy,

I prefer a neutral coloured sofa myself, and as Crymeariver said, you can dress it up with colourful pillows, a throw and an area rug.  And grey goes with just about everything. 

I envy your quality nap. 

[Bucky]

Lucy - congrats on your new couch!   

As the others said, you can "dress" your couch up with a throw, or maybe you have an afghan somewhere you can bring out and drape over the back of it.  Lots of pillow options for you.  If you get tired of one color, it's pretty inexpensive to change out pillows or a throw.  What color are your walls?

My sad couch story is this:  I bought a new couch with MY Christmas money back in 2004.  Double recliner - which was the rage versus the "regular" couches everyone use to have.  Mighty proud of this couch. 

Hubby plants his bum on the left hand side of this couch . . . . EVERY day . . . all evening long once he gets home from work.  Many, many times he falls asleep reclined on this end of the couch. 

Fast forward to May 2012 - my poor couch - (did I mention that I PAID for with MY money??) - is ruined on the left hand side.  The stuffing is gone from the arm rest, there is a permanent butt print from hubbies constant sitting there and no padding here either, and the couch has a "smell" from my hubbies greasy hair (sorry, too much information). 

It breaks my heart . . . . the middle section and the right hand side of the couch is brand new - "maybe" sat on a half-dozen times.   Wish there was some way to cut the "bad" part off and turn the double recliner couch into a single recliner loveseat.   

Anyhow . . . back to you . . . .    Enjoy your new couch.  When you find one that sleeps well and feels good - good, bad, or ugly . . . it's a keeper!!   

Bucky

[WildThing]

Nothing wrong with neutral furniture.  Just think what you can do with colors for the pillows, drapes and rugs.  Bed Bath and Beyond has some cool pillows - none of which will go with our sage green couch    What a bargin for a sleeper sofa!

I was actually thinking how mice it would be to have a  moss green couch.  Saw one I liked, my friend hated it but I liked it coz I'm an earthy sort of person and think it'd look great with other earthy colours and pics of trees on the wall.  The one I have got right now hasn't got covers on it a all as they crumbled to pieces n the washer s I bought a cream coloured throw to put over it and it looks fine.

[irish]

I bet we could all have a couch story. Lucy, I bet you love your couch. As far as I am concerned the thing that matters is the comfort. If you can't sit, lay, lie, recline, whatever, without enjoying the event it isn't worth it.

Also, to buy a couch for that amount of money is beyond awesome. I am jealous.

Bucky, I was just thinking---can you take a saw and just cut off hubby's end of the couch. I am being cynical, but you know what I mean.THAt is the trouble with all the stuff these days. They are made so that they wear out---just to get us to buy another new one that will wear out again. Heck, years ago people had their couch their whole life. Of course, the couch sat in the parlour and no one sat on it unless they had company.

Remember the stiff covers the old couches had. They were so stiff and prickly. They used to be made out of horse hair. I digress about the old days. Irish

[Sleepy In Seattle]

I'm sorry but INSURANCE should pay for a really nice couch (ugly or not) for all of us with autoimmune diseases, LOL - we spend enough time on the things to warrant some good quality!!!! :-P

You can always dress it up with throw pillows and cute blankets....

[irish]

Can't you see the big wigs at the insurance companies sitting around trying to come up with the criteria for their "new couch" claims payments. lol Flowers allowed? Plaids? Long couch? Short couch?? Stripes?

Nobody can decided of much of anything anymore cause of all the "political correctness" surrounding all and everything in this country. Irish

[eyeamdry]

These are things I found after getting all the tags off the ouch..........It is an original SIMMONS HIDEABED SOFA.

They didn't have those tags where I could see them. I thought the brand was probably something sleazy from the corner garage sale.  Well, it is the famous Simmons brand. I can feel my chest puff up with pride. 

[irish]

Man, Lucy, talk about some luck. I could hear your chest expand with pride. A grey couch that looks good in your house, sleeps good and is a Simmons. Yeahhhhhhh. Irish

[Bucky]

These are things I found after getting all the tags off the ouch..........It is an original SIMMONS HIDEABED SOFA.

Well, it is the famous Simmons brand. I can feel my chest puff up with pride.

Lucy - well your tags on your "ouch" (see above) shed a whole new light on your "new, big, grey, plain ugly as sin couch" - huh?      

Glad you are feeling better about your purchase and I bet you will proudly show any visitors your great find!   

Irish - yeah, I WISH I could cut hubbies end of the couch off . . . then I'd have a new mini couch!

Bucky

[eyeamdry]

Yes, I am thrilled that my new couch is an original Simmons Hideabed.  I didn't even see all these tags until we got it home and all.  The thing weighs a ton.  I couldn't even pull it out from the wall on one end to plug in my electric blanket.  That means I'll have reason not to bother pulling it out and vacuuming under it. When they took the old couch out, it was a tad dusty.  Now I have my electric blankie on there and I'm all set.  Even though it's getting hot out, I run my A/C and if I get too cold, I lay in my blanket on the couch. 

You know how the hot/cold thing goes.  I cannot go around the house and outside in the yard without a shirt on like hubby can.  I keep making him put on a shirt and not embarrass me when he's out riding the lawn mower and bumping along and all the traffic can see him.  He doesn't care, but I do.  lol  He doesn't look too good any more without clothes.  Has good legs and buns though.  Lucy

[Bucky]

He doesn't look too good any more without clothes.  Has good legs and buns though.  Lucy

[irish]

Oh Lucy, I am so sorry that your hubby's chest has fallen into his drawers. lol

That is my hubby's excuse anyway. By the way, I don't look any good without my clothes, come to think of it, I never did. Thank goodness we lose some of our sight as we age. Irish