summer pillows and couch rambling

{Completely a tongue-in-cheek post ahead. I do not, of course, really and seriously fret over a couch - only a little. Just sayin'.}
I'm not digging on our couch lately. The couch we spent *forever* finding and agonizing over (and in the end, ended up with THE most basic of couches). I could tell you a million reasons why I strongly dislike it, but I'll spare you and save it for Steve (because he loves it when I talk about the couch. Ha!). I regularly stalk the aisle of my favorite antique furniture shops in hopes of a new (old) one. But only 6 years after buying ours, it seems both wasteful and expensive to replace it just because I don't love it anymore. For better or worse, I'm committed to my couch. And so...I do what I can to like it. Spread a little love on it, you know? Favorite quilts draped, and last week - new pillows in hopes of a little lift.

I hesitantly cut into this amazing piece of Marrimekko that Katja sent me this spring. I've been treasuring it for just the right project, and this seemed worthy enough for the scissors - and I used every square inch of it that I had. I put the opening on the back, fully anticipating washing these (white!) pillows often. I opted for ties instead of buttons this time, after my last set left button impressions on everyone's face who laid their head on the 'wrong' side. Oops.

I was talking with a friend the other day about the lifespan of couches (because as 'not thrilling' as that conversation might seem, everyone has a couch story) - she thinks I'll soon enter a few years of 'tolerance,' followed by a slight fondness for it before it finally is time to get a new one. I think the pillows might have pushed me over into the tolerance phase - I like it much better now. Does that mean I'm closer to a new couch?

Comments

[kimberly/tippytoes]

It looks nice with the dressed up pillows! We have an 8 year old black leather (!) couch that my husband bought when we were dating. I hate it and thanks to the leather, it's not a candidate for a slip cover. I figure once the kids get older, we'll get a new one. For now, I let them jump on it.

[Marianne]

I laughed at Kimberley's post above^^^^^

I also think you are very close to a new one although I have to say that the one you have looks lovely with those pretty cushions on it!

[Mama Urchin]

I've been thinking of sprucing up my grungy sofa with some pillows. Yours are gorgeous.

[nycole]

i like your sofa, especially with those new lovely pillowcases.
well, i can hardly sit on my own sofa anymore...what with all the nose picking that goes on there...seriously.

[Kristina]

Oooohhh....LOVE all the yellow!!! Gorgeous fabric! Must admit the phone is my fave thing though ;o)

[Beth]

I have had such love/hate relationships with my couches over the years ... Just a few weeks ago we got rid of the current couch and have no plans to replace it. I. Love. Not. Having. A. Couch.

It's wonderful. Now we have the room to use the space for what we really need/want to. i.e. play space and work table and book shelves.

[dottycookie]

I think your couch looks great! Ours is very, VERY old - it was second hand when we bought it over 10 years ago. But it's holding up well to two small people dragging off the cushions and treating it as a trampoline, so for now it is doing a good job. I plan to redo the living room within a couple of years and I can live with it a bit linger. Maybe!

[Tava]

I have the same couch and can't stand it too! I can't waste either though- only had mine 5-6 years also. It shows every stain! I am getting it cleaned in a week hoping that will make me love it but I doubt it. It's the beige twill- not good!

[AmandaMay]

I think your couch looks ever-so-comfy, and the pillows are great. Beautiful fabric. Isn't it hard to finally make the cut on a fabric that has been waiting until "just the right project"!

[vickie]

ah the couch, your cheery pillows really brighten things up. we LIVE on our couch which is very similar in style to yours....it is a trampoline, a bed, a reading nook, a ship, a nursing pillow, it is everything and when it's time to go (it's saggin' a bit) i will probably shed a tear for the history we've made on it.

hee

[ana]

Wow, I feel as if I can confess to not liking our 1 year old couch very much. It was wonderful when we first got it, but over the year, it has lost much of it's appeal. It might be because it has lost some of its comfort (aka padding has gone limp). Maybe new pillows are in order :)

[Hope]

Couch pillows are on my to do list. Your's are very inspiring.

[Donna]

The pillows are beautiful, what a nice way to freshen up the couch! I might have to start sewing again . . .

[erin]

love the pillow and i feel the same way about my couch. but, hey, i don't care a whole lot if there are kids jumping on it or peanut butter fingerprints all over it, you know? reason enough to keep it for a few more years.

[Max]

Wow! Lots of fellow feeling on the topic of couches, eh? It is *hard* to find the right one! I saved and saved for ours, dreaming over it for years - I wanted a couch that would never need to be replaced, that my kids would wrestle for when I die, and that was made by people who have health care and paid holidays.
It cost a small fortune and it turns out to be one of the *very* few things I've bought new in this life that has not disappointed me.

Your couch, I must say, is very appealing to me! It looks wonderfully cosy. And the pillows are *beautiful* - nice work!

[Jodi]

My couch is 2 years old and it's very similar to yours in style and color (but it has 3 cushions). I'm already sick of it, but this is in large part b/c my cats have scratched the heck out of the arms! Now I have to keep the arms covered with blankets or quilts tightly tucked in to keep the cats at bay.

Next time I'm going for the Stickley look -- wooden arms and leather cushions.

[Emily]

I have a love/hate thing for our couch. It's is so ugly that I feel sorry for it and end up loving it. Luckily for us, it is incredibly comfortable. This helps with my patience as I wait for something better to come along! Without a twill slipcover, our couch could win the ugliest couch award. ;(
You are my inspiration and motivation to find my creative-inner spirit, so thank you for this blog! The pillows are wonderful!

[Lynne]

I had to laugh at your post, as we have virtually an identical couch (minus the lovely throw pillows) and I have virtually identical couch-loathing! I comfort myself with the thought that the children can jump/fort build to their hearts' content... and each jump is perhaps bringing me one step closer to a broken couch!

[residentmuse]

Is that MY couch? My beige, slipcovered-with-a-slit-in-the-middle, too poufy couch? The one with the arms that curve just like that? The one we agonized over, purchased, and immediately decided that WE didn't love? Egads. Ours is only four years old. Tell me you didn't get yours from Young's.

[Candlestring]

Love the pillows. Understand the couch thing. Didn't This American Life do a radio show on couches?

[Julia Freund]

How amazing. Everybody does have a couch story. Ours is six years old and at the time it was the cheapest available from Ikea. My boyfriend has been sitting on the same spot on that couch for the last six years, and it is starting to show a hole in that spot. So much so that I kind of expect to find a little creature or bird nesting in there one of these mornings.

I love your blog and wanted to tell you how sorry I am about Luka.

[filambulle]

Well I do LOVE your pillows!
:)

[mary]

Love the pillows, my couch may need some pillows for a make over. Maybe we should all start a couch swap. I'm sure someone else would love your couch for a bit and then you could try out a new to you couch.

[Christina]

Oh yes, couch situations. Our couch and love seat were given to us some time ago and I don't like them one bit. I call them barbie couches because they are so low to the ground. Anyways I have been waiting for IKEA to open up here in Portland,OR...a few more weeks!! Now it is desiding do I want a couch and love seat or do I want to do the corner sofa, which by the way is way cheaper... So hard to deside.
The pillows look great on your couch and it does look so comfortable...have you thought of making a slip cover for it? You know one for each cusion and then one for the couch body. That might be a thought...some work too.

[Angela]

I absolutely love you blog - you are a great writer and an amazing photographer... ;)

[Steph]

Your couch is exactly what I want!! I'd willingly swap you for our ripped two seater that was gifted to us by friends. We cover it with...well anything that hides it and I have to make a proper cover one day. And cushions! I love that fabric yours are made out of. They're so pretty and distracting!

[angela rout]

pillows are nice...nice fabric - the Couch is OK. maybe a few more pillows will help mine too but...its red.

[Lina]

I love the pillows. My bedroom curtains are made from the light blue version of this fabric and look amazing with the yellow walls of the bedroom.

[Jessica]

Hello,

I need some advice.
We have an antique sofa (my boyfriend's great-grandmother's) that was originally white. Currently, it is lightly stained and has a yellowish hue. We don't have the money to reupholster, but would like to lighten it up. Would you recommend scrubbing it gently with a light bleach solution?