Before you take home that new sofa or upholstered chair, take it for a test drive. Flop down onto it several times and bounce around a bit. Listen for creaking or thumps that indicate the springs are hitting the frame. Lift the piece from one end and shake it a bit—it should feel solid and heavy. Check the legs: the best pieces have legs that are part of the frame, not just attached to it.
After you’ve done that, inspect the piece more carefully, considering the following criteria:
The Frame
A quality sofa or upholstered chair will have a
frame made from kiln-dried hardwood such as oak, alder, birch or maple. (The kiln-drying process keeps the wood from cracking or warping when the humidity changes.) High-quality hardwood plywood or marine plywood is a durable substitute. If the tag doesn’t tell you what kind of wood was used, ask the salesperson. The frame should follow the contours of the furniture—not rely on padding alone to achieve the shape.
The Joinery
Look for joints that have been double-doweled and fitted with corner blocks that are both glued and screwed into place. Avoid blocks that have been stapled into place.
The Deck
The
deck is the bottom of the seating area, underneath the cushions. Inexpensive sofas use interwoven straps affixed to the frame, while better pieces will affix these straps to springs placed around the perimeter, like on a trampoline. The best sofas build the deck with springs.
The Springs
Eight-way, hand-tied springs are a hallmark of fine furniture. In this system, each spring is individually tied to the neighboring spring, providing great comfort, support and durability. Because of the labor involved, this technique is also the most costly. Although eight way, hand-tied springs are still revered in many circles, nearly as fine a result can be had from sinuous S-shaped springs. These springs are made from a continuous piece of metal and are affixed to the frame, running from front to back. A third option is drop-in coil springs, in which self-contained spring units are encased in muslin. As a rule of thumb, the number of springs and the way they are reinforced will dictate the piece’s quality and cost. Make sure the back of the piece has springs in it, too.
The Cushions
Cushions should be made from cotton or polyester fiber, foam or down. Most cushions have a core of polyurethane foam; the denser the foam, the heavier it is and the longer it will last. Better-quality foam will have a density rating of 1.8 to 2.5. In the cheapest furniture, the cushion is filled with just the polyurethane foam core. In better furniture, the core is wrapped with Dacron batting for extra plushness. Costlier options are poly-down cushions, which mix in down with the batting; spring-down cushions, which have a core of springs wrapped in fabric and surrounded by feathers; and all-down, which, as the name suggests, is all feathers (and all work, so avoid unless you have staff or don’t use the piece very much). Keep in mind that cushions will grow softer with time, so a floor model that’s been around a while will have softer cushions than the piece you order new.
The Cover
There are two types of
fabric: natural and synthetic. As a rule, synthetic fabrics are more durable, color-fast and cleanable (the exception being leather.) To determine the fabric’s durability, run your hand over it. Tightly-woven fabrics and fabrics that are heavy will stand up to wear and tear better, as will leather. Fabrics such as satins, brocades or damasks are more delicate, and should be reserved for places where they’ll get less use.
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