New settee advice

mrochester

mrochester

mrochester

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Joined
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Newcastle upon Tyne
Hi all

I'm looking for a new settee and armchair. We've spotted 2 that we like at Marks and Spencer, one a £1000 settee that's been reduced to £500 and another is from the 'Outstanding value' range that is £350.

Now, having never bought a suite, I'm struggling to see why one is so much cheaper than the other. The only difference we could see between the two in the shop was that the more expensive one had thicker filling in the backs, but the seats themselves were identical.

Otherwise, on the website, both settees appear to be almost identical short of the style and price. Anyone got any ideas why one is much cheaper, or is this simply a case of the 'outstanding value' settee being closer to the true price of the settee with the other one having a much higher markup?

Many thanks for any advice!

http://www.marksandspencer.com/Rigb...031&pf_rd_p=215570647&pf_rd_s=related-items-3

http://www.marksandspencer.com/Rosi...031&pf_rd_p=215570647&pf_rd_s=related-items-3
 
Padding will break down, usually higher end will mean better quality filling which will take longer to break down and perhaps in a way which doesn't produce lumps.

If you plan to keep these for a long time, worth spending the extra. If not then just get the cheaper ones for now to tide you over!
 
iraiguana said:
Padding will break down, usually higher end will mean better quality filling which will take longer to break down and perhaps in a way which doesn't produce lumps.

If you plan to keep these for a long time, worth spending the extra. If not then just get the cheaper ones for now to tide you over!
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I don't know what is classed as a long time though! I'd hope they'd perhaps last 5 years+ but I've no idea if that's realistic.
 
Cheap sofa will last probably up to 5 years, a decent sofa and it will last you closer to 10. A very good sofa can last up to 20 or more years from the experience in of my parents. Depends if you will want to redecorate within a particular period.

We have material sofas and leather. Leather will last longer, but you may need to recondition them after a certain period of time (replace the filling). Leather also needs treating properly so it doesn't dry out and crack, but it depending on colour will survive redecorating better than a material design.
 
iraiguana said:
Cheap sofa will last probably up to 5 years, a decent sofa and it will last you closer to 10. A very good sofa can last up to 20 or more years from the experience in of my parents. Depends if you will want to redecorate within a particular period.

We have material sofas and leather. Leather will last longer, but you may need to recondition them after a certain period of time (replace the filling). Leather also needs treating properly so it doesn't dry out and crack, but it depending on colour will survive redecorating better than a material design.
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It'll definitely be a fabric sofa as I have a cat that occassionally scratches the furniture, so leather would be ripped to shreds!

As long as the covers can be removed (which they can), I assume that the filling can actually be replaced?
 
davenjac said:
I've been out of the country a few years, but doesn't everyone just go to DFS any more ;0)
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We did indeed go to DFS but there was only 1 style we liked in there that was considerably more expensive. For some reason there are some really bizarre designs and styles of suites out there right now that I think just look hideous!
 
DFS sofas although aesthetically challenging are quite high quality.
Not as high quality as the properly hand made full leather suites you can buy with full timber frames and variable springing etc etc.

Its one of those areas where you should really buy as best as you can afford, cheap sofas will be be gash, a good quality one will last years if you can find one in a neutral style.
 
I bought a pair of 2 seater sofas to fill a room from a catalouge shop and by god they are Gash, to use a word i just read above.

I would really really try and find the time to visit a local showroom and try to find something there.

The ones you have linked looks similar to what i got and whilst i cant say it will be gash it may well be gash. Poorly filled hollow fibre rubbish.

You really do get what you pay for. If mine where for my lounge id have cringed, lucky they were for the spare room fillers
 
atpbx said:
DFS sofas although aesthetically challenging are quite high quality.
Not as high quality as the properly hand made full leather suites you can buy with full timber frames and variable springing etc etc.

Its one of those areas where you should really buy as best as you can afford, cheap sofas will be be gash, a good quality one will last years if you can find one in a neutral style.
Click to expand...

Well the best I could afford would be thousands, but I have no desire to spend thousands on a settee and armchair! I don't want to spend over the odds for something that is just a designer product, but equally I want something that is going to last a good few years (5-10 years perhaps). With only 2 of us in the house, the settee and chair wouldn't get that much use, and the most abuse it'll ever have to stand up to is the cat scratching it every now and then (other than us sitting on them of course!).

I bought a pair of 2 seater sofas to fill a room from a catalouge shop and by god they are Gash, to use a word i just read above.

I would really really try and find the time to visit a local showroom and try to find something there.

The ones you have linked looks similar to what i got and whilst i cant say it will be gash it may well be gash. Poorly filled hollow fibre rubbish.

You really do get what you pay for. If mine where for my lounge id have cringed, lucky they were for the spare room fillers
Click to expand...

We went to DFS, SCS, Harveys, Furniture Village, CSL, Next, House of Fraser and M&S. Of the 4 we liked, all of which are comfortable to sit on, they would be the following prices: £1200 (Furniture Village), £950 (DFS), £800 (M&S) and £600 (M&S). Now, nothing jumped out to me about the £1200 option that would mean it would cost twice as much as the cheapest one other than the sales guy saying that it was 'new in' (and thus doesn't yet appear on their website).

http://www.dfs.co.uk/sofas/fabric-sofas/poppy/

The DFS ones definitely have really thick seats and have a more 'natural' shape to them than the very clean, sharp edges of both the M&S suites. Is this a sign of higher quality? Will these last much longer as a result? Are they £350 "better"?
 
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i paid £1,300 for recliner sofa almost 11 years ago and still going very strong. no problem at all!

before that i had 'cheap' sofa in my old flat, they last 4 years. binned it at the end
 
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