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Buying a sofa in the UK… our top 5 picks and how to make the right choice.

Our round up of the UK’s finest sofa offerings

Buying your first “serious” sofa in the UK is not easy… you’re not alone if you find yourself inundated with choice but unable to make a final decision.

Navigating through the broad range of styles, quality and pricing is tricky.

At Victorian Home, to help you in our search, we’re providing our crib sheet (see below).

In this article we’ll give you a steer on our top 3 favourite sofas along with a couple of admirable mentions. We’ll tell you why we think these sofas stand out from the crowd. We’ll provide for a range of budgets too.

First, our sofa crib sheet, as follows:

  • The “look” of your sofa is important, but comfort is non-negotiable

  • …don’t compromise on comfort

  • Hardwood frame only. No talk of softwood, chipboard, whateverboard

  • Coil springs should be in the seat. No springs… move on

  • Seat cushions must be densely packed, preferably with foam and feathers

    [Cushions offering measly bounceback resilience in the store will not suddenly develop a backbone when they arrive in your home]

  • Sit on the sofa in the store. Yes, a physical store.

  • Lie on the sofa in the store…

  • A high quality sofa is heavy. It should be pretty difficult to lift, move, throw…

  • Owners’ feet, when seated, should be able to plant squarely on the floor

  • Owners’ knees, when seated, shouldn’t be higher than their nipples

  • Fabric should be 30,000 rub count or higher (unless broken yarn is your thing)

  • A sofa is not a Christmas tree. It doesn’t need to lighten up the living room


Top 3:

Love Your Home’s 'Florence’ sofa featured in small stripe pink fabric.

Brand: Love Your Home

Model: The Florence

Price: from £2,935

Pros:

  • Comfort score is off the charts (we love the Florence’s high back)

  • Vintage design but with a fresh, contemporary feel

  • Cushion quality is excellent

  • The details; the piping on the cushions, the scalloped arms (we’re big fans)

  • LYH has a superb showroom just outside Godalming (Surrey, UK); 40 mins from London by train and worth a visit!

Cons:

  • We think the Florence looks amazing in LYH’s 100% cotton fabric, but for everyday use the durability of this farbric might come up short

  • LYH’s sofas are manufactured in central Europe. Whilst we have zero hang ups about that, we think it can make lead times and delivery that little bit more challenging

  • It’s in the higher price range amongst its competition (it’s probably worth it!)

Barker and Stonehouse’s ‘Hoxton’ in marmalade orange in their Dusk chenille fabric range.

Brand: Barker and Stonehouse

Model: The Hoxton

Price: £1,879

Pros:

  • A structured marshmellow of a sofa! It exudes comfort

  • Feather-filled arms make for the perfect pillows (think supine position)

  • The chenille fabric exudes the rich colour of velvet whilst being even softer

  • We think the price point is hard to beat

Cons:

  • This sofa’s unorthodox arms might not be everyone’s cup of tea

  • The colour range in the chenille fabric is limited; although you can customise by delving into B&S’s other fabric ranges (note: you can only do this in store)

Loaf’s ‘Dawdler’ sofa in Butter Drip clever vintage linen.

Brand: Loaf

Model: The Dawdler

Price: from £1,545

Pros:

  • The Dawdler offers superb structure whilst oozing a sleek, vintage design

  • The cushions require very little plumping… they seem to auto-plump

  • Loaf’s “clever” fabrics are practically indestructible

  • At such a reasonable price, you get premium customer service and guarantees from Loaf (they might just be top of the pile when it comes to customer trust)

Cons:

  • It’s on the deep side. Some might find their legs dangling…

  • Whilst Loaf has developed incredibly robust fabrics, we haven’t fallen in love with their colour wheel



Admirable mentions:

Soho Home’s ‘Mossley’ in Olive velvet, as featured in their Chelsea showroom.

Brand: Soho Home

Model: The Mossley

Price: £3,795 (there’s discount for Soho Home members)

Pros:

  • Soho Home have created a beautiful looking sofa in all its vintage glory

  • We think their velvet colourways are unrivalled; olive, lichen, grey blue

  • The design, whilst simple, is a head-turner and probably our favorite

  • It’s also an excuse to go to one of their gorgeous showrooms in Chelsea or Notting Hill

Cons:

  • It’s low to the ground with a back that is not particularly high… we asked ourselves if it offered enough structure to be our daily driver

  • The price… it’s on the high side. The sofa cushions will need a lot of plumping!

Sofas & Stuff’s ‘Alwinton’ sofa pictured in Hovingham Woven Linen Stripe Blue.

Brand: Sofas & Stuff

Model: The Alwinton

Price: £3,285

Pros:

  • We love how the Alwinton embraces classic design. For those more intent on committing to a timeless style, we think this sofa is a winner

  • The build quality is superb

  • The fabric choice is incredibly diverse (we think Sofas and Stuff are leading the charge on fabrics). You can get the Alwinton in Harris Tweed if you so wish!

Cons:

  • We think the Alwinton is a 2 seater. The middle section is a bit of a crevasse

  • The list price is on the high side… look out for those discount opportunities

  • We wish we liked more of S&S’s sofa range!






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