To pick up where we left off, let’s talk about why we at Langmore House love reupholstering your old furniture.
I don’t have to tell you that new furniture can be really expensive, but it might come as a surprise to know that you are getting a lot less for your money than you would have fifteen years ago. I'll save the rant about the decline of the American furniture industry (you can read this article if you're interested) and instead focus on some advantages of not buying new.
The cost of reupholstery may at first seem high. A 90” 3-cushion sofa might average around $1,200 not including 15-20 yards of fabric, and a good upholstery-grade cloth will easily run upwards of $20 per yard. Meanwhile, you could go to a big-box furniture store and get a similar looking sofa for under $1,000. If the price tag is the only thing driving your decision then sure, the choice is obvious. But if you look a little deeper at the numbers and consider the value of your dollar, it’s a whole different story.
How did that cheap sofa get so cheap? Is Raymour&Flanigan making less money so they can offer you, their valued customer, a better deal? Absolutely not. In fact, even if you buy that sofa on sale and negotiate an extra 10% with the salesman, they’re still making a hefty profit. So what gives? Quality, that's what.
Strip off the cheap polyester fabric and you’ll find even cheaper foam that breaks down quickly under hard use, leaving the cushions flat and misshapen after a few short years. The frame is made of low grade lumber, poorly jointed with flimsy nails and glue. On the bright side, when you have to throw it out in five years those cheap lightweight materials will make it a breeze to move!
Let’s consider your furniture the way that we might value an item of clothing by price-per-wear. We'll be optimistic and say you get seven years out of the cheap sofa for an investment of $100 per year. But what if, instead of buying the $700 throwaway, you take that old sofa from your mother’s house that she’s been trying to unload and have it reupholstered in a stylish, durable fabric for $20/yard. At $1,500 it’s more than double the cost of the cheap sofa, but the difference is that the older sofa is actually worth every penny you spend on it.
Mom’s castoff is 15 years old, bench-made in America with a hardwood frame and spring-down cushions. It's sturdy and far more comfortable than its cheap counterpart with the stiff poly-fill cushions. That sofa, reupholstered, will easily last another 15 years -- more than double the life of the cheap one for the same annual investment, and you’ll probably get tired of the fabric long before you have to worry about it being worn out. If you can afford the upfront cost, you'll find you have virtually unlimited options of color, pattern, and texture. Even better, your money pays to keep local upholstery craftspeople in business and diverts big items from the landfill.
Wondering if that old piece in the basement is worth saving? We'd be happy to help you do the math!
Heirloom sofa (freshly reupholstered in Kravet velvet) vs. disposable sofa (available at your local Raymour&Flanigan)