So you just plunked down a small fortune for a new couch or a great upholstered chair. Some tips to keep your new couch from turning into your...well, your old couch, after the jump...
- Vacuum it weekly. This is what those attachments on your vacuum are for.
- Flip the cushions monthly. We also take our cushions outside and hit them with our hand to loosen any dirt the vacuum may have missed.
- Keep eating in the living room to a minimum; avoid if possible. Even the neatest among us occasionally spill.
- Have a plan of attack. Like clothing, furniture has care labels. Read it. If something does happen, have a remedy at the ready along with a clean white cloth. Use any cleaner sparingly, patting and blotting. And always test it first in an inconspicuous place to make sure it won’t discolour the fabric.
- Aways have a back-up plan. In some cases, you may be better off calling in a professional cleaner or taking the cushion covers to the dry cleaner. We suggest taking them all in at once so that any fading is even.
[Image via Living Etc.]
Alexis' Modern Glass House 
Before & After: A Bathroom Goes From Pinky Peach to Sleek and Chic
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Tom Black Espadrille
20 Scrumptious Brunch Recipes 
Magic One-Ingredient Ice Cream 5 Ways: Peanut Butter, Nutella, and More
Comments (15)
You could always do like grandma and wrap the furniture in plastic :-)
That is one funky sofa!
Yes, or never use the living room like my parents.
that sofa is awesome.
Well, if you spilled anything on that couch, you could just replace a patch--no one would know the difference!
Also don't make a habit of sleeping on it, as obvious as that sounds. My friends sofa looks disgusting, as in I don't even want to sit on it, there is like a layer on grim on the bottom half. Her boyfriend has a habit of falling asleep to the TV and then not wanting to move. The sofa is only a few years old looks like it needs to be replaced. Just gross, and I can't believe how quickly it happened.
i agree, don't use the furniture at all!
no pets on furniture...
What about squished cushions? I have a very nice room & board couch, but I find that my cushions seems to be seeming to get less and less full ... I know you can buy new ones for $100 a pop too, which isn't too bad, but it's not very old, a few years.
I'm getting annoyed by the gratuitous hyperlinking. Eating = The Kitchn?? Give me a break.
Tip 5: Find pets a new good home with old furniture.
In a perfect world our things would stay in great condition, but furniture is for living on and with. I'd like to keep my things perfect but not at the expense of creating a lifestyle that is more suited to my sofa than my family.
I have a worn leather sofa that my kids scratch with their fingernails and has survived several spills. It just adds to the patina/character of the thing and am I ever so grateful to have it.
any tips on preventing the new sofa from becoming the new scratching post? :-(
I am waiting with bated breath for the delivery truck as I type!
mjr, have you seen this option?
laure, your post made my day! lol!