apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Is this a serious question? How can this kid not know how to throw something over the couch? Tapestries have been around for decades. There's a little thing called Urban Outfitters that specializes in goodlooking tapestries (108") for just such occasions. Target rolled out some really sharp ones for back to school. Heaven knows you could buy a flat sheet or even a large piece of fabric. Whatever catches your fancy. Leave the arms out or cover them - it's up to you.

http://www.target.com/gp/search.html/602-0013599-7234209?field-keywords=bed %2B tapestry&url=index%3Dtarget&ref=sr_bx_1_1

http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/category.jsp?_DARGS=/urban/catalog/common/highlited_itemcount.jsp_A&_DAV=true&_dynSessConf=-7277777692999084936&viewAllOnOnePage=yes&itemCount=-1&pushId=&id=A_FURN_BEDDING&startValue=1&selectedProductColor=&navCount=1&navAction=poppush&sortby=&popId=

If those cushions are totally separate from the couch, perhaps you could get some pretty fabric from a store and just staple it over them? Obviously sewing would be better, but it doesn't seem like you want to keep the couch in the long term and I certainly wasn't capable of sewing anything when I was in college (still am not, actually). Pretty much the cheapest fix I can think of.

The other alternative is to get a futon slipcover, since those won't cover the arms, but I don't know if the sizing would be right.

there are always some cool bedspreads at urban outfitters that range from $25-50 and are usually large enough to cover couches. I've bought a few to cover my couch and protect it from my dog. they're easy to wash and replace.

Canface,
If the various pillows all come off (and it looks like they might), your best bet is to cover the pillows and then plop them back in place- easier, cheaper, and neater than trying to cover that couch with a store-bought slipcover designed for a sofa with much bigger arms. If you can't sew and don't know anyone who does, you could also wrap the pillows in a sheet (wrap the top and bottom separately). This will look OK, but is likely to move a lot when people sit on the sofa.

sorry- Candace, not Canface- my typing is getting worse by the day!

If you are compelled to keep that couch, paint the exposed wood white so you can pretend the shape is some kind of European country look, not... what it is. Take a large quantity of safety pins and a king-sized sheet with a European country sort of pattern -- wrap sofa in sheet and use pins to anchor. Make someone give you some coordinating toss pillows to help distract the eye further.

Really, this is only worthwhile if you're isolated somewhere without thrift stores, Craig's List, and curbside pick-up for large unwanted items, so you can't scavenge something more your style.

Actually, that couch is pretty sweet. I'd go get some really fantastic-looking fabric in a crazy pattern - a tapestry would be good for this - and wrap it around each cushion and staple in place as others have suggested. Then I'd take one of the brightest colors out of the fabric - yellow, lime, bright pink - and paint the wooden frame that color. Then you'll have a whole palette of colors from the fabric to use around the rest of the apartment.

And you need something on those walls! Try a big canvas painted one solid color (again, from the palette of colors in your fabric) - it's cheaper than buying something and since I imagine you can't paint it'll give the place some color.

One other thing -- do not staple into 30-year-old foam cushions and that wide-weave fabric. Your staples will pull right out, and you'll have a mess. Safety pins, pinning fabric to fabric, will save you a lot of grief.

If you want to anchor the bottom front of your fabric so that the wood shows, sew ribbons roughly where the legs are (this takes about three stitches by hand -- you can do it) and tie the ribbons around the legs.

Should you have to cut fabric at any point, you can improvise a hem with iron-on sticky interfacing. It comes both in sheets and in rolls like masking tape.

Paint the couch - paint it some fun fabulous silly color befitting your age and personality. Bright yellow? Deep plum? The skies the limit. If you're not good with a sewing machine, use heat tape and sew/iron size appropriate-like pillow cases to cover each sofa cushion. Get some fun fabric that coordinates with the paint you've selected. You're better off going with a darker fabric so the plaid doesn't show through. Need cheap fabric? Hit a Marshalls and check the clearance section for dark colored sheets

Design saavy aside, yelling at and ridiculing the people who ask questions is just plain not nice.

Sheets from a thrift store would be the best buy - providing you can find something at least a few degrees more desirable than the stuff that's already on there. Sheets also release stains and fuzzy-type deposits (hair of the people or pet persuasion) with ease.

Are you averse to painting the wooden frame? If not, funk it up a bit with a pop of color that coordinates with whatever sheets/covers you find.

And beware the wooden arms when you decide to flop down in one quick motion...many a head-bump has been caused by over-zealous relaxers!

You've gotten some good advice here, but I would not use sheets or anything else so lightweight to cover the cushions - it will wrinkle and the texture of the fabric underneath will show through.

Colors and patterns can also be tricky if you don't have money for accessories, etc. If the couch is going to remain in the same room with that navy futon thing, it might be safer to go with the navy; you could paint the wood parts white and use a blue and white-striped fabric (stripes that are at least a few inches wide are best). Corduroy is also a cheap and durable alternative for a solid-colored fabric; you could go with the same navy as the other couch and paint the wood black to match the other frame, then get nicer patterned fabric for making fun pillows.

Eeeck's posting reminded me -- don't rule out upholstery fabric remnants. They sometimes go cheap, and that fabric will be thick enough to mask the texture of the existing cushions.

Embrace it! Everyone has an ugly couch as a freshman in college (if they have a couch at all).

Cover the cushions in black bedding and paint the frame black as well.

Put what money and time you have into getting pieces you both need and like.

Ikea, Craig's List, thrift shops, consignment shops, and even church and sidewalk sales are places to look for "cheap, but good" pieces.

As for the other issue raised in this thread, perhaps there are some people who need to be reminded that at one point everyone was young and starting out with his or her own space, which included handmedowns and excluded a budget, more often than not.

In order to make it look like everything is cohesive and not just crammed together, I'd paint the futon frame, the couch frame, and that TV stand all one color. I'm partial to white, but whatever you feel would work. If you think you're going to change your mind about the look of your place down the road, pick a nuetral.

I don't know what your personal style preferance is, but that couch looks like it would work well with a shabby-chic design on the cushions. Shabby-chic is a good look for people in your situation who sort of come across thier furniture one way or the other.

The iron-on sticky adhesive is a great alternative to sewing. It's really not hard to sew by hand but doing it well does take practice as well as time. If you don't possess either, then I'd do the adhesive.

I personally can't afford my taste (unless there's an Eames chair out there in perfect condition for $50) so you have to work with what you have. More importantly, make it reflect your own style as much as possible on a tight budget.

I kinda like the couch as is! It's very "SoCal parents' basement." I think if you decorated your Apt. with a slight 70s vibe or a 90s grunge bar meets the apt on Friends in a dark alley it would really work.

Besides if you plan on having parties - it's the perfect party couch and you'll be glad you didn't invest too much in it after a few keggers.

That reminds me (obviously, I'm on board for this project, despite my dislike of the sofa) -- if you're young and broke, you need to develop your personal network of thrift stores (never pass one without checking it, and make notes about whether it's worth a second visit) and you need to make a habit of visiting the clearance racks of higher-end stores. These are usually to the back of the store, often in a corner. If you're near Target, they do clearance shelves near the departments being cleared and sometimes do major markdowns, especially if a scratch or two doesn't bother you. The rare Pier 1 outlets provide $5 pillows, if you can find one.

Also -- dollar stores often have decent accessories, and nothing compares to a really big, really cheap Asian housewares store.

I agree with aaron...embrace the ugliness and just be happy you even have a sofa AND an apartment for your freshman year. You are extremely fortunate and should count your blessings. I lived on campus all 4 years during college because I didn't have the money to rent an apartment and my parents refused to pay extra for that when the dorms were perfectly fine.

Perhaps you should focus on your studies more and worry about your decor less. You're very young and you have the rest of your adult working life to focus on interior design ;-)

I didn't yell at or ridicule anyone. I expressed genuine confusion through a few questions. No caps, exclamation points or sarcasm were used in answering this post.

They make velcro and fabric glue/tape that will let you create cushion covers in a "no-sew" method. Or make fast friends with an interior design or architecture student. You may also have an aunt or another relative who has some basic sewing knowledge.

Instead of pins I would use velcro or sew it closed (in a spot theat is covered by the frame so it doesn't show). I have used a bed spread as well as a high thread count dark sheet. Both worked ok for what they were.

Lots of good idea's here. The $1 stores are an endless source, pillow cases, table clothes. Try and wrap each cushion like a Christmas present, use good large safety pins on the underside, the smaller ones pull through or bend. I personally would pick the fabric first and pick a paint colour from that for the frame. Use it to have some fun, in a few years it will be a memory and you will look back on it as a great time in your life. Good luck

Paint the woodwork on the couch white and do the cushions in a bright color or black. Really striking contrast. And then get a rug. It will make the area feel more like a living room.

Since this is your first apartment and all the furniture was free, don't feel like you have to keep it as it is. Go one step beyond what you think is sane and you'll have the coolest stuff.

When I was in college with my first apartment I painted cardboard file boxes to store my stuff. And then painted my shelves and furniture to match. One leopard print cardboard box is the only thing I have left from that now. But it's good memories and it was definitely fun.

You're lucky. I was required to live in a dorm for my first two years of college. Be careful, an apartment can be very distracting to your studies, but I digress.

What you have Candace is the quintessential college sofa. Leave it and work with it. Make it first priority to hit all the goodwill and thrift stores in the area. Grab your buddy and his/her car and make an afternoon out of it. Find a comfy lounge chair at the thrift store or on the street to replace the futon. The futon can function as an extra bed or lounge in one of the bedrooms.

Candles, paintings, table linens, knick knacks, rugs, end tables, plates, cups, teapot, ashtrays (smokers?), tapestries, lamps, clocks. I'll guarantee that whatever you pick out will match that sofa. You can create an inviting home for a hundred bucks.

I don't know what your style is but it is amazing what a big patterned area rug can do in a situation like this. You can go for a bohemian look or just a simple and basic pattern. This you may want to splurge for ($100) at a costco or walmart or something like that. Split the cost with your roommate. People mentioned Urban Outfitters too, I didn't have that when I was in college-I'm old and decrepit now.

Most importantly have fun! It's an adventure and it's your first home. Be proud of it. There's something very rewarding about spending what little money you have set aside to create a place that people will feel very at home in--your first home away from home.

This trick requires a bit of dilligence but when executed well you can essentially 'rent' big ticket items like furniture, for a year for essentially nothing. It's actually quite simple, take a credit card with a 0% introductory rate for the first year go to costco.com or samsclub.com or your local club store if they happen to carry furniture, pick a sofa, charge it, save the reciept. Enjoy your new furniture during the school year and once you're ready to check out for the summer call up Sam's Club/Costco and tell them that you're not happy with the sofa and you would like to return it. They'll try some preassure tactics but stick to your guns and they will credit your card and come and pick up the sofa. What also may happen is that they will credit your card and never come to pick up the sofa since often times it's cheaper to let you keep it for nothing than it is to pick it up as it's most likely to be destroyed or donated anyhow. Now some may find this ethically dubious and I would agree, but let's be honest, poverty and want is a strong argument.

Mea culpa. I confused condescension with ridicule.

Spray paint, sheets, scissors, duct tape.

Anything will be an improvement, right?

Hey, I think I saw your sofa in the burning man slides.

I think if you cannot afford to replace the couch with something else; not even a roadside replacement, then leave it alone.
Painting it will require lots of rough sanding, and I doubt the painted look will work with the existing fabric. Unless you go with black or something.
The couch isn't worth investing in covering either unless it's done well which will cost you. If it was mine I wouldn't try the makeshift recovering suggestions. It really won't last.
If you are going to keep the thing then focus on making it look its best by working on the rest of the room. ie; paint scheme and complementing decor. You're dealing with a quirky imposing item. Work with it or replace it.

oh, I might also search craigslist for a tv stand and use your coffee table as a coffee table

How can this kid not know how to throw something over the couch? Tapestries have been around for decades. There's a little thing called Urban Outfitters that specializes in goodlooking tapestries (108") for just such occasions.

You seriously think those sentences are just showing "confusion"? Wow. Excuse us young lowlifes for not ever having the privilege of visiting an Urban Outfitters, much less knowing its product lines and measurements by heart.

Anyway...that couch would have made me die laughing if I wasn't in a deathly silent office. My parents had the same exact couch for my entire life and who knows how long before that. It took that thing over 30 years to finally break...and they still used it. lol. My little brother convinced them to buy a new couch this past year though.

burn the couch
throw some pillows on the floor and paint your walls black-that was pretty much my first student home....I've come a long way baby!!

Consider a canvas drop cloth from a paint shop - natural color, very big, very cheap, heavyweight and neutral. http://www.tarps.com/dropcloth.htm

Try "tailoring" it (with safety pins) and see if you can fold it cover the arms in anacceptable way - maybe buy sheets of foam and put it over the arms to "pad" them under the cover. Use strapping tape or package tape to hold the foam in place if it works (tape the foam to itself, not to the wood).

If using the drop cloth as a sheet doesn't work, you can cut it and cover pillows individually - or cover all the upper pillows as a unit and the lower ones the same way (you could velcro the sides of the pillows so they stay together under the cover)

Once you have a neutral "ground" you can work on throw pillows, paint, etc. If you find scraps of fabric you like, you can buy pillow inserts very cheaply http://www.pillowsxpress.com/index.php?p=ajax_catalog&parent=6&pg=1

Dearest Lady J

Your comments in reaction to the OP's post were not directed to the OP, they were addressed to other readers of the forum. I would have to concur with another writer, who deemed this to be ridicule, not helpful, and not nice.

"Is this a serious question? How can this kid not know how to throw something over the couch? Tapestries have been around for decades. There's a little thing called Urban Outfitters that specializes in goodlooking tapestries (108") for just such occasions."

But that's just me and a couple of others....

Safety pin this $32 dollar bed spread to the cushions and paint the wood bright orange.
http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&_dynSessConf=6158798859486230324&itemdescription=true&itemCount=-1&id=13816061&parentid=A_FURN_BEDDING&sortProperties=%2Bproduct.marketingPriority%2C-product.startDate&navCount=2&_D%3AnavCount= &navAction=poppush&color=&_DARGS=%2Furban%2Fcatalog%2Fcommon%2Fitemlink.jsp

find a random box to hold your tv and reclaim your coffee table. Spray paint coffee table and put stencils on it, either urban graffiti or something prettier, this kind of look is similar

http://www.umbra.com/ustore/product/322725/c390/slope_table.html

Nothing can save that futon, although the other stuff is just as fugly, you just can't funk this kind of cheap up , so throw a massive cover over all of it (including arms), and most importantly totally smother it with heaps of mix n match cushions that you make yourself, buy at thrift shops and at target.

Oh and make some art, or get stylish coordinated, arty, posters for your walls.

Ha, heres me talking about going to target, I don't even live in the US!!

OK, lets all remember how much living was done on the couch in your first apartment. Unless Candace is better behaved than any college student I know, this needs to stand up to a lot. I vote for painting the frame and velcroing a cover, and lots of pillows so everything can be washed. I like the idea of a white frame with a blue & white toile or frenchy fabric, with pillows shared withthe futon, or if you want something bolder I loved the idea of something orange. If you are close to an IKEA they have great inexpensive fabric too. I used a fitted sheet over my futon for years--and I was a thirty-something single working mom, not a college student.

Some good drapes at the large window (IKEA is also good for those) would also help pull this room together.

As a fellow college student I second Urban Outfitters, I recently bought a bed spread on sale there for only $10, look around at their bedspreads, usually they have a few on sale.