apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

You can just buy another cover at ikea, which amortized over its 3+ year life, will come down to a buck or two a month. That's the beauty of ikea.

Also, why not just buy a new sofa if the same one is still $300 and start with a fresh everything? By the way, I'd wanted this sofa a few years ago and my husband talked me out of it. Is it comfy? Because I might need an inexpensive one and if this one is comfy, I'll get it. Please let me know. Thanks, and good luck.

You could also get a great duvet (comforter) cover and split it - Not too much sewing and there are some fun designs out there. Washable too!

I have that same sofa, with the now discontinued green cover. I washed the cover and air dried it and it fit back on just fine - did you put it in the dryer?

It would be pretty easy to reupholster because there's only two pieces (plus pillows) to do

This hint probably is no good in this particular case, but http://www.bemz.com/ - a swedish company who specialize in covers for IKEA furniture. Nice and simple way to make your IKEA furniture more personal :)

Good luck!

Hmm. I think it's worth it to reupholster it, but I woud DIY it. Or just get another, Ikea, cover. It shouldn't be too expensive to recover it yourself without too too much cost though, especially if you own a sewing machine already. Shop around for cheap fabric in the garment district or wherever you get cheap fabric in NYC. I happen to think it would look gorgeous in a light (not pastel, but warm spring-y) blue.

I am mulling over an Ikea reupholster myself. I have the Klippan sofa, had someone sleeping on it for a few days, and they got it all dirty (it had its slipcover off.) Grr... I can't seem to clean it well enough. I hate how the slipcovers from Ikea fit on it, so I'll have to make my own.

Fantastic fabrics on the cheap: http://www.contemporarycloth.com/

Be sure to check the sale fabrics for the best bargains.

Everyone, thanks so much for the comments. Maxwell, thanks for posting my question!

Jackie, this sofa is incredibly comfortable for sleeping. It's also rather nice for lounging, though it benefits from pillows, since it's too wide to comfortably lean against the back. It's up to about $400.00, though now.

Looks like I'll be hitting up the fabric stores this weekend (unless I find a great, sturdy, duvet cover first — thanks SJC). The idea of stitching in 36" zipper is a little intimidating, but…
Promise to post photos, whenever I finish.

arielbl, it's been awhile, but yes — this genius put it in the dryer (on low, but still…).

Another great fabric source online for reproductions of styles from the 40s through today: http://www.reprodepot.com/index.html. With added bonus of being really cheap!

amy - use velcro - i have done this before, much easier than a zipper. bed,bath and beyond have a large selection of duvet covers (altho nowhere near as many and as cheap as the UK!)and crate and barrel have some cool marrimeko ones.

Hi Amy-
You wouldn't really have to reupholster it - just have slipcovers made. Try to find a seamstress - it's basically making two tubes - simple work for one trained in that area. Fabric cost is up to you (and you could even have seasonal versions made). The couch is worth keeping.

Hi Amy- You wouldn't really have to reupholster it - just have slipcovers made. Try to find a seamstress - it's basically making two tubes - simple work for one trained in that area. Fabric cost is up to you (and you could even have seasonal versions made). The couch is worth keeping.

If you do make (or commission) new slipcovers, prewash the fabric so you'll never have the shrinkage problem again. It's such a pleasure to put freshly-washed covers on furniture...I always feel as if I'm getting away with something.

Amy: Thanks for the comfy info. I've always liked this sofa. Its modern, simple, and Ikea is good enough for me until I am able to afford my dream $6,000 sofa. At $400, I might just get it. It was the bed aspect that interested me most.

Hope you found a solution to the cover problem.

prewashing… …so obvious, but I likely would have skipped that step. Thanks Claudia!

I have the same couch and I never actually bought the included slipcover when I got it- they don't last super long, but we just buy extra-long twin sheet sets to upholster it. Use the fitted sheet on the big seat cushion and just staple gun it tight to the bottom. Then cut 1/3 off the regular sheet and use it on the bolster. It's not the "richest" fabric, but you can get sheet sets for really cheap and change it up whenever your mood suits you. I've had it for 3 years and I thin kit's been 6 different color combinations at some point.

Amy,

Did you try ironing the cover with a good steam iron and a lot of pulling? That can often make the difference between something fitting or not, after it has seemingly shrunk.

we have the same problem Amy and would love to know if you've inquired with Ikea about ordering the slipcover separately?

I used the chatbot (Ask Anna) at IKEA and she (it) said that slipcovers are not shown on the site (duh) and to contact the local store. There's stuff in the store that isn't online or in the catalogs anyway, so who knows what treasures await you in the slipcover department?

I sent them an email, which will go to one of the two stores nearest me, and hopefully I'll hear back soon. You can do the same thing, to your own local store.

I have the same sofa that I purchased from Craigslist. The green didn't go with my living room, so I purchased the gray slipcover separately at Ikea for $150 (very recently). They did say, however, that the sofa had been discontinued. The salesperson first told me they were out of the slipcovers, only to find that when she actually checked the stock that they still had some left.

Also, I've seen them on ebay. (Maybe I should put my green one up there!)

PS - Good tips on the prewashing and sheet options!

I just got off the phone with IKEA and they said that the Emeryville, CA store has both the grey and beige covers in stock for $89.00 each. You can see both covers on the sofa online here:
http://tinyurl.com/9lpjv

You can't buy them online, though, you have to check with the local store to see if they are available and how much they are charging. As usual, prices vary by location.

The Dark Grey is very serene. Will be a BIG change from the orange. And there will be a new catalog out pretty soon, around June or so, look for new colors then, as well as colors for the holiday season.

And the name online and in the catalog is ALLERUM.

I have an Ikea couch thats held up for over 6 years. Its still great, but the bright blue color hasn't kept up with my changing style. Its a slipcover that doesn't look like a slipcover. I love the couch, and would love to update it.
I don't want to actually reupholster the couch, just duplicate the cover.
I can't seem to find anyone willing to do it, and am to intimidated to attempt it myself. Any suggestions? References?

Try an ebay search for an Ikea slipcover for your sofa. They have lots of them available in many different styles and colors. Good luck.

Fingers crossed that my attempt at including a photo of my Ikea chair recently purchased on craigslist and recovered by me is successful.

A version of this chair is currently in the online Ikea catalog but with a blond frame (I like the white much better) and a black cover with tan circles that I didn't like at all.

This one, I am told about a year old, had a solid tan cover which I liked better and always intended to cover myself, as I sew and quilt.

The blue and white cotton chintz was left-over from the 25 yards I purchased a couple of years ago at $1.00 per yard (yes, I said ONE dollar) at my favorite bargain fabric place in Spanish Harlem. That volume of fabric was great as I was teaching myself how to make slipcovers and I could afford -- literally-- to make mistakes and redo. And still I had 6 yds left!!

The pillow was created with additional fabrics found at my same source (104th and Third) although they cost $1.99 a yard and were remnants.

Sav-a-thon stocks a limited variety of fabrics, some frankly revolting. But as a quilter, I appreciate a good-quality cotton and I always find great buys there. I go frequently because you never know what they will have.

Oops. It didn't work. I included a URL from photobucket where I had uploaded the image. Sorry. I tried.

Head to http://www.bemz.com/

don't copy the pattern exactly. the original cover is obviously too small for the sofa now, so you would need to make a new cover bigger.

You can go at www.weuweu.com and send your requests to customerservice@weuweu.com