Sunday 29 December 2013

The eco-friendly couch hunt - Part 2: Couch Acquired!

You might remember that we are in a hunt for an eco-friendly couch. (If you missed the beginning of our journey, here is the link to Part 1.So, we decided to go with Option 2 - Buy an antique couch and have it re-upholstered in an eco-friendly way.

I like antique/vintage couches. They have a lot of personality and are usually better made than their newer counterparts. We lucked out when this great Queen Anne style sofa and chair came up on an online auction; we picked them up for only $80. I was thrilled. I really like the sofa, especially the wood trim. The wood frame is in great shape and will not need to be refinished.


Our Queen Anne style sofa ready for upholstering

The chair is a bit wider than what I would ideally like but given that it matches the couch, I couldn't leave it behind.

Once home, we tried out how the couch would work in our living room. I was a bit concerned that it might be too large as it is 87" long. Misha was confident that it would work and he was right. The sofa fit perfectly and looked surprisingly well in our space. We feel comfortable going ahead with the re-upholstery plan.

We still have to decide what upholstery fabric to use but we are leaning towards this light grey, organic, 10oz cotton fabric from Tonic Living.

"10 oz Organic Stone" from Tonic Living

The next step is to find the right upholsterer to do the job. We have been in contact with a few already and getting ideas on the price/work involved.

We will keep you posted on our progress. In the meantime, let us know if you have had any upholstery jobs done. We would love to hear your experience.

Mia

3 comments:

  1. How is it going with the couch? I'm planning on sewing up some new cushions for my settee, and I'd love to see what you went with. Oh, and I nominated you for a Liebster award. http://aem-physicsgirl.blogspot.ca/2014/07/in-which-physicsgirl-would-like-to.html

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  2. Hi there!
    I just found your blog after searching for "Behandla wood treatment oil" for my new IKEA worktable. My name is Mia, too, strangely enough! So I have no Behandla oil on hand, and was wondering if I could use some of my tung oil to preserve my wood worktable top. I noticed you used it for your countertops (last year?) and wondered if you could give me your thoughts on it now that you've had a chance to try it out for a while. Thanks so much!
    Mia

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  3. Hi MIa :)
    We used Tung oil for our wood floors only. I chose not to use it for our kitchen countertop because I wanted a food grade oil, given it comes into contact with food. We have been using walnut oil for the countertop and it has been great. No issues at all and really easy to apply. I would likely use walnut oil for worktables just because it comes more into contact with hands and potentially food. Hope this helps.
    Mia

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