We found new living room furniture…all in one super successful trip to the Room & Board outlet. My hubby stayed in the car with sleeping children and I got to go in the store to look around first. I was texting him photos of the pieces I liked and luckily he kept replying “get it”. I was happy to oblige. We had been scouting out the outlet for several weeks and knew what was a good deal and when to pass.
After living with our old furniture in the new house for a while we learned a lot about what we wanted. Our goals for the new sofa were:
- Less than 120″ long (the length of our old, too long, sectional)
- Seating for four (so longer than the small 80″ sofas)
- Tight back – we don’t like loose cushions on the back, because they look slouchy overtime
- Neutral, but not beige, tan, or light brown (we don’t want it to blend into the carpet)
Enter the André…three cushion, 101″ sofa. We found one in a dark grey (pewter) micro-velvet for $1199 (regular price with was $1899). The André has a tight back with one simple row of button tufting. I was a little nervous at first about the color. We were planning to paint the room dark grey after all, but the sofa would be floating in the room and the walls directly behind it were a light grey blue. Plus, The Andre looked pretty good on the family room inspiration board.
A much better picture from Room & Board. Such a beautiful sofa.The same day I also scored a new round ottoman. We still like the leather one we had, but found ourselves using it in front of the fireplace to keep the kids away. I fell in love with this big round guy, so we could have an ottoman in front of the sofa again. I had seen him at the outlet a week before for $399 (regularly $699), but this week it was marked down to $199. I just could not pass it up. A giant round upholstered ottoman on casters is perfect for a family room with kids. We can move it out of the way for playtime or pull it right up to the couch for a makeshift chaise on movie nights.
The first time I saw and fell in love with this big round guy. But, I passed on him…I did not want to spend $399 on an ottoman.
Aaahhh…he was still there the next weekend. I was right to pass the first time, because now he was marked down to $199! I claimed him right then and there.When I was in line to check out my sofa and ottoman, I made an impulse buy. I did not even text my hubby, but I just knew he would approve. Right up front their was a white Eames molded armchair by Herman Miller. It was in perfect condition and only $249 (regularly $349). I know it was not a huge discount and you can get knockoffs for much less, but these guys go quick at the outlet. I just had to have it. It was the perfect scale for squeezing in a little extra seating in the family room. Plus the Eames chairs are so comfortable! For a long time I have wanted the rocking version, but I was happy to settle for this one and actually glad it does not rock making it easier for the kids to get in and out of. It is my 18 month olds favorite place to sit.
I know, this is the worst picture ever of an Eames chair. But I snapped it quick before I checked out. I was going to need some sort of explanation for the extra $249 on the receipt.The sofa, Eames chair, and ottoman with tax totaled less then $1800! Within a week our three new pieces were delivered. We move the old sectional to it’s future home in the basement. We angled the André towards the back of the family room with the console table and spun metal floor lamp behind it. We centered the ottoman on the couch. The Eames chair fit nicely in the corner near the windows. To round out the living room furniture for now, I found a leather storage bench at Home Goods. My husband thought there was one too many ottomans with the leather one in front of the fireplace and the new round one. He was right. We replaced the leather ottoman with a narrower leather bench in front of the fireplace. The new bench freed up some floor space and added some much needed functionality. The bench opens with a huge storage area for hiding oversized toys.
I am still on the look out for the perfect pair of chairs to sit in front of the windows. In the pics above we borrowed the yellow Anson chairs from the office for extra seating when our family was in town, but they were a little bulky for the space. I am on the lookout for something airy and armless, as to not block the windows too much. Once they are found, the Eames chair will be relocated to the other side of the room closer to the fireplace (just like in the pics above).
Stumbled across your blog from Google – very inspired by your room makeovers! We just moved ourselves and I’m currently working on our family room too. I’m impressed you got away with hiding so many of your toys! It’s also a little uncanny the similarity between our styles. We also bought a similar sofa for the family room, and our new Eames rocker just arrived this week! Love it.
Ronnie
I was wondering how the Andre has held up? In some of your pictures, the fabric on the cushions looks kinda wrinkly and not that tight.
Hi Richard,
Wow did you pick up that we are hard on our sofas?! With two rowdy boys and a dog, our Andre gets lots of abuse, but it is holding up pretty well. The cushion closest to the TV, that gets the most use, is starting to sag and wrinkle on the front edge. Before buying the Andre at the outlet, I read all the online reviews and several reported the cushions did not hold up well over time and some had the foam inserts replaced. We love the style of the couch and the outlet price so much, we were willing to accept we may need the cushion inserts replaced down the road. I must admit though, step 1 would probably be to rotate the cushions…which we have never done. That way the one cushion with prime TV viewing would not get all the wear and tear.
Thanks for the reminder to rotate my cushions!