Monday, December 28, 2020

Best Furniture for Pet Owners

Can pet-friendly furniture and great style co-exist in your home? Absolutely! You may have to give up dreams of a velvet sofa or loose-weave area rug, but there are still plenty of great-looking fabrics and materials – even leather! – that are surprisingly forgiving when it comes to scratches, pet hair, odors and random accidents.

Here's what to look for if you’re in the market for new furniture that won’t get wrecked by your fur babies.



Choose Pet-friendly Upholstery Fabrics

Fabrics with high polyester, acrylic, or other synthetic material content should be your first line of defense for everyday spots. Most of these fabrics can be cleaned with an over-the-counter carpet or fabric cleaner instead of calling in the professionals. Just wipe with a damp cloth to clean, and remove pet hair with a dry microfiber cloth, pet sponge, lint brush or tape.

Convenient, but not sexy enough for your living room, you say? Read on.

Outdoor Fabrics

At Baer’s, we’re big fans of Sunbrella fabrics. The colorfast acrylic fabric was made to repel spots, spills and soil, but comes in beautiful colors and patterns that look and feel like high-end velvet or linen! Added bonus: you can take your cushions outside to clean with a hose.

Microfiber

Smooth and soft as suede, microfibers, including microsuede, are a tight weave of polyester fibers which are as much as 1/100th the diameter of a human hair (finer than silk!). This is a dream fabric for pet owners, because that soft, luxurious surface repels allergens and odors. Liquid spills bead up and sit on the surface, giving you time to blot them up before they soak in. Soil can be cleaned with a little dishwashing soap, and tears and pulls are nearly non-existent.

Leather

Real leather furniture is four times more durable than fabric. It will last for 20 years, so go ahead and splurge. Protected leather such as "corrected grain" or "top grain" – which is treated with a resin coating - is the most common type of leather upholstery, because it’s easy to clean, odor and scratch-resistant. Of course, distressed leather is the most forgiving. If you like the look, that may be your best bet of all.

Just make sure you are getting the real thing, or your furniture isn’t going to withstand your furry friends. Faux leather will fall apart faster than you think.

Custom Upholstery

Since you are investing in a new look, comfort, and more, you can design pet friendly couches with custom upholstery. At Baer’s, we have hundreds of options to customize your choice piece of furniture. You can outfit your entire living room with custom upholstery for a fresh, pet-friendly new look.

Camouflage Non-friendly Fabrics with Patters & Colors

If you have your heart set on a certain sofa that doesn't come in a pet-friendly fabric, you have options. Try choosing a geometric or floral pattern or darker color – an earth tone, gray or green – can camouflage daily spots and shedding. Try matching the color to your dog or cat’s coat. Treat sofas, chair and pillows with Scotchgard to make messes easier to wipe up.

Cover Your Couch in Style

If you’ve been draping your furniture with throws to cover pet stains and keep them at bay, consider a slipcover instead. Today’s slipcovers are durable, easy to wash and come in a wide variety of patterns and colors. You can give the sofa you already love a fresh look every year or so and have the fun of updating your living room to match without the expense of buying all new things.

Baer’s offers a full collection of Sunbrella furniture, microfiber and leather furniture for pet-owners that will preserve the style you love and keep you and your four-legged family members happy for many years to come. 

Read Baer's Furniture reviews. Get more design inspiration from Bear's Furniture on Pinterest.

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

How Much Are Sectional Couches?

Do you wonder "how much are sectional couches," and why some seem so much less than others?

The quick and easy answer is that prices can vary based on the quality of the materials, how the piece is constructed, and if the sectional is built to last.

A sectional is a versatile piece of furniture that you can use in many ways. Once you purchase one, you’ll find that it lets you maximize your space and offers tons of seating for family and friends. You may even wonder how you survived without one.

That’s why it’s important to make sure you get a quality sectional couch that will seat your family for years to come. Let’s break it down.

Cost of Materials Makes a Difference

There are several factors that determine the price of sectional couches, however, the main driver is the cost of the raw materials of its main components — the foam used in the cushions, the wood used in the frame, and the upholstery that covers it — as well as the labor it takes to build it.

Cushion Quality

Cushions are one of the most important features of a sectional. Most people do the sit test or even the nap test when shopping for a sectional sofa, testing the cushions to see if they are comfortable. Comfort, and durability, depend upon a cushion's material.

Foam products used for cushions range in quality. For example, a sectional at a lower price point is likely to have a 1.8 density cushion that will last about 2-3 years. It’s almost always the cushions that break down first, since they get the most wear and tear.

The thicker the cushion, the more it costs the manufacturer to produce the sectional, but the longer it will last. A sectional at a higher price point is likely to have longer-lasting foam that offers consistent weight distribution and ensures individual comfort for each seating area.

Upholstery Fabric

The same goes for the upholstery fabric — better material means higher cost. For example, leather and velvet are more expensive than cotton but also last longer. Microfiber is less expensive but also wears well.

Every fabric has a rub count, similar to the way sheets have a thread count. The lower range for a sectional sofa will have 15,000 double rubs. As the rub count goes up, so does the durability, and in turn, the price.

Intricacy and details also add to a sectional's price. Patterned fabric, thicker upholstery, embroidery, and piping can all contribute to a pricier (and better-looking) piece.

The Frame

When it comes to frames, the price varies based on the wood used. Solid oak frames cost more than plywood frames, and plywood frames cost more than medium-density fiberboard (MDF). That tells you a little bit about which one might be used in quality furniture.

A mix of solid woods and plywood are generally used in higher quality sectionals.

Why Choose a Better Sectional Couch

The drawbacks in purchasing a subpar sectional are compromising your comfort and sacrificing longevity.

If you skimp on a sectional, your cushions will likely lose their shape, the upholstery may rip, and the frame could break — all sooner than you would like them to (and maybe without a warranty). When you choose a quality sectional, you can expect a long-lasting love affair with a comfortable, durable couch.