Hello, everyone! I’m writing today to share an exciting living room update we recently completed in partnership with Comfort Works. When Ben and I were shopping for a new sofa last Spring, we looked at so many options from a lot of different companies. Our priorities were comfort, affordability, and durability. (Of course, I wanted it to look nice too!) I wanted a light gray couch that would be timeless and durable for years to come.
I liked the style of one of Ikea’s more expensive couches (modern, clean lines, came in light gray). But when we visited Ikea and tested all of them, the classic Ektorp was our favorite. It was the comfiest AND the cheapest, which is a win-win- if you ask me. (Or a win-win-win if you watch The Office). The major selling point for me was the fact that it is slipcovered. I was initially uneasy about spending so much money on a piece of fabric furniture, but when we decided on one with a slipcover, all of the worries went away! We love the chaise, though we rarely get to use it because our dog, Louie, has claimed it has her spot 🙂 .
The only downside to the Ektorp was that a light grey slipcover was not an option. Ikea does have the Ektorp in dark grey, but for $200 more than the classic beige.
Before making the final decision to order the beige, I did a little slipcover research. I quickly found information about Comfort Works. They make beautiful replacement sofa covers for IKEA, Pottery Barn and Muji sofas (among other things!) They have endless fabric and color options to choose from, and their turnaround time is only a few weeks.
Ben and I decided to go with the cheaper Lofallet beige cover from Ikea, thinking that we could always buy a second slipcover from Comfort Works down the road. After living with the beige for a few months, I decided to reach out to Comfort Works about a partnership. To my delight, they said yes! (I am selective about the brands I choose to partner with, and I felt comfortable promoting Comfort Works on my blog because we were planning to purchase from their company at some point anyway.)
If you’re looking to update your own sofa, you can choose from a wide array of cottons, linens, velvets, wools, and heavy-duty or mixed blends. We decided to stick with a basic cotton cover because of our puppy.
While I initially thought I wanted a light grey slipcover, I ultimately decided on the darker charcoal grey Ektorp sofa cover in the Madison Coal Panama Cotton. Our dog has black fur, and it showed very badly on the beige cover. I was worried that her fur would also show on the light grey, but thought that the dark grey might conceal it better. (We vacuum the sofa a few times a week, but in between vacuuming it looked really bad!)
If you’re unsure about how a fabric will look in your space, Comfort Works offers physical fabric samples. I chose to skip this step because I was confident in our color choice, but if I were designing for a client I would absolutely order the samples.
The slipcover arrived much quicker than I expected, and it felt like Christmas morning when I got the package!
The first step to replacing the slipcover is taking off the old one! This process can definitely be done by one person, but it goes much more quickly with a helper. Ben had to leave for an event right after we got the package, but I was determined to switch the covers before hosting Bible study that evening. I ironed the covers before putting them on, so the whole process took a little over an hour from start to finish.
That night at Bible study, a few of the women asked me if we got a new sofa! My response was, “Basically!” I adore the dark grey color. It feels so much more inviting than the beige.
The dark grey doesn’t feel too dark, and I was surprised that it didn’t make the room feel too dark either.
When I pulled the new slipcover out of the bag, I had a moment of panic because I thought they accidentally sent me the velvet fabric instead of the cotton. Nope! Their cotton really is that much softer than our old slipcover. It definitely feels durable, but it is also ridiculously soft and cozy.
Looks good from the back, too!
Louie approves, which is good because she was an important part of our decision!
We’ve had these covers for juuuust over a month, and I still love them just as much as the day we received them! I wanted to wait the full month to write my review so that I could give one from experience! I love that I don’t have to worry when we host friends with kids. We don’t want anything in our living spaces to be too precious, because this is where real life happens. If someone spills, I can just throw the cover in the washer. I haven’t had to wash this cover yet (*knock on wood*), but we were able to get many different stains out of the old covers.
The covers themselves are snug, but not too tight. They are easier to maneuver than the Ikea covers, and they fit the Ektorp frame and cushions perfectly. We thought it would be nice to have two covers so we could switch them out, but after feeling the quality of the Comfort Works covers I don’t know if I can go back!
These photos were taken right after ironing the covers, so they do have a little bit of natural wrinkle. The fabric isn’t pulled super tight over the cushions (like a non-slipcovered sofa) so that you can easily remove them. This tiny bit of wrinkle doesn’t bother me, but adjust your expectations if you decide on a slipcovered sofa!
I’m incredibly happy with our Comfort Works slipcover, and would definitely recommend them to anyone looking to update their sofa! You can check out all of their replacement sofa covers on their website.
Thank you, Comfort Works, for providing my new slipcovers! I received free product in exchange for this blog post, but all thoughts and opinions are my own.
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