Sofa Update with Comfort Works

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.

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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!

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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.

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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.

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The dark grey doesn’t feel too dark, and I was surprised that it didn’t make the room feel too dark either.

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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.

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Looks good from the back, too!

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Louie approves, which is good because she was an important part of our decision!

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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!

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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. 


Living Room Update with Annie Selke

*This post was sponsored by Annie Selke. I only partner with brands I love, and all thoughts and opinions in this post are my own. Thank you for supporting Holland Avenue Home!*

Hi, friends! I’m here today to share a very exciting living room update with you. If you’ve been around Holland Avenue for a while, you’ll remember that our colorful kitchen rug recently made an appearance in the living room. I loved the warmth and color it added to the space, but the color was a bit overwhelming. Don’t get me wrong- I love color. In my opinion, totally neutral spaces are missing out on opportunities for warmth and cheer. But when I brought in the colorful rug, all of my other colorful accents seemed like too much. A few weeks later, it was time to bring out the Christmas decorations. I knew that all of the red and green would clash with my brightly colored rug, making the space feel too hectic and “thrown together”.

Here’s a peek into our living room decked out for Christmas while we still had the colorful rug. It is definitely cheerful, but it felt too overwhelming in person.

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I started looking for a more neutral rug that would allow me to keep the color in other places without feeling too crazy. We previously had a white rug in this room, but it was too small and too boring. (It is currently living in the dining room, and is the perfect size and color for that space!)

In my hunt for a neutral rug, I was only finding boring options that I didn’t love. I wanted something that still felt warm, but could help tone down the color craziness that was happening. You guys know that I love black and white gingham, so when I saw the Annie Selke Tattersall Woven Cotton Rug, I was in love. I love that the pattern is classic and traditional, but still feels fresh and modern. This plaid pattern would be right at home with many different decor styles, and provides a perfect base layer for either colorful or neutral spaces.

I reached out to Annie Selke to see if they would be interested in sponsoring a post, and to my delight, they said yes!

Louie was my little helper the day the rug arrived. I moved all of the furniture off of the colorful rug to give it a thorough vacuuming before rolling it up.

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We recently removed the carpet from the living room, and haven’t yet refinished the original hardwood floors. Luckily, the 9×12 rug is large enough to cover the weird dark spot on the floor until we can refinish it.

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The rug arrived in a large cardboard box, and was rolled up and folded in half inside a plastic cover.

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Even the ribbons were fancy! “Dash & Albert” is the name of the rug department of Annie Selke. If you’re shopping for your own Annie Selke rug, don’t be alarmed if you see the name “Dash & Albert”!

Louie needed to inspect the giant foreign object before we rolled it out across the whole living room.

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Luckily, it passed her inspection!

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Here are my toes for reference for the scale of the pattern. On their website, the 2×3 rug is shown no matter what size rug you select. In some of the reviews, people said they were surprised that the scale of the pattern is so small. I wasn’t surprised because I’ve seen other photos of this rug in actual homes, but if you’re expecting a large scale pattern it might be a bit surprising.

The following photo is how the rug appears on their website, which could make it seem like this part of the rug is the whole thing! Just be aware of the small scale pattern if you decide to purchase the rug for yourself.

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The black and white will look great in our living room year-round, but it is really perfect with our Christmas decorations.

Here’s a view of the other side of our living room, where most of the color lives! I was worried that the bold mustard yellow rocker might look strange with the bold black and white, but I love the combination. The modern plaid pattern seems to bring the vintage La-z-boy into the 21st century. (Also, I moved around the floral bird pillow for some of these photos, so that is why it is showing up in multiple chairs!)

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When I was looking at this rug online, I didn’t really pay attention to the word “woven” in the name of the rug. I suppose I expected the plaid pattern to be printed onto the rug like my other wool rugs, but the fibers really are woven to make the pattern! It looks exactly the same on the underside of the rug.

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I waited the full month after receiving the rug to write this blog post so that I could give an accurate review, and I can attest that this is a high quality rug that will make your space! The only negative I’ve found is that it really needs a rug pad underneath to prevent it from bunching up. It is thinner than wool rugs, but that doesn’t mean it is poor quality. The woven cotton makes it floppier than wool rugs, but the material is sturdy and well-made. It is very soft and comfortable to walk on, and having a rug pad underneath would make it perfect! I’m hoping to purchase a rug pad after Christmas to help with the bunching.

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I love getting a peek of the rug from the office. It grounds the space (pun intended), and is the perfect neutral solution for our cozy living room.

Annie Selke has a lot of wonderful rug designs, and after working with them I can highly recommend their company! The Tattersall Woven Cotton Rug is an A+ in my book, and I love that complements many different interior styles (including mine!)


I want to say a huge “Thank you!” to Annie Selke for providing this rug and sponsoring this post. I am very thoughtful about which brand partnerships I take on, and I say “no” to brands that are not a good fit. This partnership was exciting for me because I reached out to them, and I’m thankful that this blog allows me to work with incredible companies like Annie Selke! Stay tuned for Part 2 of our Living Room Update coming next week.

Thanks again, Annie Selke!

With love, 

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