We’re three weeks in to the Ask The Editor series and it’s slowly becoming one of our favorites. We want to know what you want to know!
Plus, we just think there’s a lost romance in getting to write to a semi-anonymous personal with hopes for an answer — and we’re suckers for romance.
From Brigid: Couch Shopping: Help!
Oh, girlfriend, we’ve been there. Heck, we’re still on the hunt for the perfect couch! Aside from a total remodel, purchasing a couch is by far one of your largest home investments. So it’s TOTALLY ok to take your time here. So as you shop, take into account these factors:
Couch Use: What kind of lifestyle do you live? Do you have pets? Kids? Friends over for movie marathons? Taking into account how your couch will most be used will help you to narrow down some styles.
– If you’ve got kids running around you might want to consider a low-to-the-ground couch that has plushy corners and not too many detachable pillows (you know, the ones that will end up on the ground in . 5 seconds)
– If you’re taking pets into consideration, keep in mind fabrics trap scent so maybe a leather couch is in order, but on that token a *durable leather that doesn’t show scratches from their paws
– Are you a couch napper? Make sure it’s long enough!
– If your shopping for a formal living room, you can go totally chic without too much consequence.
Cleanability: This goes hand in hand with how you use your couch. No one wants a dingy couch so how you’re able to maintain it’s sparkly clean appearance is of the utmost importance.
A GOOD leather is by far the easiest to clean and maintain, but keep in mind that can tip you over into spending literally thousands of dollars on a couch.
An economical way to keep your couch looking brand new is to by one with a slipcover. We can not recommend this enough! Having a slipcover helps you not sweat the little spills that are, for certain, going to happen. And, if you like to change up your style you can always purchase a new slipcover for a fraction of the price of purchasing a new couch!
Style: Once you’ve got the practical parts nailed down it helps you eliminate a lot of factors as you’re choosing your style! You can go modern, traditional, glam or all-American with your couch style, and not to add to much pressure but choosing the style can set the tone for the rest of your furniture!
But on the flip side, you can also get a classic, clean-lined couch and ramp up your style with accent chairs. So at the end of the day once you’ve determined how it functions and how you want it to look you take PLEOTHRA of couch options and widdle them down to ones that work for you!
From Melanie: “How do you let go of old stuff that takes up space”
An age-old question that is very, very tricky to answer. When you’re looking at the item, try and determine these three things.
1. Is it sentimental? Is this item attached to a memory? Passed down a few generations? The first “adult” purchase you feel like you made? Keep the things that mean the most, and toss, sell or donate the ones you don’t have feelings towards
2. Is it quality? What is the item made out of? Some things that you keep for memory sake aren’t actually in amazing condition and just sit and deteriorate over time. If you’re struggling to keep in in good condition, toss it.
3. Do you want to pass it down? Is it a legacy item that is taking up space but you want to keep so that your kids can have it? Ask them to come clear it out now! If they don’t want it, toss it and you have your answer!
When in doubt, “hide it” for a while, see if you miss it and if you don’t, toss it, donate it or sell it!
From Rachelle: “More home tours please!! It’s not really a question but I love them!”
We’re glad you asked! We are currently revamping our weddings submission page to accommodate and direct more home tour information! So, with that said, to all you interior designers, photographers, home DIYers and interior design enthusiasts, if you have a home tour under your belt just DYING to get some limelight, head on over to stymepretty.com/submissions and send it our way!
That’s all for this week! See ya next Friday, friends.
Xo,
SMP Editors
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