Buy me a couch and then manuever it into an impossible space, please!
February 25, 2018 10:21 AM   Subscribe

I've had an ugly futon in my living room for too many years. I want to upgrade to a couch but I need to be able to get it into my basement apartment, somehow. Please help me find an elegant looking couch that maybe comes in pieces so I can get it through the long narrow hallway into my apartment.

I have this horrible, dormroom-esque futon in my living room for an embarrassing amount of years. Besides looking awful, the thing is literally disintegrating beneath me as I sit on it. I desperately need to upgrade.

I would love an actual couch. One that opens up into bed would be ideal, but not crucial. The problems are A. that I live in a tiny Brooklyn apartment so I need sometehing relatively small and slight, and B. my apartment is at the end of a narrow hallway so it will be INCREDIBLY difficult to get any piece of furniture through the door. When I recently bought a new mattress, I had to pay extra to get a split boxspring because a regular one wouldnt fit through.

Here is one end of the hallway. That step to the left of the gold curtain is leading to outside. So that's the first turn we have to make. Here is the other end of the hallway. The door on the right is to my apartment. You see how difficult this is!

So my actual question - can you recommend a nice looking couch (I like darker colors - black or jewel toned) that is either slender enough to get through the hallway or comes in a few pieces so I could assemble it inside? I know everyone says Ikea but I have never found anything I like there.

Here is the revolting current futon so you can see how desperate the situation is. The width is 81 inches. I'm not totally adverse to another futon but it has to look WAY better.
posted by silverstatue to Home & Garden (12 answers total) 3 users marked this as a favorite
 
I know you are critical if IKEA but nonetheless I want to point out the Söderhamn series:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/search/?query=s%C3%B6derhamn

It is entirely modular, so you will not only get it into your apartment but back out when you move and you can even add on to it or change it later on. The design is very slender and light, so it won't make your space look crammed.

I suggest searching for "Söderhamn small space" in Pinterest and you will see many ideas how to create a cozy corner. If you are up for it, you can also create a kind of daybed which could be used as an occasional guest bed.

Now personally, I am not a big fan of the legs. If you want to take it up a notch, you can get nicer legs from Pretty Pegs which are compatible with the IKEA couch.
posted by Fallbala at 11:15 AM on February 25, 2018 [1 favorite]


You might want to consider the West Elm Tillary collection - the part you sit on and the back cushions are separate (and the feet unscrew) so you can fit it lots of places. It doesn't fold out into a bed but if you take the back cushions off, it's basically a flat twin bed. The largest piece of the sofa is about the size/shape of a twin boxspring.

Caveats: the straight cushions fall right over if you lean on them when the couch is not up against the wall. It looks like you would likely have the couch up against the wall so this might not be a problem for you. The corner cushions stay on pretty well although you need to adjust them frequently. We have one and I haven't been 100% satisfied with its durability but it's a pretty good sofa.
posted by mskyle at 11:31 AM on February 25, 2018


If money isn't a primary concern, there are breakdown services that can disassemble couches and reassemble them inside your apartment.
posted by rhizome at 11:41 AM on February 25, 2018


Home Reserve sells modular couches that you assemble. We bought a big sectional from them and love it. Putting it together was easy enough, it has hidden storage, and was several thousand bucks cheaper than anything else we looked at.
posted by vrakatar at 12:22 PM on February 25, 2018 [5 favorites]


I don’t own this couch so I can’t vouch for it, but I have been eyeing this modular couch for a while: Burrow
posted by hellogoodbye at 2:15 PM on February 25, 2018 [1 favorite]


You say you've never found anything you like at IKEA, but since they make everything from the Ektorp to the PS Sofa to about 900 versions of mid-century modern, I think you need to say what you DO like to get any concrete suggestions.
posted by DarlingBri at 3:12 PM on February 25, 2018


Response by poster: here a few links to ones I like that unfortunately do not come in pieces:
Fit for a castle
pretty but totally doesnt come in pieces
cool but ridiculously expensive
posted by silverstatue at 3:48 PM on February 25, 2018


Seconding Home Reserve. We purchased a sectional for our small living room and love it. There are multiple fabric and cushion choices and everything is washable. The couch is comfortable and study. Great purchase for us.
posted by Giailh at 4:21 PM on February 25, 2018 [1 favorite]


NYC is the center of tiny hallways and couches that don't fit there are a lot of services that will take apart and reassemble couches for you. Example: Dr sofa
posted by TheAdamist at 5:33 PM on February 25, 2018 [1 favorite]


Why not a couch in a box?
posted by turbid dahlia at 6:28 PM on February 25, 2018 [1 favorite]


Similar to the burrow couch in a box, we just got a "sactional" from lovesac.com that we're happy with.
posted by Jacob G at 8:05 PM on February 25, 2018 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: Hmm... the Burrow is close. That's in the lead so far!
posted by silverstatue at 8:21 PM on February 25, 2018


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