to find shiny black leather sofas deeply depressing?

[teaandthorazine]

I'm half-heartedly househunting atm. I've lost count of the number of houses I've seen (online, I mean) with two whacking great black puffy leather sofas crammed into a weeny front room.

Why?

Do people genuinely think they look expensive and classy? They just make rooms look cold and dark and unwelcoming and naff, imo. They don't even look comfy.

I can't be that much of a snob - the reason I'm looking at weeny front rooms is cos weeny front rooms are all I can afford. But honestly, I just don't understand the popularity of these great hulking lumps of black leather.

(Are they even real leather?)

I never really understood the notion that leather is cold to sit on? Any sofa regardless of fabric will always be the same/similar temperature as the room it's in so if you have a warm house you'll have a warm sofa

they are slippy, that's fo sho. I've never been a fan of leather sofa's for that very reason

Brown leather sofa here, it was that or sit on nothing after my ex took all his stuff, and actually it's really comfortable with the recliners and the soft leather, plus it wipes clean and I don't have to hoover it like I did the old granny sofa I used to have, nor does it spurt feathers like my ex's did, nor do you fall into it and need mountaineering equipment to pull yourself back out.

Fits in with my cream and green decor, sort of.

ahem I have two black leather settees, they are not pouffy, quite firm, not shiney, not slippy, very comfy and very easy to clean... always look nice and my room looks warm and cosy cos its papered in a warm yellow. so nah you are wrong, oh and my room isn't tiny. judge away, I luff it and it's my home so there

YANBU IMO! I bloody hate my fake leather corner sofa. It was cheap and is soooo uncomfortable but ex-boyfriend chose it when we moved into our flat together. I'm dying to replace it but want to wait until my twins have stopped chucking up. To those saying they wipe clean - I defy you to get all of the milk stains out of mine and you can see them from miles away slight exaggeration

I STILL luffs mine (pic on profile)

We used to have one until last year. It started life in a big front room with bright green and purple walls and it looked FAB. Then it moved into a weeny period front room when we moved house and looked rather out of place for ten years until we finally got round to replacing it. But it was a great sofa and I have no complaints!

Yeahbuddy not sure if it will work with fake leather, but asda do this luuffly cream polish to feed your sofa which polishes and gets rid of stains to. Also saddle soap works wonders.

YABU, I have black leather sofas and think they look better than chesterfields which IMHO are fugly, but it's all down to personal taste isn't it, there's no "right" and "wrong" sofa to have. I have never found them cold or slippy and they are only shiny once in a blue moon straight after I have wiped them down.

I have black leather sofas too - not shiny, not slippy, not cold - easy to clean, comfy to sit on - have lasted 20 years so far - have 2 kids and a dog, so are very practical and suit us nicely -

I also have a nice "warm" room - with the double "middle class pretension" of magnolia walls with one terracotta red feature wall... but I do have loads of bookcases...... and carpet....

YANBU. But then I find that most people's front rooms are naff.
And yes, I reserve the right to judge. It's not my fault so many people have no taste.

My front room has three bookcases. Three lots of guinea pig homes. Three reclining chairs. And a nice big woolly rug in front of my fireplace. I like it because it's perfect for reading in front of the fire and the piggies sing to me day and night.

YANBU

These big black leather couches are everywhere and they are hideous-o! They suck the light out of a room.

Yes, they're practical and wipe clean. Some of them are mega cheap, some of them are mega expensive but they're all ugly.

And yes I'm fully aware that lots of people would hate some of my decor choices. They are welcome to!

lol, i had 2 large black leather sofas in my old house large living room , now i have one large leather sofa (downsized ) I love it it sits along one wall and can sit 4 if needed wipes clean and goes well with my black sideboard , light walls though , and wood floor , didnt think for a moment that people would not like it , as i think it looks quite stylish , maybe need to think about my style lol :)

Probably they are popular because they are practical. Don't show the dirt and probably look OK if you decide to redecorate.

You din't look at your own sofas.

You sit on them and look at the TV, your food, iPad or even the person you are talking to.

Mines hideous, but it's very comfy.

YANBU

They remind me of the living room section of the Argos catalogue from 1989.

Perhaps they are all practical people.

We have two cream covered sofas (red covers for winter). I am fed up of washing the bloody things, they'd have to go in every week to stay clean. Next sofas will be wipe clean and leather.

However I have sofa lust atm and the one I love is lime green with a fixed cloth cover.... I wont be getting it though.

We had 2 black leather sofas from Habitat, bought in about 1986 (when they were so on trend you would have died for them!). We only got rid of them last year, when they were literally falling to pieces. Up until about 2098 they were really comfy, then the padding started to go...

Those sofas were one of the best things we ever bought, the two of them cost £1400 in 1986 and they lasted 25 years! (one is still going in the kitchen for the dog to sleep on, but it is vv uncomfy now). They survived 7 different cats, 1 Labrador, 2 house moves, 1 of the vomit-iest babies you ever met, and years of drunken merry-making.

The DFS replacements we bought last year look nice (brown fabric) but are not a patch on the old ones in terms of comfort or durability.