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Original poster

New sofa arrived. Massive buyers remorse. Can anyone relate?

246 replies

sellotape12 · 22/04/2026 17:25

Hi, I’m literally 6 days postpartum and very fragile so I could be irrational. Our new sofa arrived yesterday after a 10 week wait. It’s in a bespoke fabric which I chose and supplied. I feel quite shocked at how much I don’t like it. Firstly, it is so much harder than the one that we tried in the shop over three visits. I assume this is just because it’s new? It has foam cushions with a light feather layer. And the colour is so much more shocking now that I’ve seen it in our living room. I pored over fabric samples but now it’s on a bigger surface area it just looks bright and shocking. It also no longer goes with any of the other accessories in our living room and just doesn’t look very holistic because it’s such an opinionated colour.

I just don’t know what to do. It cost me £2000 and I thought I would feel excited. Do I try to get it reupholstered? Do I just live with it for a few weeks? What do I do? I feel so low.

OP posts:
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7
SwatTheTwit · 22/04/2026 18:50

I agree with PP, get stuff to work around the new colour - throws, cushions, even wall paint if you’re so inclined later on.

I hated my bathroom colour once it dried out but once I swapped some bits around it’s definitely grown on me.

FWIW, I dropped almost 2k on my sofa too and although I loved/love it, 3 years on I wish I had gone for something firmer and with straighter lines,

Parsleyforme · 22/04/2026 18:54

Green and pink can go together but it has to be the right shades. Is there anything else pink in the room to match the chair? If not can you get the chair done in the same fabric? Sofas do soften over time but I’m surprised it’s so much harder than the one you tried

AuntChippy · 22/04/2026 18:58

You’ve got a newborn. Cover it with a throw to keep it clean for now.

Seems a tad cruel 😂

Bumcake · 22/04/2026 19:05

I think it sounds lovely. The firmness will definitely get less, and you’ll get used to it too. Don’t panic!

satsumas26 · 22/04/2026 19:05

I can relate (having repainted my living room 24 hours after putting a new colour on)

colour : throw & cushions short term, eventually you might change other things in the room (walls etc) to tone it down

softness: takes time

are there any faults/flaws which mean you could return it?

AnotherName2025 · 22/04/2026 19:11

Love, it's a sofa. You have a beautiful baby, don't cry over a bloody sofa!

yes it's annoying when you spend a lot of time & money on something & it's not exactly how you thought it would be, but it IS only a sofa!

Post partum (congratulations 💕) it's not surprising it's feeling a bit too firm. I'd just get a 'soft topper' to sit on for now.

Due to it being bespoke you can't return it. So there's no hurry to decide what to do. Selling it, it won't matter if it's 2 days or 2 months old.

🤗

ps I'd rather have baby photos than sofa photos xx

BewareoftheLambs · 22/04/2026 19:15

I expect you will grow to love it, it's just all new and there's a lot of change going on with a newborn.

On another note, you are so brave getting a new sofa with a newborn, I'd be worried it would get something on it. Maybe just me because I'm used to being clumsy!

Specialagentblond · 22/04/2026 19:16

I’d keep it, let the baby ruin it and get a new one.

also try a throw on the pink armchair and then see if it’s so bad.

sounds lovely actually

TheParlimentsHeartTroubleNorthernSoul · 22/04/2026 19:17

It will soften over time the showroom one will have had loads of bums of all weights and sizes pumelling it.

Shouldbedoing · 22/04/2026 19:18

Cover it with a throw before the baby boaks on it.

Magicschoolbusdropout · 22/04/2026 19:20

I had this but with paint not a sofa

I'd nagged dp for ages to repaint our lounge and had chosen the perfect colour

He finally agreed,I repainted the room and fucking hated it

He loved it (course he did-he didnt want to have to buy new paint/do the work) and I cried and cried over how much I hated it

A few weeks later,I fell in love with it and we still have the same colour 7 years on

I blame hormones as I was on my period-i really suffer with them (god bless you-6 days into having a baby is a killer) at the time

It sounds great-it just needs breaking in-green and pink look great together

NamechangeRugby · 22/04/2026 19:21

It is nature's way of telling you to cover every piece of soft furnishing with a throw until you exit the baby/toddler/young child years. You will love the colour and colour combination when you re-emerge, but for now... cover, cover, cover.

LoveHearts69 · 22/04/2026 19:22

Pink and green can look really lovely next to each other, obviously it depends on what the rest of your living room looks like though. Can you get some small pink cushions to tie them together maybe? I think if you can take a picture of the room with it in then people will be able to come up with some good suggestions!

scrivette · 22/04/2026 19:26

I had a new sofa delivered today and I was also shocked at how hard it was. DH reassured me by saying it will soften up, so yours should too. I also don’t like it, but hoping it will grow on me.

Pink and green sound like they will go well together, otherwise, would a throw work for now to soften the look?

tempnew · 22/04/2026 19:28

Years ago we bought a sofa suite that we ended up really disliking. Luckily it had a weird smell so we returned it on that basis.

unsevered67 · 22/04/2026 19:33

It will definitely get softer. We bought a sofa once from John Lewis and the salesperson was very clear that all new sofas are initially firmer than expected.
Ive disliked several sofas I’ve bought. I think I can imagine how it will look in my room. But I’m actually rubbish at visualising interior design. But the dislike has always mellowed with time - on a couple of occasions I grew to love the sofas. My dh now just shrugs and expects lots of angst when new furniture is delivered.
I would give it time, and think about how you can adapt your room to make the sofa fit in a bit better

staringatthesun · 22/04/2026 19:42

I had exactly this experience after the birth of my eldest DC. Honestly, a few weeks in and I loved it. I think it's something unfamiliar in your home when you are feeling quite fragile. Hopefully, you'll see it with different eyes soon.

ThePlantPotter · 22/04/2026 19:50

I spent ages looking for a new sofa and finally found one that I liked, I went back to the shop a few weeks later just to be sure and to measure up. Everything was fine until it arrived and I hated it 😫 it looked so big compared to the old sofa and it wasn't as soft as the one in the shop had felt. But a few months later and I love it, it's softened up and it's sooo comfortable and it doesn't look out of place at all.

Give it some time it might grow on you. Congratulations on your new arrival 💐

paddleboardingmum · 22/04/2026 19:56

I've done this too, and when the sofa arrived I wondered what on earth I'd been thinking. Had to sell it, although it wasn't that expensive so I did lose money but not loads. With yours, I like pp said you could try toning it down with throws like a cream one perhaps. And could you get a few cushions with the pink and the green in them, to make it all look planned. Congratulations on your new baby.

Walig54 · 22/04/2026 20:01

The fabric will tone down as you use it and by the time baby is 2 they will have been sick on it several times so it will have been cleaned quite a bit! Pink patterned cushions will also help as will green ones on the pink chair.

In other words what looks OTT now will not after a while.

ElectricSnail · 22/04/2026 20:06

Pink and green is a great combo. Lean in, put pink cushions on the sofa. On the firmness issue. I needed the top half of my mattress to be softer than the bottom half. I read someone online saying crawl up and down on the top half a few times to soften it. It actually worked. Give it a go.

newornotnew · 22/04/2026 20:06

Just put a throw over it and try to focus on your self and your baby.

You are in an emotional whirlwind right now!

Pleasealexa · 22/04/2026 20:12

I bought a new sofa last year and chose a colour rather than my usual neutral. I hated it, thought it was a massive mistake however I now like it and recent visitors were admiring my colour scheme. What changed, I had to rearrange other stuff in the room and change cushions. Your sofa will soften up but perhaps go back and talk to the staff? Also can you say the make so others might be able to help

Congrats on the new baby...hating a new sofa is better than hating your husband (which is more common) 😁

Cosleepingadvice · 22/04/2026 20:19

Remember OP, day 5 post partum is peak baby blues time. I cried so much! My dad was visiting at the time and he was a bit taken aback, mumbled something about hormones, patted my shoulder and wandered off 😅

Don't worry about it yet - the firmness will soften. Buy some cheap throws from Dunelm or TKMaxx or somewhere and come back to it again when things have settled down. Congratulations on your new baby!

loosethepounds · 22/04/2026 20:25

We had a new sofa at the beginning of last year. It's a taupe colour which is similar to our last one.
Yet for some reason I don't like it. But it is so comfy. Throws are your friend.
Can't afford to replace so I will just have to get used to it.

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