Do babies and leather sofas mix? about to buy from sofasofa.co.uk - any good?

[Cazwa]

Im about to buy a sofa bed for our living room for when baby number 2 arrives in October and DH needs to sleep (we currently have an 8mo as well!).
Two questions. I was about to buy a loose covers sofabed so I can wash them when they undoubtedly get grubby. However Ive realised I can afford a leather sofabed. But Ive no idea how well leather withstands the effects of babies and toddlers - does it just age gracefully or will it be wrecked in weeks?

Secondly, has anyone bought from sofasofa.co.uk before - is it any good? Its nowhere near me to check out.

Ta!

hiya - we've just one for leather on the basis its wipeable. its like skin, so it will absorb stains if left, but if you wipe fairly quickly there shouldnt be too much prob.

the trouble with loose covers being washable, is that you only ever wash em when theyre really minging dont you? so they look clean for about 2 days a month lol.

get sofssofs to send you a sample of the leather in the colours youre interested in (they do that) so you can ee what you think of the quality etc. it varies wildly.

theres a company called..... rjm furniture who have a bigsale on now, look like excelent quality, and things ar in stock so theyre deliered in 2 days if in london, and 2 weeks if outside, rather than 12 weeks for dfs, sofasofa etc...

wherever you look, you can always ask for samples to compare quality of leathers. (only way to check comfort is to actually sit on em tho, so may be a leap of faith bying online but there you go!)

HTH

i have leather sofas in the loungs and fabric in the conservatory and leather wins hands down.

Can't comment on leather, but one of our sofas is from sofasofa (we have a branch near us) - it was dead cheap and decent quality. Tbh, I can't really tell the difference between it and the very expensive one we bought!

if you buy leather, go for patented leather, rather than the soft analine leather. The soft leather will absorb very quickly and is not really wipeable. The patented more "plasticky" looking leather will wipe v easliy. I know this as I had issues with my expensive ananline leather sofa from DFS, which has gone on the skip and they have replaced

I want a leather sofa now

i replaced mine with stain proof fabric. have been put off of leather for life. It faded, wrinkled and looked like a pensioners scrotum within 6 months. My sister has leather and hers is fab, i was just unlucky

We have a soft leather sofa; the type that looks a bit scratched and marked - in brown. Hides a multitude of sins and very easy to clean - baby wipes work a treat Got it when DD was a baby and it has been fab.

hula, mine faded in certain areas from tan to almost white. it was hideous. We hoped that the marks etc like you described would add to the character, but in our case it didn't

Hmm, a range of opinions, sounds like its the type of leather you buy. Definitely dont fancy pensioners scrotum!

There is a choice of 'saddle' or 'softgrain' and Im presuming saddle from the pictures looks more hardwearing, softgrain looks quite absorbent.
Was thinking of
this or for loose covers this one. Its a second sofa for our living room so cant be too long for the space we've got.

we have a leather one from dfs and its brilll...... Bought pre babies and now with a toddler and newborn we find it ideal. DD stands on it, spills food and drinks on it and its easily wiped clean. Much better than a fabric one imo.

I remember both sets of parents complaining pre kids.." Oh you don't want a leather sofa or wood flooring, so cold with lo's and not ideal with kids" ..Now let me see..both easily cleaned and so much easier to keep clean..Parents 'eh..!!

btw ours is in dark brown and we 2nd baby wipes at cleaning it ..!!

i have fake leather(im veggie so goes without saying)and think theyre great as wipeable!

another baby wipe fan

Love our leather sofa. I have 3 under 3.6yrs and it is wonderful. Baby wipes are fab on them and also it is just so robust.

We got two leather sofas from Habitat 9 years ago (pre mortgage, pre children and when I was working full time!) and they were expensive but now, almost 10 years, two house moves, two children and a dog later, they still look fantastic.In fact the leather has hardly changed at all, and all I ever do is wipe it down occasionally with a damp cloth. So I guess my point is, I think unfortunately you do really get what you pay for with leather. But then I'd give Ikea a try - I love their stuff.

(saaaaaaaaaateeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!)

snap on this thread -was about to post very same question!!!

yes leather is fab, and wipe clean. agree so much with the comments on washable loose covers- such a nuisance to take off, wash, replace etc. our leather sofas were from sofa workshop direct, when we had money (ie before the three children!!)
so glad we bought them then, they are brown, fairly soft leather and you can use saddle soap and leather was to keep them clean and moisturised

allieBongo That is not good. Ours is a dark brown and have had it for about 5 years and still fine.

We bought sofas with washable covers when DS1 was born, on the basis that we could keep them clean easily. It was such a crap idea. Like nappies galore said, they only looked clean for a day or so after they were washed, and it was such a hassle stripping the sofas etc that we only did it every month or so. Oh, and no matter how washable they are, banana does not come out I would have them again. just not with babies or toddlers.

We've had our leather ones a couple of years now (cheap brown/black ones from one of the DFS sales) and they still look good. We got leather wipes from somewhere and just wipe them down with those every now and again.

Ooops meant on my post!

We've had has our leather suite for 4 yrs now and its the best thing we bought cos of all that mess i made when my daughter was a newborn and even now as she is 2.6 yrs old...as all i have to do is wipe it and not be taking all the covers off to wash it.

We bought ours from DFS - it wasnt cheap but it was the only leather settee that does brilliant on our sore backs. (We went everywhere else too)

Leather has been fabulous with our DS (got just before he was born, he is now 14 months). He was a very pukey baby and it is so easy to clean. Personally think well worth spending a bit extra. We were told the only thing that can really stain it is curry . Have not had a curry accident yet tho.

we have leather sofas and imo they have been a godsend with ds. baby wipes take off nearly every stain and they look better with age.

Gawd, lots of votes for leather but can I find one that fits my needs? Anyone good at googling around? I did have one in mind at sofasofa.co.uk but Im a bit wary of the website, there is no email address and the phone line makes you leave a recorded message for a swatch, havent tried the order line option yet, but feel a bit concerned the address is not anywhere on the site other than 1 store.

Anyhoo, Im looking for a leather sofa that is no longer than 185cm and preferably under 600 quid... is this unrealistic? All the ones I can see are either too long or too expensive, and yes Ive looked at DFS.