Plant your seat

What's big and brown and needs lots of work, but is still totally beautiful? My mother's day present. This year I got a new/old sofa. Really old, like 1920s old. See our couch has seen better days. It was cheap, and it has worn like a cheap couch. It is monumentally uncomfortable and the frame is kind of, well, broken. And the other day when I was moving the sofa to look for a lost toy, I found where the Tivo remote had gone. It was inside the couch. It fell in through a rip in the lining. Actually I found two Tivo remotes, the DVD remote, a sippy cup, silverware, Hot Wheels cars and a set of keys. I'm sure there was more, but I was so creeped out I quit looking. Anyhow, at that moment I decided it was time for a new couch.

Then I got inspired. One of my friends posted photos of her newly upholstered deco sofa and chair. They were stunning. I have always loved this style of furniture, but in my search for sofas had completely ignored old old old furniture. I went on craigslist and as though by some special magic, there was a 1920s mohair sofa near our house for sale for about half the price they usually go for. It had all of the details I love, camel back, carved wood detailing and rounded arms that make you want to settle in with a good book. We checked it out and when we hesitated slightly, the seller cut the price even further. It was a bargain as well as a beauty, so we bought it. It's going to need to be reupholstered at some point and the springs are well past their prime, but it is still fantastic.

Our living room is a little overfull now as we try to figure out what to do with the broken beast, but we seem to all prefer the new/old sofa already. It fits in the vintage style of our home, and compliments the chairs I bough when we moved into the upstairs of the house. I'm thrilled.

And maybe I have a special bond with this new sofa. It's a classic, loaded with charm, unique details and an undeniable style of its own. At the same time it's soft, it's worn, it sags and it needs work. Sounds a lot like me. Perhaps we're soulmates.