I am in love...

They came.

 For those who weren't watching last season, I'll re-cap. Smart mama's glorious long red couch has been a witness to her almost 11 years of marriage. Fading dramatically from the sun, sagging under years of love from 3 active boys. Now considered geriatric in couch years. Smart mama searches desperately to find what she wants. She can see it in her head-- no one makes it. Finds a great couch in architectural digest--it's perfect-- research yields it was custom made- dead end. Apartment Therapy is enlisted in her cause. She turns then to the sofa company in CA (and with the help of hannah, our design consultant) she customs designs her perfect couch for a steal (really less than alot of ugly couches).

Necessary factors for design:

-can't be too low (I am tall)

-clean lines (not a frou-frou girl, I have bachelor tastes when it comes to lines)

-want low wide track arms (that feel like an unobtrusive extension of the couch, utilitarian, doubles as a casual extra seat at parties)

-long (won't even consider anything under 86")

-no skirt or place for things to hid under it

-neutral fabric (found a fab charcoal boucle which was exactly what I pictured in my head)

-must be 23" or greater seat depth

-must feel sturdy like it can last in a house of boys

-no back cushions (husbands one dying request, less things for our kids to pull off)
-mid-century nods

My kids are drawn to them like magnets. They are perfect platforms for reading, rolling around, lounging. We bought two, so allen I could each have our own! I love that we designed them- they are us! (believe me it required arduous hours of measuring, sitting, and drawing) but it was worth it all-- and I am am sold on custom- don't know if I can do pre-made ever again...

so here's to love, which brought about almost 11 years of marriage and the need for new couches (which are reason enough alone to stay married for a decade!)