Keeping your sofa at its best

Helpful tips to keep your sofas and upholstered chairs looking their best:

Back cushions

If your sofa or occasional chair has a loose seat back, with a zippered cover, then the cover can be unzipped and the insert removed. Pull out the insert and give it a good shake. If the insert is filled with dacron, then gently pull the dacron fibers apart until the fibers in the insert are fluffy and fully fill the casing.

Replace into the cushion cover and close the zipper. The back cushion should look full and puffy just as they did  on their first day!

Don’t forget to flip the back cushions and if possible, trade the positions of the cushions, so that the wear on them is even. 

Seat cushions

People generally sit in their same favourite spot on the sofa. To prevent wearing down the fabric and foam, if possible flip over the seats and exchange their positions on the frame. For example if it is a 3 seater, move the left cushion to the far right and shift the positions of the other 2. If the front of the foam seat is higher than the back due to compression then unzip the cushion cover, pull out the insert and rotate the foam insert so that backside is now at the front edge.

While you have the seat and back cushions off of the sofa, given it a good vacuuming to get rid of any pet hair, crumbs or Cheetos that may be hiding in the crevices. Gently vacuum the upholstered frame using your vacuum’s upholstery attachment, or use a clothes brush, brushing in the direction of the fabric nap.

Why is the fabric on your sofa pilling? Pilling is a natural occurrence, when the mills weave the fabric there are often extra fibers in the yarn. These will shed from the fabric with use and can be easily removed using a fabric shaver.

Following these steps a couple of times a year should help to keep your sofa beautiful and fresh for its lifetime.