The Thrill of the Find (Or, “About That Sofa Last Week…”)

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Hey, remember last week when I wouldn’t shut up about the most perfect gray sofa ever (on my budget)? Well, it is totally the most perfect gray sofa ever (on my budget), but after a shopping trip this weekend, I got the most perfect black leather sofa ever (on my budget). Herewith, the long version…

Saturday afternoon—following the measuring-for-new-kitchen-flooring debacle (I’m looking at you Home Depot)—my husband Matt and I headed to Cost Plus, an enormous furniture warehouse that has awesome deals and no air conditioning. We got our last couch there, and it was fine. It still is; it was perfectly fine when Civitan Services hauled it away to the donation shop this morning. But every piece of furniture in our living room is just brown, so replacing that anchor piece was the first big step. It also became a glorified dog bed. Seriously, I get up every morning to Bailey on one end, Ceili on the other, and they both have their heads on a couch pillow:

After five minutes of wandering, we found the first and only true dark gray sofa. Comfy, streamlined, great price. Not totally sure about the texture of the fabric. We took some phone pics and moved on. Eventually we moved over to the leather section, just for kicks because while we both agreed the right black leather sofa would be cool, but didn’t expect to find anything. After walking through loads of really traditional, gentleman’s office or hunting lodge-style leather furniture, we stumble upon this one, paired with a love seat. Matt sits down on the love seat. I plop down on the couch.
We both totally had the same reaction: LOVE. And then I look at the price tag and discover that it’s a floor sample, and it’s cheaper than that West Elm sofa, but there’s no brand name. We decided it was fake leather and probably poorly made. But it was also fabulous and we loved it. So then we pulled back the cushions to look for a tag, and the inside is covered with the Natuzzi logo. Matt looks at me. Even he knows that name. Clearly there’s something wrong with it. So we lounge around for a bit, and check it out, notice a couple of odd spots (floor sample, I know), and eventually our sales guy finds us. Again. We interrupt his Natuzzi sales pitch—yes, shut up, we know, we want it, shut up—to ask about the imperfections.
He goes (yay) to find out if they can do anything, treat it, whatever, and eventually returns with the news that there is one more just like it in the back, unopened and unscathed. Same sofa, same warranty, same price. So yeah, we got this fabulous $2,000 Natuzzi Italian leather sofa for $750. Because they phasing out the line. Whatever. Never underestimate the furniture warehouse, but be prepared to dig, even if you aren’t planning on buying right away.
It was delivered today, and the faintly textured matte black leather looks amazing in the living room (you’re getting “creative” shots because the place is a wreck). I love the single bench cushion with the subtle retro detail. Please excuse the spots on my camera.

I’m excited about bringing more color and texture to the overall space, so now I’m on the lookout for some cool decorative pillows in fun fabrics, patterns and shapes. Any suggestions? There are seriously so many options I don’t know where to start, other than the usual suspects (who have let me down, btw). What are your favorites?