I've never had a sectional but I think they'd be great for a family.

I'm wondering if you've considered one from Ikea? There are many different styles...and the "karlstad" is similar to the one you have pictured from C&B.

Many of them are slipcovered so you could always throw them in the wash if something gets spilled...also I believe they sell replacement cushions if it ever came to that--or at least it's really easy to restuff them.

They're much cheaper to begin with (around $900?)...

We have a slipcovered Ikea sofa and love it.

I know they're not as glamorous as C&B but much cheaper as something that could hold you over...

Here is a link that might be useful: Karlstad Sectional

Oooohhhh, SO glad that you've asked this question! I've really been weighing th epotential pro's and con's of a sectional for our family and room size. I've wanted to dig up old posts from here about this exact question but I've been so busy and it's so low on my priority list that I haven't gotten around to it.

Anxiously awaiting the replies that you get!

PS - I'm considering the IKEA Ektorp sectional. Quite o few folks from GW recommended it for my room & style when I was sofa dreaming this Summer.

boopadoo - I spent a lot of time measuring and sitting on both the Karlstad and Ektorp sofas. I found the Karlstad to have the most interior seating room for 2 adults, 1 elementary aged kid, preschooler, toddler and dog.

I don't know if you have a Bob's discount furniture store near you, but they have a somewhat similar sectional for under $1000. Friends of ours have it, and they have a 5 years old and 18 month old and it still looks good after a few years.

For myself, I prefer to have a few smaller pieces of furntire that I can rearrange, repurpose, etc. Plus, I think guests prefer to have their own seat as opposed to bumping against others on a shared sofa/sectional.

But if it's a family room and you have young children...I think a sectional can work if you have the space for it.

And if it's not the only piece of furniture--I'd have a chair or two for guests just in case.

I, also, don't care for sectionals for myself. However, my DS and DIL have 4 and 7 year old children, 2 cats, and 2 dogs, and a sectional in that microfiber that feels kind of like velvet. For them, it's perfect.

Usually, when we stop over, all of them are snuggled on the sofa. I usually sit on the "L" end since it lets me look at them to talk. They've had it for 7 or 8 years and except for the fact that one dog likes to lay on top of one of the cushions and has turned it into a hammock, it still looks good. It cleans really well, and they frequently eat on it. Theirs has detached cushions, but they stay really tight, and don't look sloppy. HTH!

Dee

Ttodd, we bought an Ektorp sectional for the family room. We've had it for over a year and a half now and it still looks brand new. For the price and being able to wash the slipcovers, you can't beat it. They're a little stiff at first, but seriously get very comfortable as you use them.

As far as sectionals, it depends upon the room. For us, it was the absolute best use of space. One wall is covered in bookcases and fireplace. One wall has french doors and the TV. this left two walls, which each have a large center window. The sectional fit perfectly and provided the best seating.

Pictures right after room was done.
One wall :

Second wall :

Sectional allowed space for the french doors to open and the best seating for our area :

Love my Ektorp sectional from Ikea. We're retired and have a great room open to the Kit., DR, and foyer. My husband can lie on one end and me on the other, stretched out, very comfortable. When adult kids come, one joins us on the sofa, another in a recliner, and we have 2 pull up wicker chairs that multi-purpose to the dining room or outdoors. After 2 1/2 years, the bottom cushions remain firm and great. The end back cushions get a little sloppy, so I switch them side to side every few weeks to even them out. I have 2 slipcovers. The white one wrinkles more than the navy (which I think has been discontinued.) I've washed both and it's a bear. Next time I'll probably just wash the cushion covers. No fading on the navy but a little shrinkage.

I see sectionals most often used either in small tight spaces where you want to maximize every inch of space or very large rooms where you want to create definition for an area. In general though, I think there's no "rule" per se.

I have the Ikea Ektorp sectional in white actually, plus a 19-mth daughter! It's fine for us cuz I wash the slipcovers every so often and we try to avoid eating on the couch. The problem that I do have with the Ektorp is that the back pillows slide. I have to push them back up all the time. They also get mis-shapen easily so I have to flip them and switch the positions around a lot. But in my case, I'm just renting, so I'm ok with the temporary fuss. For your use, I don't recommend it. It will look old in a snap. Get something with stiffer pillows or no pillows, but that's still comfy. And never buy online without try it out first in person.

Love sectionals, hate mine. Wish I had gotten leather or I recently saw a nice cordoroy one at "Slumberland" that I surprisingly really liked for around a thousand dollars. GREAT for lounging and TV viewing.

Great question. We've had sectionals for years and years and I've always liked them until this last one that is. It was U shaped and had a chaise on it. That puppy was a monster. In addition to the size it wasn't built well and I just hated it. This time we decided to go with a sofa/love seat and guess what once again we were so unhappy we're paying a 15% restocking fee just so we can go back to a sectional. In regards to design, yeah, you have to plan and know how you are going to lay it out in the room. Many come now in configurations that don't commit you to just one angle which is nice. Most importantly for us though it's how they function, they just seem to manage our seating needs the best.

For me, sofas say formal...like to put in a front living room. Sectionals on the other hand say cozy, and informal...perfect for family rooms. I've always had sectionals in our FR where most of our living is done - kids, dogs, cats...etc.

I think sectionals can be the perfect solution for a family room. I like the ones with a tight back so that they look a tidy without much effort. Most of my friends with small children and pets have sectionals. Strangely, no one chose leather. They are all microfiber or washable slip cover.

DS and wife have a nice neutral microfiber sectional in their family room on an L wall and I must say - it is PERFECT for their space. They have a nice built in wall unit for TV and books and storage opposite it, so it is the best arrangement they could possible have. Even if they went with sofa and loveseat or sofa and chairs, they would never be able to do an attractive arrangment facing the TV.

So, I think the room must be suitable for a sectional.

Tuesday

Well, I admit, I am now more confused then ever. :)

In our last house we bought a cheap loveseat and ottoman. It lasted maybe 9 months. Then, we bought a leather set of furniture. Couch, loveseat and two recliners. the loveseat wood support thing under DH's chair broke and he somehow nailed in new supports, then the cushions just went completely and I think the support went again and we tossed it.

We now have two couches in the room. One from the old set and a new one.

I am worried about the traffic pattern. We do walk through where the corner would be now to get to our preferred seat. I wonder how much of a pain it would be to walk around. Maybe I should post a picture of the room.

I was thinking I would need to spend about $10k to get something that would last, but maybe I am crazy.

I would love a slipcovered sectional. I guess I dont' know what brands are good quality anymore and have good warranties. Maybe that is part of my problem.

DH is pressuring me to get moving and I have been scouring Ebay and CL but no luck.

Well, I found sets I like but they don't go with our room :)

I agree about the tight space thing which is our issue. I counted spaces for seating and figured out that w/ the same amount of chairs that we have but incorporating a sectional instead of a regular sofa that we would be able to easily seat 1 additional adult person. I was sort of anti-sectional and was going to get 2 sofas instead but I don't have space for 2 sofas and I would have had to lose a chair.

I have sectional in my living room (no family room here) which is open to dining and kitchen. I LOVE it. Mine is three pieces and has the wedge shaped piece in the middle with a 2 cushion section on either side. I prefer that configuration because it allows someone to actually sit in (and easily get out of) the corner. It is not a huge piece but I can seat 8 or more people when I have a party. I do casual entertaining often with close friends (often another couple) and sometimes 2 of my friends will stretch out on it and one might "social sleep" in front of the fire while the other and I are visiting. I can easily sit on the wedge and it fits us all. It is a 15 year old fabric Thomasville with loose cushions, but they stay in place very well. It has held up beautifully - I had the fabric treated with some kind of stain retardant finish when new.

I have a sectional from Thomasville. It works very well in our family room. Right and left loveseats and a wedge shape between them. As many as seven people can sit on it easily, and when our A/C was out on a very hot weekend and the house was full of company, two people slept very comfortably on it.

The sectional is covered in a scotchgarded chenille. It's seven years old and looks good as new. I rotate the cushions each time I vacuum. Of course, we don't have pets or little kids to contend with on a regular basis.

How about getting a leather sectional (or sofas, whatever) for half your budget (or even less) and then getting a custom fabric slipcover made (slipcovershop.com has some really great fabric choices--if they make sectional covers, not sure. Otherwise, there's probably something local.)

Then, you'll have a quality base sofa that won't soak up spills...yet it will have the look/softness of fabric with the slipcover.

And if the slip cover ever gets really ruined, you can get another for less than the cost of replacing an entire sofa.

How's that for confusing :) 10k is a lot, though...at some point it stops being about quality and starts being about designer fabric.

We have a sectional in our family room, which in our prior home was our most used room - where we watch TV etc. In our current home we use the LR most often, and we have a sofa and loveseat in there.
I do like our sectional, but I will tell you my biggest cons about it.
1. Everyone used to fight over the corner, which was the most coveted spot.
2. No place for the corner person to easily set down a drink, since there is no end table. A solution to this would be a sofa table behind the sectional.

I just have a few more thoughts to add: A sectional or not really depends on your space (ie: the traffic flow and where the walls/doors/windows are located) and the number of seating you need. But also, it's a personal preference. As someone mentioned, it's more cozy - that's how I feel about mine.

As to where/what specific sofa to buy, I don't have enough experience but try asking the sofa sales ppl at various stores to see what they say. Even designers shop through MANY stores to find the right pieces, so don't rush yourself. Ideally, you want furniture to last, so it's a big decision!

we have a leather sectional in our large square family room and i love it... for our family room set up, it really worked the best.
we mostly watch tv in the family room or lay on the sectional and read. we have an end table on each end and a coffee table, so eveyone has a place to put glass. (we also have a sofa table behind the longer end, but it would be uncomfortable to use it for glasses and plates...)
i love having the option to sprawl out in either direction and i do like the corner!

Ditto everyone else in favor of sectionals. We love ours. It's a leather Bernhardt which I ordered from Boyles Furniture in NC. I think we paid $2600 plus $200 shipping. Definitely less expensive than the store price locally.

We also have the leather square Bernhardt ottoman 40" square. It's so comfy to put your feet up on and you can pull it close and it's a chaise lounge.

I agree that two sofas would be nice too, but definitely not a fan of the matching love seat/sofa combo. The loveseat just isn't really big enough for more than 1 person comfortably.

If you have room, I think two sofas on a right angle with an end table in the corner is nice because you have two stretch out areas and a table inbetween. Our section is one with the wedge shape, and it's definitely more comfortable for someone to sit on it in the middle vs. the right angle corner. Although, our dog loves that spot since he's right in the middle of all the action!

I don't like sectionals. I prefer to have my own space when seated - so don't really care for sofas either. The only reason I have a sofa is so I can lie down on it when I don't feel well. Hmm. That's like once a year. Why do I have a sofa? lol

Am I the only who grew up in a household where eating in the LR (no family room) was forbidden, except for popcorn occasionally. Jump or flop on the furniture? A sit on the floor for the evening offense. Take care of even mediocre quality furniture and you won't need to replace it every few years.

If you are looking for slipcovered sectionals, you should check out Arhaus. They have some really nice ones.

I never liked sectionals either, but I had a change of heart about them. I love the slipcovered furniture in Pottery Barn catalogues and I really loved the one they had in there. I bought a similar one only it is from JC Penneys with a much less expensive price tag for the same look. I LOVE IT!!
I have 3 small children, I usually take all the slipcovers off and wash once per month. I love that I can do that. I also love cuddling and snuggling with all 3 of my kids on it. It is very family friendly.

The sectional you have pictured from Crate and Barrel was the one I really wanted, but decided while the kids were small it was best to get something washable. And boy I'm glad I did, I can't believe how icky it gets after a few weeks.

I have that sectional. The Lounge. It is the best thing in the world. It is the favorite part of my house and I love so many things in my house. Everyone falls in love with it the minute they see it and sit on it.

That said, sectional or couch, depends on your space situation...either way, the Lounge is awesome (they have sofas in that collection too).

The back cushions are loose, but they're big & heavy so they don't get tossed around (and i have a 4 year old & a 7 yo, so trust me).

I have a natuzzi leather one in our family room in leather and I love it....this from a girl who said I'd die prior to having a sectional in my home. Two cats, a dog, three years of construction abuse and it's still gorgeous.

Original price was about thirteen grand and you do get what you pay for IMO BUT never pay full price! I bought it at a going out of business sale for around three grand.
That said, if your sectional includes any electronics, budah belly backs or a cooler in the arms....you've gone down a road I just can't support :p

This is like some language I don't know igloochic. :)

My brother has a natuzzi and he isnt that happy with it for some reason.

I think rosesstink just suggested I give my DH a time out. :) that made my morning. I have to say, I used to get upset. The spills on the floor, the rips on things, I can not believe I am typing this because it makes it real, but the fact that when I asked DH to hang the pictures in my DR recently he accidently hit my mothers crystal ball with the HAMMER! and I still do get upset fleetingly, but I realized I could either learn to live with it, or get divorced. He happens to be wonderful in many other ways, and takes such good care of our son, that I decided to learn to live with it. :) He just doesn't get it. Well, he does to a point. I didnt' find out about the entire container of V-8 juice that was spilled on my rug until a couple days after he did such a good job cleaning it up. I think it took him hours.

I couldn't remember your screen name srg215, but I have become obsessed with that sectional and it is your fault!

I am going to move the sofas we have to you can't walk through the opening mimicking a sectional and see how we do for a few days.

I forgot, DH really thinks we need leather and I think he might be right. Our cats are not well trained and are not very good with fabric. They don't bother leather at all.

This one is nice from Bloomingdales. On sales this weekend. We don't really ever sprawl out on our sofas. Probably not practical but pretty! :)

I am getting my first ever sectional for newly finished basement in a few weeks. It is a fabric Flexsteel sectional with a wedge.

It is going to be large for our basement tv area but we really wanted to maximize seating. Chairs are great but they take up too much real estate and only seat 1.

I've never met a sectional that I liked. n't like the way they look in any room, even humongous family rooms. Really don't like the way they seat. Perhaps it's b/c I'm small and I feel like Edith Ann in them, but they are just not attractive to me. Perhaps b/c then you're really locked in.

Don't forget that a sectional was sometimes called a _Pit Group_ in the 70's and 80's. Sounds so inviting, doesn't it?

Ugh. I swore I would never have one. But it just seems to be what we need right now to fit our family.

this is the one we are going to look at this weekend:

Maybe :

or

or

Of course it is ridiculously expensive. I kind of hope we sit in it and hate it. Hopefully the store will have some less expensive brands. I really want one that you can rotate the cushions so they dont' get funny looking on the ends.

If it were just me, I would love this:

But I have agreed that fabric just won't work for this family of DH, two tall SS, a toddler and 3 cats with claws.

What is that rule from Magnaverde? Decorate for the life you have, not the one you wish you had. Or something like that.