For the Love of Couches, 3rd CL Find a Charm

I am taking the first step: I admit I have a couch problem. As I admired my mid-century modern style Craigslist find last night, it struck me that this is the third couch to occupy my living room. And we have lived here just shy of three years. Um...

Of course, for me, that's part of the allure of buying used furniture. I can afford to change it out on a whim. It's easy on the pocketbook and the environment. Plus, much like Tyler's "single serving friends" on "Fight Club," I almost always enjoy the people I briefly interact with through CL. Plus, I think this one's the keeper. No more couch hunting for awhile:

I'd planned to get a vintage MCM couch for this wall, wanting that sleek, long look. It was on my "eventually" list. However, while shopping for a couch for the family room, I stumbled on this Kady couch for $150 and couldn't resist. It sells new at Macy's for $899! (Yes, I am picking up a different couch for the family room tonight. No, they do not have 12-step groups for CL addiction. I already checked CL.)

Due to my husband's bum back, and a birthday party that tied up my son and his friends, I needed to hire somebody to help me get the couch in the car. CL to the rescue again, where I found Frank for $30. I knew I had a good find when every time the seller left the room, Frank would whisper, "This is so nice. You're getting a great deal!" I'm also impressed that I fit this full-size couch in our Ford Flex. The gate even closed. Look! (We'd started to pull it out a bit before I took the pic.)

Even though I'd triple checked my measurements, I was worried if the couch would actually make it. I'd Googled "moving furniture in a Flex," hoping to find somebody who'd done it. Hopefully this pic will help somebody else out down the road. The secret was removing the legs, taking the height from 35" to 29".

The Flex is a superstar, 3-row box of an SUV/station wagon hybrid, and it's interior dimensions vary throughout the car. But all that really matters, for the sake of, "Will that fit?" are the lowest and most narrow points--at it's lowest, it's 32" high. At it's most narrow, by the wheel well, is 42". Depth is 78" (Or a little more if you can scoot the chairs up.)

I'll save how we turned the Flex into a camper this past weekend for another post. Suffice to say, I'm a huge fan of this car. Maybe I'll buy another on Craigslist. But only if it comes with a couch.

Pallet Sectional - Final Look, Cost

Ta-dah! Here's the final set up for our pallet sectional. (The project was prompted when a snow storm took out our old deck furniture.) I love that the new set up can seat a bunch of guests for dining or make a cozy place to nap away a lazy afternoon. Below is the cost and material breakdown.

• 8-wood pallets, 36"x48" each - $0
• 6 - posts used for backs; scrap pieces from Lowe's - $0
• 2-Beddinge futon mattresses, 55"x79" each (mattress 4" high, seat depth 31"), included covers - $35, CL
• 2-vinyl zipped mattress protectors, queen size - $25
• 1-32 oz 303 Products 30650 High Tech Fabric Guard w/ Water Repellant - $25.75 (paid $3.99 extra for 1-day ship) 
• 8 - Ullkatus Cushions/Pillows from Ikea, green - $32 (sold in outdoor section, presumably meant for outdoor use)
• 6 - Gulort cushion/pillows from Ikea - $18 (on clearance, believe they are being discontinued; treated w/ waterproofing spray)
• Total Cost: $135.75

Sets with similiar seating capability run in the range of $1,500-2,500. So I'm feeling good about our final costs. Plus, we went big. If you were doing, say, a loveseat, you could spend much less.

Other cushion ideas include crib or foam mattresses or old couch cushions. You could even look for actual outdoor cushions at Big Lots or end-of-season sales. I hear some people do that; use things for their intended purposes. :) I wouldn't know anything about that, though. I do know that I'm really happy basically having two beds on my deck. So is our dog Buddha.