Plans to Build a Couch

Electronic devices are great.  When they  work!  My computer problems may or may not be solved.  Its working now so its time to post.

Recently my son moved to his own place.  I am taking the opportunity to reorganize and redo parts of my house.  The living room currently has two arm chairs and a love seat.  There is nowhere to lie down.  The Lillian Street studio has progressed to the point where we can work in it.  Therefore it is time to build a couch.  I built one once before in the late seventies.  I saw it recently and it is solid and I like the design.  I'll try to get a photo to post.

I have a number of requirements for my couch.  It needs to be cat resistant.  That means that it will have a wood frame.  Here is my initial sketch for the project.  The arms will be wide and there will be shelves under them.  The cushions will not be attached to the frame so that I can recover them.  Because I am also concerned about aging in place the couch will be somewhat firm and the seat height will not be low.  I'm currently thinking about making 6" upholstery foam cushions that will rest on a plywood base. 

 

I have no experience with sewing upholstery fabric but think I can figure out how to do it.  The old Bernina sewing machine that I inherited from my sister is made of steel and brass.  It can handle upholstery fabrics.  I like the way the folks at Squint patchwork the upholstery on their furniture.  So I have to learn how to do that.  I bought some remnants from the OnlineFabricStore and am doing some small projects to build up my skills.  Here is my first cushion.  The cushions on the couch will have buttons!

Because I am planning to build the couch's wood frame for paint I am also doing some warm up exercises with painting small furniture.  This table was painted with artists acrylic paint.  I am concerned that it will be sticky in warm weather.  Latex paint may be a better choice.  I'll see how the surface of the table holds up.

Obviously these two items don't coordinate.  In the near future I need to decide on a color scheme and sense of pattern.  Like a crazy quilt the couch will have areas that are visually active and areas that are quiet.  I'm excited.  It will be a fun project.