The craigslist non-buy

When I think of what a lake house should be, for my family, and for guests, two words that come to mind immediately are “relaxed” and “comfortable.”  I really want to make this house a great place for families to come and vacation with their kids and dogs, if they choose.  It’s hard to find appropriate places to take small children, where both adults and kids can have fun together.  While a real, actual vacation for adults might involve leaving kids and pets behind, for those who are looking for some family time, I think spending time on a lake is perfect.

The first time I went to the house with my foster children (ages 2 and 3), I realized just how much work we need to do to make the house child-friendly.  We need a baby gate at the top and bottom of the spiral staircase, and some extra protection added to the porch railing, as well as two gates for the stairs.  I am concerned for my (smallish) dogs as much as small children with these.

Anyway, I started my furniture search looking for living room chairs.  As always, I faced a major dilemma with what to buy.  As a rule, it seems a sofa and chairs either have to look good OR be comfortable.  If it’s a cozy recliner (where we all really want to sit, right?) it’s ugly.  If it’s really cool and stylish, you want to sit in it for about 5 minutes before looking around for a recliner.

I used to have a friend with some money to burn and she spent a lot of it flipping houses.  She loved finding the most unique art and furniture she could - and she always had these really eclectic and super cool rooms, but what I really remember is that there was never one comfortable place to sit in her house.

Maybe I’m a little bit more on the guy side here, but if it’s not comfortable, what’s the point?

Here are my rules for what makes a chair (or sofa) comfortable: it has to have good back and neck support, and you have to be able to put your feet up if you want to.  I bought a chair once because I liked its look, but it only came midway up my back, and after sitting in it a short while, I’d find myself constantly changing positions or slouching trying to get comfortable.  I learned from that.

So it killed me a little when I found this pair of chairs and ottoman (on craigslist, of course) that I LOVED the look of - the colors, the pattern, etc. but I could tell they were 5 minute chairs.

So pretty!  But not high enough in back to really be comfortable.

The ones I ended up buying I bought because not only were they practically new, but they have great support, and I could read or watch a movie in these comfortably.  (See picture in previous post.)

Good looking, comfortable AND cheap?  This is not easy!