The Shop Cop - Jennifer Litwin

As Featured in Bridal Guide

With so many styles, colors and materials to choose from, buying a new sofa can be overwhelming. Jennifer Litwin, author of Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever!, will have you sitting pretty.

1. Before going to a store, peruse online retailers to get a sense of the kinds of styles and materials that are available. Armed with research, you’ll feel more confident when shopping.
2. The frame of the sofa should be strong, preferably made of kiln-dried hardwood, such as oak, maple, birch or alder. These woods last because they are pliable, taking wear and tear extremely well. Other sturdy options include two types of plywood, hardwood and softwood, and steel. The sofa’s corners should be reinforced with wooden blocks, which provide additional support.
3. Inquire about spring count; the more springs, the cushier the couch. It will cost more, but you will be paying for quality and durability. Also, look for hand-tied springs as opposed to machine-attached springs, as the former are stronger and tend to stay in place better.
4. All cushion fillings, like foam, down, polyester, fiber, cotton or a combination of these, are comfortable. To see how a couch feels, sit on it without adding any extra throw pillows.
5. Linen, cotton, wool and silk are all popular natural upholstery options. New synthetic materials are also good choices: They are durable and stain resistant. Avoid a sofa that uses staples to attach fabric; these will loosen eventually. Hot glue is a much better option.
6. Above all, conduct a thorough test. Sit on the sofa, shake it, lie down on it, look underneath it. Remember: A good one should last at least 8 to 10 years.

Hot tip:

To make sure will fit through the door, measure doorways and elevators. Find out if it can be disassembled; inquire about return policy just in case.

The Lingo:

• Synthetic fabrics: manmade upholstery materials like rayon, nylon or polyester
• Softwood: wood from trees like pine or cedar
• Hardwood: wood from trees like oak, cherry and maple
• Blocks: pieces of wood glued to the frame at various stress points to add strength

When kids head back to school, a home’s carpeting can serve as a memory of summer fun. And, tough summer stains can be really tough to remove. “Shop Cop” and home furnishings expert Jennifer Litwin offers these tips:

What kind of carpeting is the most difficult to clean?

Olefin is an oil-based product which picks up stains quickly. North Shore Carpet Cleaning in Arlington Heights, Illinois (847-724-3638) recommends avoiding this type.

If you get a stain, what should you do until the carpet cleaning service arrives?

Pick up the excess, then blot with a damp, light-colored towel. Try using a 1/2 teaspoon of liquid dishwashing detergent with a damp towel to blot and remove the detergent.

How many times per year should you clean your carpeting professionally?

Not usually more than every 12-18 months, unless you get a bad stain.

Can cleaning your carpeting “too often” ruin the carpeting?

Cleaning a carpet more than twice a year can stretch out the fabric. However, stains must be removed quickly or the dirt will go to the bottom of the carpeting and be harder to remove later.

Which are the hardest stains to remove?

Anything with dyes, like popsicles, coffee and wine.

In general, is it easier to clean wools or synthetics?

It is usually easier to clean synthetics—they don’t absorb as much moisture as wool.

On average, how long should good carpeting last for a family of, say 4?

Ten years, but proper maintenance is key to maintaining clean carpeting. Vacuum as often as possible to keep the carpeting clean and free of loose dirt.

Can I save money and get the same outcome with a steam cleaner that I rent for the day?

For just $25-50 you can rent a steam cleaner, but many of these do-it-yourself cleaners don’t have as much power as a truck mount unit used by commercial carpeting cleaners. Many emit too much water or detergent, leaving the carpeting damp for too long, absorbing more dirt later. Also, the truck mounts generally have hotter water a home steam cleaner.

TIPS FOR BUYING THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE IN YOUR HOME

Couch potato jokes aside, the sofa is the piece of furniture that takes the most abuse — and gets the most use — in a typical American home. And, with most couch prices ranging from $500 to $10,000 it is important that consumers compare apples to apples when couch shopping.

A sofa is the anchor piece and one of the most important furniture purchases because you use it everyday. However, buying one doesn’t have to be intimidating or expensive,“ explains Jennifer Litwin, author of Furniture Hot Spots and Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever! (Random House).

Litwin, a Sotheby’s-trained furniture aficionado, Consumers Digest reporter and frequent TV contributor, spent a year “undercover” visiting more than 500 furniture stores nationwide, reviewing stores of all kinds and determining the most important questions consumers need answered when making home furnishings purchases. She found that most furniture salespeople know very little about the products they sell, which creates confusion for shoppers.

Litwin shares her tips for finding a well-made, affordable sofa:

* Hot glue is good. Avoid couches with exposed staples and legs that are screwed on. Screwed-on legs become weaker over time and are more likely to break. Pull out cushions to examine the craftsmanship of a piece. Fabric and wood legs should be secured with hot glue.
* Kiln-dried wood. Ask about the frame materials. The frame should be kiln-dried wood which give the sofa strength, durability and allows for some “give”. Look for solid lumber stock such as oak or alder.
* Road-tested fabric. Check to see if the fabric has been tested. Fabric that has been “rubbed” 10,000 or more times on a machine will determine the likelihood that the fabric will pill and fade. Tightly-woven fabric is best. Lift up cushions again to see if fabric goes all the way down to the base of the sofa, not part way, which is an indicator of low-quality.
* Spring fling. Never buy a couch without sitting on it and bouncing. When you stand up, the sofa should rise with you and not stay seen by peeking beneath the piece.
* Depressed. Eight-way, hand-tied springs are the best and can been seen by peeking beneath the piece.

Once you have made a sofa choice and it is time to hand over the credit card, Litwin recommends asking the retailer for a written warranty, not just one from the manufacturer. “Much of the furniture sold in the U.S. today is from Asia, so it is often difficult to go after the manufacturer if something happens to your piece,” Litwin explains. She also recommends asking if the couch will still be available in six months or if it is discontinued. Surprisingly, most of the furniture on the showroom floor has already been discontinued, making it difficult to get replacement parts should the piece break.

More results of Jennifer Litwin’s undercover work can be found in her book, Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever!, in which she concentrated her research on some of the best-known furniture retailers in the country, including: Thomasville, Ethan Allen, Bloomingdale’s, Marshall Field’s, Crate & Barrel and Furnitureland South. This book simplifies the entire shopping experience and is packed with various successful strategies to use when shopping for your home, including how to begin, where to shop, and what to avoid. This easily portable guidebook reveals how to do homework, ask the right questions and negotiate prices.

About the Author: Jennifer Litwin is the nation’s leading home furnishings expert. Trained at Sotheby’s with an MBA from the University of Chicago, she is a contributing writer for Consumers Digest. In Furniture Hot Spots: The Best Furniture Stores and Websites Coast to Coast, she uses her trademark “chair rating system” to rank furniture stores nationwide according to price, personnel, ambiance and quality.

Buyers, Beware! Furniture shoppers can get duped by untrained sales clerks and retailers who use hidden practices to sell furniture. That, according to Sotheby’s-trained, home furnishings consumer expert and author, Jennifer Litwin, who spent a year “undercover” visiting more than 500 furniture stores. She found that most furniture salespeople know very little about the products they sell, which creates confusion for shoppers.

The results of her undercover work can be found in her new book, Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever!, recently published by Random House. Litwin concentrated her research on some of the best-known furniture retailers in the country, including: Thomasville, Ethan Allen, Bloomingdale’s, Marshall Field’s, Crate & Barrel and Furnitureland South.

The confusion is a result of retailers who really don’t know or understand their products. Litwin asked retailers questions such as: What makes a sofa expensive? Why is an expensive dresser more valuable than a cheaper model? Why should I pay more? Some sales clerk responses included these misconceptions:

* “Name brands are better than little-known brands”
* “Expensive sofas are always larger “
* “Expensive sofas have lots of arm padding and are heavy”
* “The deeper the drawer, the more expensive the dresser”
* “If it’s expensive, it will last longer”

“I don’t fault all salespeople for their lack of knowledge or helpfulness when it comes to pricing, because many of them are simply following the leads of management,” says Litwin. “I do, however, think managers can do a better job of educating their sales staff about basic construction and key features of the furniture they sell.”

Litwin points out that sales people don’t explain to customers that there is more to the construction of furnishings than meets the eye. For example, “cherry finish” is often veneer, not solid wood; and glued drawers are not as sturdy as dovetailed ones. Also, Litwin says most shoppers don’t know how to decode furniture prices. When a sticker price is lower, consumers don’t understand that they could be charged more for shipping, delivering and assembly.

Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever! simplifies the entire shopping experience and is packed with various strategies to use, including how to begin, where to shop, and what to avoid. This easily portable guidebook reveals how to do homework, ask the right questions and negotiate prices and billing.

Utilizing years of knowledge and research, Litwin gives readers a thorough education on furniture styles from antiques to modern, and affordable to expensive. She even entertains with amusing historical anecdotes from various furniture periods.

Best Furniture Buying Tips Ever! is for every type of consumer. Whether a bargain hunter or a shopper with an unlimited budget, this book provides savvy, practical advice on how to get the best quality for the best price. With Litwin’s expert techniques, buyers can become well-educated, confident shoppers when purchasing furniture. It will help shoppers to find that “one of a kind” piece and know they got the best deal possible!

About the Author: Jennifer Litwin is the nation’s leading home furnishings and accessories expert. Trained at Sotheby’s, with an MBA from the University of Chicago, she is a contributing writer for Consumers Digest (awards Furniture Best Buys). Litwin is also the author of Furniture Hot Spots: The Best Furniture Stores and Websites Coast to Coast, in which she uses her trademark “chair rating system” to rank furniture stores nationwide according to price, personnel, ambiance and quality.