Sure, cats and kids are adorable, but if you have ’em, you’ve probably given up all hope of having nice furniture. Don’t worry, though, we’ve got it covered (no pun intended). These two online companies offer chic sofas, chairs and ottomans upholstered in high-tech fabrics that aren’t just stain- and scratch-resistant, but also quite stylish.
Designer and mother of two Debbie Wiener founded Slobproof! (slobproof.com, 888-444-5593) in response to the staged looks she saw in shelter magazines. “It’s a false lifestyle, an unattainable design goal,” she says. “Slobproof! is all about emphasis on the family, not just on the furniture.”
The site offers a wide range of furniture designs — from classic to modern styles — and a rainbow of patterns created from a durable fabric called Crypton, which is impervious to moisture and dirt. (Specific patterns are scratch-proof, too.) Dining and living room chairs retail from $490 to $1,175; sofas are $1,399 to $2,500.
When Elizabeth Levin became mom to a toddler (and a dog), she didn’t want to sacrifice having a fashionable home. Liz Levin Nesting (lizlevinnesting.com, 202-333-5386), an online offshoot of her Washington, DC-based interior-design business, features upholstered furniture that resists dirt, stains and fading; some of the fabrics available are also “cat-resistant.” The site makes it easy to customize your furniture. Pick your favorite classic or contemporary style. Then select the leg style and color. Finally, choose from an extensive array of fabrics. Living room chairs start at $889; sofas from $2,152.
Contract high
You’ll never buy blah contact paper again. With more than 250 styles — from the whimsical “Birds & Berries” to the sexy “Cheetah” to the edgy “I’m Riveted” — ChicShelfPaper.com makes lining drawers and shelves way more fun. And why hide such awesome prints inside a dresser? Get creative and cover those ugly kitchen cabinets or boring closet doors; an optional adhesive backing makes the paper easy to reposition or remove (perfect for rentals). Choose from solids, patterns and four types of material: laminated vinyl, matte paper, weave fabric or satin canvas. Rolls come in two sizes: 12 inches by 10 feet or 24 inches by 10 feet. You can also order any style cut to size. Prices start at $2.50 per square foot.
Room & board
Professional interior design at a fraction of the cost. That’s the mission of DesignerAtHome.com, the brainchild of designer James Charles (whose celeb clients include Tina Turner and Sean Connery). For just $299 per room, you get a design board with décor suggestions, a floor plan and a list of furnishings and fabric sources to put it all together.
We enlisted a pregnant co-worker, eager to get ideas for her nursery, to test out the service. She took detailed measurements of the room and her existing furniture, made drawings of everything and shot digital photos. Then she filled out a questionnaire about her design style, favorite color schemes, budget and any special requirements. (Our co-worker actually signed up for three design packages: high-end cost, mid-cost and low-cost.)
About a month later, a FedEx box arrived with color boards (offering paint, furniture and art suggestions), floor plans and instructions on how to implement the designs.
The verdict? While our mommy-to-be liked the overall color schemes and ended up painting the room the pale yellow shade suggested, she’d hoped “that the rooms would feel more finished in terms of design elements.
“For each room plan, they only showed a single piece of art, and one was from IKEA and one was from Target. I was hoping it would feel more special, more multi-dimensional. Also, no actual fabric choices were included, just pictures.”
And she felt that some important concerns weren’t property addressed. She’d noted that her windows were an odd length, but all the curtains options were too long. And she didn’t think suggested storage solutions were adequate.
On the plus side, this service offers accessible furniture options and might work better for bachelors or design newbies looking for a simple solution: “It’s definitely easy to source what’s in the rooms,” our co-worker says. “It’s mostly from Pottery Barn, West Elm, IKEA — so finding everything and putting it all together would be a breeze.”