Loose covers: when they make sense on a sofa

What it is, and what it isn’t

A loose cover is upholstery sewn separately, which goes over the sofa and comes off again. Plumbs, a British firm that makes them to measure, describes three ways of doing it: in a stretch fabric; in a non-stretch fabric, for a more structured look; or patterned directly on the piece itself for a precise fit.

What it isn’t is a repair. The same firm explains that a cover changes a sofa on the surface, whereas reupholstery strips it back to the frame, so whatever lies beneath can be redone. If the springs are going or the foam has sunk, a cover hides it but doesn’t put it right.

When it’s worth it

When the sofa is going to get dirtier than most, or be used by lots of different people. A villa let by the week, a sitting room with children or dogs, a pale sofa by the pool: there, being able to take the cloth off and clean the whole of it is rather more than a convenience.

Also when you want a change. Plumbs presents covers as a way to change the look of a sofa with the seasons without changing the sofa. And with a second set, one is on while the other is being cleaned.

When it isn’t

Plumbs doesn’t recommend covers for recliners, drop-arm sofas or pieces with exposed carved wood: the mechanism or the carving won’t let the cover sit properly. It also acknowledges that the fit is looser than fixed upholstery and that a cover sometimes needs straightening.

If what you want is the clean line of a made-to-order sofa, with the cloth drawn tight and every seam where it should be, fixed upholstery gives a result a cover can’t.

The cloth decides how it is cleaned

A cover that comes off isn’t necessarily one that can be washed. OKA, a British firm that sells them, says to follow the care label every time: some go in the machine and others to the dry cleaner, and most of its linen covers are dry clean only.

Cleaning Matters, a cleaning-trade magazine, goes further: it explains that the great majority of good upholstery fabrics are designated dry clean only by their makers. It also recommends making covers from fabric that has been pre-shrunk, because a cover that shrinks in cleaning may no longer fit its cushion.

If it’s cleaned, it’s all cleaned together. OKA advises cleaning every piece in a set at the same time so the shades don’t drift apart, and warns that each wash fades the colour a little. It also cautions that washing or dry cleaning upholstery not meant for it can weaken the cloth and strip its fire-retardant treatment.

What to ask before ordering

With these answered, a cover is ordered knowing what it does and doesn’t do:

The sofa

Will it take a cover? Does it have mechanisms, drop arms or carved wood?

Fit

Stretch, structured, or patterned on the piece itself?

Cloth

Washable or dry clean only? Has it been pre-shrunk?

Sets

One or two? Will every piece be cleaned at the same time?

Underneath

Are the frame and filling sound, or does it need reupholstering first?