White sofas. Have I lost the plot?

[BillStickersIsInnocent]

We have two loose cover sofas. I really really fancy white covers. It looks so fresh and bright.

We have two pre-schoolers, a dog like what-a-mess, live rurally, DH generally covered in engine oil.

But I can wash them frequently, and my MIL has almost convinced me that white is the best colour for most things as you can bleach (chemical/sunlight).

Any experiences?

[TheNewSofa]

Omg!!!

I think this is a wind up

[staverton]

I king of agree with her if they are washable.
My dd's have several pairs of white trousers and all stains come out with stain remover/ sunshine etc.

Engine oil prob wouldn't come off anything...

[staverton]

Kind of (typo)

[MuscatBouschet]

White is perfect because any stain can be bleached out. We have a white loose cover armchair and all the cushions in our house have removable white covers.

Just be prepared to wash them relatively frequently...

[TheZeeTeam]

Yes! I have a white sofa in the playroom and I just wash it whenever it gets dirty. It's covered in bright cushions and really brightens up the room, I think. I did have a brief hankering to have my entire house in various shades of white, but then I realised I really would spend half my life washing and repainting!

[BillStickersIsInnocent]

Arf at wind-up!

Am very serious

Ok, so engine oil a no go. He'll be banned from the room

[BillStickersIsInnocent]

All sounding great - white with bright coloured blankets and cushions is the look I'm going for I think.

[Rosarosae]

The good thing about washing white covers is that they don't show any marbling. We used to have a dark red sofa and the covers looked pretty tatty after the first wash due to marbling. So it's probably the best colour!

[OscarWinningActress]

I would say Ok to white if they were a fabric that was wipeable but keep in mind you'll probably be washing them often and then wrestling them back onto the armchair. Too much bother, IMO (I have a what-a-mess dog too ).

[BillStickersIsInnocent]

Raised this with DH last night who said he wouldn't even enter into a discussion about it. The words 'lunatic' might have come of his mouth.

I'm going to do it. After all his mother put the idea in my head

[Nonemoreblack]

I have white removable covers (ikea), a small messy child and a frequently vomiting cat. No dogs or oil covered husband though. I really like them. The cushion covers are really easy to bung in the washer, although the base cover is a pain as it doesn't really fit (3 seater) so doesn't always get properly clean. But white is very versatile to fit in with other colours. Go for it!

[ResponsibleAdult]

Hmm .

I have DP, two kids, both in their teens (no wax crayons and salt dough here anymore) plus two utterly filthy,medium sized, preposterously smelly dirt magnet type dogs and big aspirations for beautiful wafty Home and Gardens type lifestyle.

All our home furnishing aspirations are totally, utterly cancelled until the dogs reach their natural end.

All our dog accessible services are wipe down, our soft furnishings are where they can't reach. Unless you are happy to face daily soft furnishing washes, and it was daily until I learnt my lesson, there is no other way [serious, not joking face]

[ResponsibleAdult]

Hah! Just reread thread "his mother suggested it...."

Does mil want you to be either

i) physically attached to your washing machine
ii) unable to go out because you are i)
iii) continuously berate you for the state of your sofa cushion covers

Who cares? i)-iii) are not in your interest, pick another colour. HTH

[ggirl]

yess get bunk beds instead for your lounge ...great advice there

I have white ikea ektorp sofa covers , have children , had a dog and generally am a slattern. I do have a white throw on the seat section so when that gets grubby I throw in the wash and on the arms I have arm covers in same material (from ebay) you can't notice them and they get washed when I spill red wine on them. I have spilt red wine in sofa and it washes out

Genuinely it's fine ! Ikea ones are so cheap £50 for 3 seater cover and £25 for 2 seater that it's not a complete disaster if they're ruined.

[darksideofthemooncup]

As long as you don't own any indigo jeans or have friends that have indigo jeans....(bitter experience)

[BillStickersIsInnocent]

Nah my mil is lovely, has never criticised me for anything and never has any sort of ulterior motive. HTH

We have beige loose covers at the moment - they are a pain to wash as never get completely clean. Whereas with white I reckon I can bleach them into submission.

But just maybe I'll get the bunk beds instead

[ResponsibleAdult]

Ooh, OP, just reading another thread about passive aggressive and sarcasm.

When I said HTH (Hope That Helps), I m being genuine, not sarcastic. The theory of white is good, but when using bleach over time it will go yellow.

[BillStickersIsInnocent]

Ok sorry, I misunderstood!

I didn't know that about bleach - is it a given or dependent on the type of fabric?

[ggirl]

I use those dylon whitening things you throw in the wash

[thegirlwithnoname]

They would look lovely, I would love white sofa's, not sure I would ever have the courage though.

[OnePlanOnHouzz]

you are brave ! can you update in a year !!! :-)

[calendula]

Just make sure you can take the covers off without having to dismantle the sofa. We have Ikea Karlstad which while the covers are very easy to wash and come up lovely and clean, requires you to remove the arm rests to get them off.

[Nyborg]

We had an Ektorp with white covers until recently, plus cats. It was fine, until I had to wash them quickly before visitors arrived and the tumble drier in the laundrette left a brown singe mark. No amount of bleach etc was ever going to shift that.

[Blithereens]

I only have white sheets, towels and cloths for this exact reason. Bleach bleach bleach!

Maybe get a throw for the dog etc though so you're not washing them every other day.