THE LOS ANGELES TIMES - The best shops for couches made in Los Angeles

Direct-to-consumer is big these days when it comes to purchasing a sofa.

But with so many options to consider — chaise or no chaise? Performance fabric or linen? Foam or down cushions? Extra deep seating or regular? — it’s hard to imagine purchasing a big-ticket item like a sofa sight unseen (even with a flexible return policy).

And we didn’t even mention pets and kids.

According to interior designers Amanda Leigh and Taylor Hahn of House of Rolison, with more people working from home than ever, back support is crucial when “sitting with a laptop or Zoom” on a sofa. “You want to be able to nestle into it after a long day at work,” they said in an email, “but it’s never fun to have to fluff your sofa pillows after every use.”

It’s also important to consider the scale of the room and the intended use of the sofa, according to Shawn and Tina Taylor of Dacotah Studio. “Measure the available space, leaving enough room for traffic flow and other furniture. Also, think about the sofa’s functionality — whether it’s for lounging, hosting guests or serving as a focal point. A general rule of thumb is to ensure there’s ample seating without overwhelming the space. A great tip is to use some old cardboard and cut it to the size of the sofa you are looking at for a visual understanding.”

Recognizing the importance of testing sofas in person, we’ve curated a list of Los Angeles retailers who manufacture their products locally. This ensures you can personally experience the furnishings, tailor them to your preferences and anticipate a quick turnaround, all from the comfort of your neighborhood.

By choosing heirloom-quality furniture from a local business, you’re not just investing in longevity and comfort. You’re also making a responsible choice, preventing the purchase of inexpensive “fast furniture” that might end up in a landfill. At your local furniture showroom, there’s a perfect piece for everyone, all of which we’ve tested ourselves.

Cisco Home

Pasadena Furniture Store

For more than 30 years, Cisco Home has focused on making casual, modern and formal furniture with reclaimed or responsibly harvested wood, organic fabrics, water-based glues and natural finishes. “It’s our line in the sand,” founder Francisco Pinedo, who died last year, told The Times in 2016. “Do you know how many vendors that takes off the table? It makes everything simple. Don’t even bother making a pitch about becoming a supplier if you don’t meet our criteria.”

The expansive Pasadena showroom is welcoming, with a wide variety of groupings that allow you to sample the furnishings and visualize how to mix and match your sofa with lounge and swivel chairs, ottomans, lighting and pillows. On the day I visited, there were deep discounts on floor models: A $4,465 Rebecca Deluxe sofa in white denim was marked down to $3,595, and a $10,000 Benedict sectional in green velvet was half off. Another was marked down from $13,260 to $5,300. Some sofas feature washable slipcovers for a casual look, while others are more formal. Everything can be customized, and you can choose from a large range of fabrics, including leather, Kravet and wood finishes. You can also bring your own fabric for a more personal custom project.

Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Also at 8705 Washington Blvd. in Culver City, (310) 202-1056 (open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday).

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Clad Home

East Hollywood Furniture Store

Interior designer Rosa Beltran started Clad Home on Melrose Avenue in 2015 after struggling to find quality furnishings for her clients. “As an interior designer, I saw a lack of quality custom furniture available to anyone not working with an expensive interior designer,” Beltran said. “I wanted to bring everyone the same level of customization, design flexibility and heirloom quality furniture previously reserved for the clients of high-end interior designers only.”

Her sunny East Hollywood showroom and design studio offer a great mixture of clean-lined furnishings, many of them contemporary takes on classic Midcentury Modern designs, including sofas, chairs and ottomans. Not all of her inventory is on the showroom floor, so if you’re looking for something in particular, consult the sales staff (who will send you home with fabric samples). Sofas can be ordered in any size or configuration, from loveseat to sectional, and are available in more than 200 fabrics, including customers’ own material (COM). Sofas start at $2,900 and many are available as sleeper sofas. Shipping is free and available within 10 to 12 weeks. Beltran also offers a selection of “quick-ship” sofas and sectionals available to ship from downtown Los Angeles in about four weeks in specific fabrics.

Open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday; you can also book an appointment online.

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Croft House

Hancock Park Furniture Store

Step into Croft House’s airy Hancock Park showroom on La Brea Avenue, and you’ll instantly get a sense of the brand’s penchant for mixing and matching materials. The Rivera Sofa, shown above and starting at $5,350, is soft and comfy with down-filled cushions, a wood frame and industrial steel and leather accents. Starting at $3,800, the Midcentury Modern-inspired Alma sofa is equally plush, with handsome leather accents draped over each arm. Croft House co-founder Riley Rea started making reclaimed wood pieces in a warehouse just south of downtown Los Angeles and selling them on Craigslist. Today, he and his team create their custom designs by hand in downtown Los Angeles.

Open 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays and by appointment.

Dekor

Atwater Village Furniture Store

Swedish-born interior designer Isabelle Dahlin is known for her eclectic approach to design, pairing vintage decor with colorful textiles and classic furnishings. Her Atwater Village showroom showcases her individualistic style, including Dahlin’s d/K collection, which is made to order in Los Angeles. The sofas range from tufted Chesterfield sofas to clean-lined Midcentury Modern-inspired sectionals and are available in various dimensions, base stains and fabrics, including customers’ own material (COM). Sofas start at $2,250 and are filled with eco-friendly, hypo-allergenic, down-alternative Trillium. Turnaround time is about four to six weeks.

Open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. weekends.

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Lawson-Fenning

Hancock Park Furniture Store

You’ll spot several interior designers browsing Glenn Lawson and Grant Fenning’s flagship on Melrose Avenue, but don’t let that intimidate you. The store’s friendly staff will accommodate you even if you don’t have “trade” status. The pair, who met as furniture design students at ArtCenter in Pasadena, have long championed local artists, and their LF collection is no different. Handmade in Los Angeles with the same family of fabricators they have used for more than 20 years, the line offers sophisticated takes on California living, from the channel tufted body Isherwood sofa in mustard velvet, $4,695, shown above, to the Midcentury Modern-style tuxedo sofa, starting at $3,995. (The duo recently collaborated with CB2 on a more inexpensive line.)

The two-story showroom offers a constantly changing and inspiring mix of vintage goods and of-the-moment accessories. They also have a warehouse with an overflow of in-stock items and vintage goods open by appointment.

Open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday.

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Nickey Kehoe

Fairfax Furniture Store

Known for mixing vintage and modern decor for a warm, cohesive look, interior designers Todd Nickey and Amy Kehoe have manufactured their NK Collection in Los Angeles since 2008. Attached to Household, their fun home decor shop, their retail showroom features custom tuxedo sofas with skirts starting at $5,440 and low-back settees starting at $5,000. Soft furnishings mix with wood dining sets and one-of-a-kind accessories by local artists. You’ll find lots of fabrics in the back room geared toward the designers’ NK Collection, or you are free to use your own. There are plenty of striking lounge and occasional chairs, including, as seen on a recent visit, an English armchair and Parisian club chair, starting at $3,800, and ottomans on hand to complement your sofa. The shop also stocks an array of pillows, wallpaper, rugs and bedding.

Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

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Shoppe Amber Interiors

Calabasas Furniture Store

Calabasas-based interior designer Amber Lewis epitomizes California’s cool, laid-back style. Walking around her Calabasas home and lifestyle showroom — she has added locations in Pacific Palisades, Newport Beach and Marin since opening her first showroom in 2015 — you can see how her timeless designs seamlessly blend with vintage and vintage-inspired accessories and decor. Sofas, mostly neutral-colored, start at $1,500 and can go as high as $18,000 for a made-to-order sectional. Designs span casual slipcovered sectionals in linen to traditional sofas with skirts and contemporary modular designs in leather. Although many furnishings are made to order, Lewis stocks several items ready to ship that will arrive from downtown Los Angeles within two to four weeks after you place your order.

Open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Also at 859 N. Swarthmore Ave. in Pacific Palisades, (310) 230-1106 (open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday)

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The Hunt Vintage

Echo Park Furniture Store

On an up-and-coming stretch of Sunset Boulevard east of Echo Park Avenue, the Hunt Vintage has opened a new showroom that owner Michael Glotzer calls his “passion.”

Glotzer got his start as a set decorator — influenced by his antiques-dealing mother — and his love for the dramatic shows in the furnishings he sells.

Sometimes he likes to leave the vintage pieces in their original condition, such as the enormous “Miami Vice” meets “Scarface” Vladimir Kagan-style curved sofa from the 1980s ($7,500). But other times, he says he prefers to wait to reupholster furnishings at his client’s request.

Glotzer also produces his own line of custom Midcentury Modern-style furnishings, spanning sofas to credenzas; all made in L.A., they can be built to any size and turned around quickly. Custom loveseats start at $1,400, with modular sectionals beginning at $4,250. Fun customizations include a super soft ’70s-style sofa in corduroy pattern velvet, priced at $1,750, and wooden armrests that lift up for storage.

Open noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and by appointment Monday. (Pro tip: Plan to have a shopping and lunch date. The showroom is within walking distance of Little Fish and the El Ruso taco truck.)

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The Joneses

Beverly Grove Furniture Store

Shopping at the Joneses, where more than 40 sofa styles are on display back to back, requires stamina. The Robertson Boulevard retailer, which has manufactured its sofas at the same family-owned workshop since 1995, mixes Midcentury Modern clean-lined loveseats — including the petite Fairfax sofa starting at $1,475 — with glamorous plush sofas such as a vibrant yellow velvet sectional. The Biloux Sofa, shown above, in green velvet, was priced at $3,395 on a recent visit and the Santa Barbara sofa, regularly priced at $3,335, was discounted to $2,685.

With sustainability a priority for its customers, the team offers hypoallergenic, low-volatile organic compound (VOC)-containing materials that are made locally. Sofas are not treated with toxic chemicals and can be turned around in two to three weeks.

For more information, you can book an appointment.

Open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

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Pampa Furniture

Beverly Grove Furniture Store

Even for those who know what they want, there’s much to discover at Pampa Furniture, which has been manufacturing furnishings in Los Angeles for more than 30 years. The Beverly Grove location is overflowing with a surplus of sofas, from modern classics to slipcovered selections and fabric swatches. (On a recent visit, a salesman was overheard suggesting stain-resistant Crypton fabric to a mother with young children.)

Sofas made in L.A. are marked as such, and there were some great discounts on floor models recently, including a sofa marked down from $2,850 to $1,425. Some pieces, such as the Casablanca sofa, shown above with extended arms, can be shipped from Los Angeles within three to five weeks.

In addition to beds, tables and accessories, Pampa stocks a diverse range of accent chairs, from rounded swivel chairs to clean-lined modern seating. All frames are made from solid alder wood.

Open 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sunday.

Also at 14028 Ventura Blvd. in Sherman Oaks, (818) 789-4430, with the same hours.

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West Coast Modern L.A.

Vintage Store

Luis Ramirez’s vintage store on Fairfax Avenue is a mix of American and Danish Midcentury Modern furniture as well as his line of contemporary midcentury-inspired sofas, lounge chairs and credenzas.

You might find the perfect dining room chair, Sputnik pendant or Berber-covered Eames lounge chair, but you can also create something new. Ramirez has stacks of fabrics on hand if you are interested in ordering a custom sofa, sectional or chair to your specifications. The walnut Midcentury Modern-inspired credenzas, which are made to order in custom sizes and finishes, have hand-carved sculptural doors.

Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Sunbeam Vintage

Highland Park Vintage Store

Although the emphasis here is on vintage Midcentury Modern furniture, owner Iberia Martinez also offers the Modern Collection, midcentury-inspired goods that are made today, and a Sunbeam Exclusive collection of wooden credenzas, benches and shelves that are handmade to order in Los Angeles.

Many of the furnishings in the 6,500-square-foot former movie theater are displayed in period vignettes, including a baroque living room with chandelier and gold lamé walls, a midcentury cabin with an Eames lounge chair, a velvet sofa and fireplace, and a cozy den with a velvet sofa and a Danish Modern wall unit. Custom sofas and sectionals start at $1,395 and are available in more than 100 fabrics. Estimated turnaround is eight weeks.

Open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.

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