Wayfair Sofa Review: Out with the orange couch, in with the purple Andover Mills Dewitt Sectional

I tend to get sentimentally attached to furniture. (Weird, I know.) And my retro orange couch and me have been through a lot in four years. I bought the bright orange, That 70's Show-worthy sofa from a lovely couple on Craigslist, right before moving out of my college town and to a new city for my first "big girl" job. It sat in my grandma's garage while I crashed with G and hunted for my own place. But eventually, it ended up my first all-to-myself apartment.

Living room before: Our slumpy orange couch required lots of pillows.

I've loved its comfortable cushions, vintage silhouette, and vibrant tangerine hue. Plus, it photographs and Instagrams beautifully. But four years, three moves, and two cats later, the time came for a new couch. Even though it still looked lovely in pictures, the reality is that the old, pilled upholstery became not only faded, but also a magnet for my fluffy white cat's fur. It creaked when we sat on it. And—perhaps worst of all—its worn and weary cushioned threatened to eat us alive after one too many episodes of a Netflix binge.

You can kinda see how my retro orange couch was a magnet for clumps of Cotton's white fur. 

I decided to try my hand at buying a couch online. I wouldn't consider myself a "pro" online shopper, but I have been really lucky with online purchases so far. Of course, I've experienced a couple shipping blips along the way, but the products themselves have always met or exceeded my expectations. Bookcases, desk chair, desk, room divider screens, lamps, decor—online has become my go-to, especially living in a small town with limited shopping options.

And now, I can add a couch to that list.

But let me just say: Buying a couch online is probably the scariest online purchase I've ever made.

A couch isn't just something you just sit on—it's something you commit to. It can't be shuffled into another room where it's better suited (or hidden). It's much more permanent. And it costs more, too. It has to be absolutely perfect.

(As you might be able to tell, I'm loathe to dealing with returns and such.)

First, G and I had a nice chit-chat about our individual and mutual couch wishlist qualities.

We both agreed on wanting a sectional-style sofa with a chaise lounge at one end. And something not much bigger/longer than my orange couch.

G's main request was rounded arms. His previous couch had, like my orange one, been from the 60's or 70's. The low, rectangular arms were uncomfortable. Also, he didn't want a red couch. And I could jive with that. (Red is not in our living room color scheme.)

My desires focused on style and fabric. I wanted something that hit the sweet spot between sleek and comfy—not too hard-edged, not too lumpy. I also wanted a fabric that would make cat hair removal easier and less time-consuming. (For real, I once shaved the orange couch with a leg-shaving razor to get all the cat hair off. I'd prefer to make that a once-in-a-lifetime experience.) Price-wise, I didn't want to pay more than $700. Oddly enough, I didn't have a color in mind.

I spent hours on Wayfair. I started my search one night after work at five o'clock sharp. At eleven, I was still at it. Wayfair's selection was great, but I tortured myself with the reviews. I narrowed my list down to about 8 couches with 4 or 4.5 stars, but the occasional bad review stressed me out.

More than that, I couldn't decide on a color. I'd planned to go with something neutral. And then there was the matter of the back height. My retro orange couch came right to the bottom of our 100-year-old window frames, which are much lower than modern frames. But these days, backs are a lot taller. I didn't want a couch back blocking a foot of the window.

Stressed out, hungry, and sleep deprived. I decided to sleep on it. I tossed and turned all night thinking about couches. (G thought I was being a little overdramatic.) But in the morning, I woke refresh, optimistic, and determined to make a purchase.

The next day, I revisited those neutral couches. But the more I looked, the more I knew in my heart that once you go colorful, you don't go back. I succumbed to the truth: I wouldn't be happy with anything less than a colorful couch.

I felt better after admitting that. But then, I had to decide on a color. Orange again? What if it wasn't as perfect of an orange? Maybe a nice teal blue... But what if it isn't the right shade of turquoise for all the other turquoise in the room? Time and time again, I kept clicking back to the tab with a purple couch. Not bright, obnoxious purple. But a nice, deep purple. Almost plum, but not quite.

Here it is: The Andover Mills Dewitt Sectional I ordered from Wayfair. The color: Bulldozer Eggplant / Spectator Vino. I ran it past G. He was okay with it. Or probably more okay with the fact that I'd finally stop rambling on about couch colors. I added it to my cart and made the purchase—for something like $500 bucks. (It's normally around $900, but I scored it on sale and well within budget!)

I was told it'd be about a month before the new couch arrived. With each passing day, I grew a little more anxious. So much can go wrong in shipping. Damage. Disappearance. Dents and dings. Rips and tears. Not going to lie—I was already writing a bad review in my head. But soon enough, I got the notification that it shipped from the warehouse. And sooner than expected, my couch was delivered.

And as it turned out, I didn't need to write a bad review at all. 

That wallpaper. Right? The wallpaper will be going. But we're soooo burnt out on peeling wallpaper, so we plan to work on this room's walls later this summer or early fall. And I can live with this vintage pattern for a while. :)

Okay, I know the wallpaper needs to go. But we're so burnt out on peeling wallpaper, repairing walls, and painting (we've done four rooms in four months) that I can live with this vintage pattern for a while.

Anyway, the couch arrived just fine. G told me it wouldn't come in a box. (Huge disappointment to my cats—I'd promised a giant box.) But I was still surprised when it did arrive box-less. And more surprisingly, it was very well packaged and protected for being wrapped in cardboard and plastic. Nothing got ripped, torn, scuffed, or damaged. Woohoo!

A quick review:

Color: Perfect. It's a bold, bright purple—exactly what I hoped for!

Comfort: The seats are firm, but back cushions soft and cushy. I think it's pretty comfy. And I like that it doesn't threaten to eat me whole like the orange couch did.

Size: Great. It's slightly longer than my orange couch because of the way the arms curve out, but otherwise has about the same footprint. It fits just right in our living room, which is heavily furnished but not huge. Like my orange couch, it'll fit three people comfortable—four if you're okay with getting cozy with each other. ;) 

Assembly: Piece of cake. The legs screwed in very easily—no tools required. And putting the two pieces together was pretty effortless, especially since the couch weighed soooo much less than my old orange honker. Even though it's lightweight, it stays put on the floor. No scooting around when we plop down.

Pet factor: So far, so good. It's been here a week and it has yet to collect Cotton hair.


Cleaning: We've already accidentally spilled beer on it. It wiped up easily. I sprayed the area with some Mrs. Meyer's surface spray (my cleaning go-to for everything, including rugs and upholstery) and wiped it down. It took a while to dry, but dried free of stains or beer smell.

Scariest online purchase? Make that best online purchase—so far.

I'm really happy with the couch and my experience shopping online with Wayfair. 

By the way, this isn't a sponsored, compensated, or paid review. I bought the couch all on my own and just had such a great experience that I wanted to share it with you all.