The End of the Affair

And my love affair with Pottery Barn has officially ended. Frank and I have been in our house for over 2 years, and the only major piece of furniture that we've purchased was our bed. We were lucky to have extra furniture in in the family that we could use in our den for the time-being, and used a slipcover over a couch and chair that has worked fine. The slipcovers have allowed me to wash doggie paw prints and spills off them, and still looked ok when we entertained. However, they were messy looking 99.9% of the time, and required pretty constant upkeep to look fairly decent. For someone with OCD like myself, slipcovers are hard. I appreciate the fact that we were saved from an expensive purchase until we were in a better financial position, but the sight of a messy slipcover seriously affects my blood pressure. Moreover, washing, ironing, and continually tucking the slipcovers back into place is absolutely exhausting. To top it off, in the past 7 years, I have only had one year of slipcover-free bliss-- my last year in law school.

So, in the interest of my sanity and to make life a bit easier once the baby arrived, Frank and I decided it was time to take the plunge and purchase a new sofa and chair for our den, the room we spend the most time in. We talked about it for months, honestly, and it took some convincing (as in me convincing Frank) for it to finally happen. I was pretty adamant that with two dogs and a new baby that we purchase a sofa that had SEPARATE slipcovers, so that in case a spill or paw print occurred on one cushion, that cushion could be removed, washed, and replaced-- without having to remove the ENTIRE slipcover. I was also convinced that purchasing a sofa from somewhere like Pottery Barn was a good investment, because their furniture is good quality and 3 years down the road when this slipcover is worn out, we will only have to purchase the slipcover instead of an entirely new sofa.

On August 29, Frank and I headed over to the Pottery Barn in our town to take the plunge. We pretty much knew what we wanted, but needed to see it in person to be sure. We ended up purchasing the Pottery Barn Comfort Grand Sofa with Stone slipcover and box pleat cushions, and the Manhattan Leather Arm Chair in Whiskey. I was pleased, and thought (think, I guess) that they'll look great and that we'll use them for years and years. Here are examples of our thoughtful purchases:

I have purchased many items from Pottery Barn over the years, including rugs, plates, curtains, bedding, pillows, etc., and have been pleased with all of them. They hold up well and are classic enough to work from season to season. However, this was my first furniture purchase. When I was told that the Manhattan Chair was "quick ship," I was pleased-- it was due to ship to us the next week, and I figured we could enjoy the chair while we waited on the sofa to arrive. I received the shipping email shortly after that, and anticipated receiving the phone call to schedule my delivery date. The 3rd week of September passed, and I called to see where the heck my chair was. I was informed that since we'd ordered 2 pieces of furniture, the chair wouldn't be delivered until the sofa had shipped as well. However, the delivery company said that the sofa was due to ship the following weekend, September 30th, and that we should receive it fairly shortly after that. I decided that I could live with it, since we would probably receive our sofa sooner than we'd anticipated.

Sure enough, October 1st arrived and we received the e-mail that our sofa had been shipped on September 30. I knew that it would be around a week before we got the call to schedule delivery, so I waited. And waited. And waited. And today, on October 14, 2 weeks after the sofa shipped, I called to see where my furniture was. And I was notified that the earliest that I can expect my sofa is October 22nd, next Thursday.

In the words of Supernanny, "UNACCEPTABLE!" It's unconscionable that furniture that's been sitting in a warehouse for several weeks would take yet ANOTHER several weeks to be delivered. That is just ridiculous, and in my opinion, bad business. So what's the story?? Lesson learned. I will be happy to purchase items from Pottery Barn that I can take home from the store or that can be shipped via the mailways, but my furniture-purchasing days from Pottery Barn are O-V-E-R. Thank God the slipcover doesn't require in-home delivery.