HGTV "My Favorite Room" - The Look for Less Jan's Way!

Hola everyone.  I received the March 2019 edition of HGTV Magazine in the mail a few days ago and started paging through it.  I savor those magazines like fine wine, which for me is a $12.99 bottle of Beringer White Zinfandel :)

The very first room that was in the article "My Favorite Room," garnered from the favorite rooms of bloggers from around the internet, caught my eye.  It just looks so "summery," comfy, and pretty.  Here's the two page spread on that room.  The first page shows the existing room; the second page shows some items selected by HGTV to recreate the look in your own home.

To save you some time from having to greatly enlarge the print (like I need to) in order to easily read it, the items shown in the "get the look" page are:

Art:  "Apple Tree," by Hagermann, 36" x 46" scroll, $189, styledeviestore.etsy.com
Chair:  "Hadley" polyester and wood chair in azaela, $899, potterybarn.com
Coffee Table:  "Jaidin" 18 1/2" x 32 3/4" diameter metal and glass table, $251, jossandmain.com
Pillow:  Floral 17" x 17" cotton pillow cover, $40 each (times 2), whitlockandco.etsy.com
Rug:  Twinar 8' x 10' wool rug, $420, birchlane.com
Sofa:  "Milo," 80" wide velvet sofa in emerald and washed pine finish, $1,895, onekingslane.com
Total cost for items listed:  $3,734

I did not include the basket and faux plant ($155 for both) or the five-pointed star paper lantern ($34.50 for one) in my hunt.

As always, I thought - no way would I pay $1,800 plus for a sofa or $899 for a single chair! I think I can do better, at least on some of the items, without sacrificing the look.  So I set out to recreate my own less expensive version of Charlotte Smith's (atcharlotteshouse.com) much admired living room!

My Sofa Picks

First thing I shopped online for was the sofa.  The article noted that the original was an Ikea sofa, so I headed there first thing.

Sadly, I didn't find anything remotely similar in green velvet to this sofa at the Ikea website.  So, I headed next to All Modern, because the sofa's style reminds me of mid-century modern to contemporary, and they have great stuff at All Modern, at great prices!

I fell in love with the Mercury Row Dupuis sofa, at 80.3" in  emerald green velvet.  It's got a reversible bench seat, which I prefer because if three or four people are squishing on the sofa nobody has to sit on a crack in the cushions!  I also like cushions that I can regularly rotate/flip.  Two back cushions cut down on hitting one of the cracks between the cushions and the two side cushions are a good size.  Also noted is the modern "tuxedo" style where the back cushions and arms are at equal or nearly the same height, similar to the original sofa I'm trying to duplicate.  Back and side cushions are also reversible.  Currently on sale at a hefty 42% off, price is originally $1,497, sale price is $799.99 plus free in home delivery. Pictured below:

Differences:  Not a two cushion seat nor a three cushion back; arms are not as wide nor inner angle slanted as much; and legs are gold finished metal bracket shape, not wood.

At a slightly higher price of $860.99 on sale plus free in home delivery (42% off original price of $1,497), Mercury Row also offers a similar look in a larger sofa in the Dupree sofa at 85".  The Dupree has three reversible back and bottom cushions and two side cushions, in emerald green velvet, and warm brown stained wood legs.  Pictured below:

Differences:  Three seat cushions, not two; side cushions are square, not rectangular and not as generous in size; not a "Tuxedo" style sofa (where back cushions and arms are nearly the same or equal height); and inner arms are straight up/down, not angled inward like the original.
.
The Arm Chair

Finding arm chairs is easy.  Trying to find an arm chair covered in a print that is similar in color tone and pattern to Charlotte Smith's chair and in a style even remotely resembling the style of her chair:  HA!  I failed miserably, I admit it.

But I did come up with some options in a range of prices all costing less than the Pottery Barn "Hadley" chair covered in "Azalea" ($899), which I could not find at PB's website.  I found the chair, but not that particular upholstery option.  In any event, I just can't fathom paying more for a single chair than I'd be paying to "get the look" in an emerald green velvet sofa.

So, here are my less expensive chair options:

Simona multicolor floral linen armchair by Handy Living, at Overstock, $343.39 (on sale through today, but this chair is on sale at several different sellers online, all for varying prices).  Pictured below:

Differences:  Many!  It's a floral print but the "green" is rather grayed out; still, the background is white, but there's a lot of lavender in the floral print and the red/berry color is darker than either the "target" chair or the color in the "target" botannical print.  Still, it is a true arm chair; the back is nicely tufted, it has a true reversible seat cushion, I like the turned wood stained legs (although they're not Queen Anne style) and while not having the rounded shape of the "target" chair, it has nice arms and a good back, and looks like it would be in proportion with either of the "look for less" sofas I chose.  The price point makes this option very attractive.


My next selection is also from Overstock, the Candid Moment Ebony Chair by Skyline Furniture, currently $488.99.  Pictured below:

Differences:  Many!  I like the crisp white background and this floral print, while also featuring birds among the flowers, has a somewhat brighter color tone to it than the "Simona" chair above.  However, the green is definitely "greyed out" on this upholstery.  This style is more in line with HGTV's suggested substitute "Hadley" chair.  It has a tight seat, no separate seat cushion, and also features turned wood stained legs.  I'm not a fan, however, of tight seat furniture.  Being able to flip and rotate seat cushions extends their life, an option one doesn't have on a tight seat sofa or chair.

I found this option at Wayfair.  It's the Huntington Chesterfield Chair in "Creamy Ivory Multi Floral with Birds," by Three Posts, $206.96.  Pictured below:

Differences:  Many!  For one thing, this isn't strictly an armchair, it's a Chesterfield style which is a more traditional take on a Tuxedo style sofa, where the back and arms are all the same (or very close to) the same height.  But the colors are vibrant.  A visit to the website and use of the magnifying tool will help reveal the richness of the print. The colors are vibrant although again, there is little green in this print.  This is also a tight seat chair, no reversible cushion.  This print has birds included like both of the options above (I think of them as a bonus).  I like the richly stained turned legs, the nailhead trim and the tufted back.  This option also checks in at the lowest price of the three chairs offered as substitutes for the original.

Now, here's a different style chair but in the same material as the Chesterfield style chair above.  It's also at Wayfair, the Quinton Armchair by Andover Mills in "Creamy Ivory," $265.99.  Pictured below:

Differences:  Upholstery still is not as good a "match" as I'd like.  This does, however, have a reversible seat.  It also has the dark stained turned wood legs.  Sizewise, this is slightly smaller than the "Simona" chair (substitute #1 above) but I like the "Quinton's" proportions better.

The Art

I thought I would have a hard time finding something similar to Charlotte Smith's beautiful vintage apple botanical print, but I found it straight off!

Great Big Canvas offers this print on canvas, as framed and unframed prints, and as wall peels, in three different sizes.  The largest size, though, is 27" x 36".  The Etsy substitute offered by HGTV is 36" x 46".  The difference in prize, though, now that's pretty sweet!

The largest canvas size offered by Great Big Canvas (27" x 36") costs $117.49.

The largest framed print in standard black (the 27" x 36" print) is 34" x 43" and costs $172.49.

The largest size poster print at 27" x 36" is $27.49!  Frame it yourself or add a pair of poster holders and you've got the look, albeit smaller. Displays2Go offers a pair of black aluminum hangers, for instance, at $13.51 for the 36" wide size.  Shop around, prices vary greatly.  It depends upon the color, material and size.

I'm continuing this "look for less" in a second post covering the rug and the coffee table.  Because of the number of options for the throw pillows on the sofa, that will be in a third post.