We get it: investing in furniture is a big deal. And if you’re shopping around with a bit of sticker shock, we get that, too. Here’s why choosing ethically manufactured, durable furniture pays off—in other words, here’s a look at why Medley’s furniture costs what it does and how it’ll serve you (now + in the long run).
1. Enduring craftsmanship + durability
We do everything possible to make sure your furniture will maintain its support, shape, comfort, and beauty over time. This starts with our team of skilled builders who use time-honored techniques and methods that help make our pieces supremely durable.
Let’s start with the frame: classic joint construction contributes to long-term frame durability, while corner blocking (extra pieces of wood placed at an angle and screwed into place on the sofa frame’s corners) provide extra stability. No wiggle-wobbling, ever.
Next up, we offer two types of spring systems for our sofas and sectionals depending on the model: our heavy gauge, hand-tied Arch Suspension System and our classic, tried and true, 8-way hand tied coil springs work all their heavy duty magic to prevent sagging and squeaking. Quality spring systems not only absorb shock, but serve as an important foundation for creating an optimally comfy, supportive sit.
Because our pieces are designed and constructed for longevity, they don’t require assembly (an added bonus), unless the move-in requires a simple step, like screwing on legs. Instead, our furniture is...well, difficult to take apart. Take our sofa and sectional frames—they use
kiln-dried, solid wood combined with engineered hardwood for added strength to ensure long-lasting stability. Less expensive frames made from lower-quality wood materials like particle board, or plastic can’t help but weaken over time. Because sofas and sectionals are so big, they are often prone to deforming, cracking, and breaking when built from lesser materials.
P.S: we're confident your furniture will last as long as you need it to, but just in case, we also offer a lifetime warranty on frames.
Our domestic, FSC certified, solid furniture legs and wood pieces will show their character with use, but can also be lightly sanded and refinished for a quick refresh. On occasion, we use real wood veneers over engineered hardwood in hidden areas to achieve greater rigidity and stability: that means no warping or expansion over time. Veneer is a thinner piece of real, grained wood often used in modern furniture manufacturing. In our case, veneer is always solid domestic wood from FSC-certified forests. It’s important to note, real wood veneer is not the same as laminate, which is a printed image of wood texture, most often on vinyl.
While the idea of “veneer” might suggest a lower quality build it is, in fact, real wood—and contrary to popular opinion, it’s not always the cheapest option! In addition, this construction also makes a dresser, credenza, or sideboard lighter and easier for moving. Overall, these furniture pieces are still quite heavy, but this way two strong adults can get it around.
So go ahead, have your rowdy neighbors over—your Medley piece can take it!
2. Life-proof fabrics
We take extra care to use the highest quality materials for anything that stretches, wears and softens over time, like fabrics and leathers.
The majority of our fabrics test higher than commercial grade limits, meaning they can withstand being placed in the middle of a busy mall and still hold up. In addition, many of our fabrics offer plant-based finishes for stain resistance and a few are machine washable for our zippered, removable back and seat cushion covers. Be sure to read through guides and hover over our icons (washing machine, bubbles, wine glass etc…) to learn more about each fabric offering. And we offer a handy guide with care instructions to provide more insight on keeping your upholstery tip-top. If you’re looking to head straight to our most durable, spill-proof (and kid/pet-friendly 😊) fabrics, be sure to check out our puppies, kids, and bubbles icons on our swatches page before ordering free samples.
3. Sofa Cushions: Luxe, lasting comfort
Picture yourself plopping down on your new sofa. Ahhhh. How do you feel? Foundationally supported, enveloped in comfort, and pleasantly propped by a mix of springy resilience and opulent, plush softness. This is what it’s like to lounge on our top-notch cushions.
Note: sofa cushions on the market feature all kinds of foams that vary greatly in quality, and cheaper sofas that feature lower grade density foam cushions will likely lose their shape or deteriorate more quickly. High-resilience foams (like natural latex) are known for their comfort, responsiveness, and ability to retain shape over time.
At Medley, we offer two high-density foam options: 2.5 lbs CertiPUR-US® certified poly foam (the cleanest synthetic choice on the market) and Global Organic Latex Standard (GOLS) certified, plant-based, Dunlop natural latex foam wrapped in OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certified wool. Natural latex doesn’t offer the same type of density rating, but rather Dunlop latex is known to be the most durable and long-lasting option (vs. Talalay—more on that here.)
The word "latex" sounds plasticky and artificial, but it’s the most natural, breathable, durable, and sustainable material available for foam. Natural latex comes from the sap of rubber trees and features a durable spring-back to maintain its shape for 20+ years. Plus, the tree is tapped (like maple syrup!) so it can regenerate for years to come!
Pretty amazing, right?
4. Made one-of-a-kind for you and your space
Our goal is this: help you find a just-right solution so you don’t have to settle for something that only kind of works.
Because every piece we build is made to order, we have the flexibility to customize your furniture to make sure that it's exactly what you’re looking for. Customizing is easy:
- Select from our (quite plentiful) style, size, and layout options
- Choose a fabric that coordinates with your lifestyle and order samples to test out in your space.
- Choose your filling: soft, yet supportive GOLS certified natural latex foam + wool fiber or CertiPUR-US® certified poly foam on its own or with squishy-soft down.
- Choose your furniture leg style and finish.
- Click purchase.
- Wait for your furniture to arrive and then sit back and relax!
Beyond the choices listed on our product pages, we also offer further customization, like the option to use your own fabric (we call these C.O.M. (customer’s own material) orders). Email us at hello@medleyhome.com to get started.
5. Materials for a healthy home and planet
As you might be aware, the furniture industry as a whole has a bad reputation for using questionable materials via a "fast furniture" build approach.
We set out to change that by using materials that leave out harsh chemicals sometimes found in furniture like flame retardants and formaldehyde. Our third-party certifications and partners help us source materials to make furniture that’s better for our environment. Some of these include:
To help offset our environmental impact, we also partner with the National Forest Foundation, who helps us plant 3 trees for every tree we use to build our furniture.
The Cost of Fast Furniture: Doing the math
There’s no doubt that sticker shock when shopping for quality, durable furniture is real – but, so is another, hidden price tag. While that $400 sofa might seem like a win at the start, after a year or two, you might find that cushions start permanently sagging, the frame begins to creak and wobble, and the upholstery fades or wears.
When you factor in the cost of cycling through cheaper, lower quality pieces every few years, sofas no longer feel like a deal, but become one of the more expensive decisions you’ve made for your home. A quality piece, on the other hand, is something you buy once. When you spread the cost of a well-made sofa over 10+ years of daily use, the math starts looking different.
Ultimately, investing in quality means less time spent furniture shopping, less money out of pocket over the long run, and wayyy more couch time.
The environmental effects of fast furniture
There's another price tag that doesn't show up at checkout: the environmental one. The rise of "fast furniture" – cheap, trend-driven pieces designed to be replaced – has made furniture one of the largest contributors to landfill waste. Americans discard millions of tons of furniture every year, and most of it is made from low-quality materials that can't be recycled or composted. These will sit in a landfill for centuries, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and contamination of groundwater.
Choosing a piece built to last is one of the most impactful environmental decisions you can make. When your sofa is designed to stay beautiful and functional for decades, you can feel good about the small and mighty contribution you’ve made to the future of our planet.
Secondhand makes a difference
Some might argue that buying a $5,000 sofa just isn’t going to work for a college apartment, or the place they share with roommates in their 20’s for a year or two. Hey… fair! Of course, there are situations where a $400 sofa seems totally worth it. And we’d like to argue: the most sustainable sofa is the sofa that already exists.
When there’s endless secondhand options online or at brick-and-mortar shops, buying a new piece suddenly seems wasteful. No, you don’t have to go for the stained, shedding, and crooked sectional in the corner of your local Goodwill – there’s always a time to say goodbye – but we’ve always been adamant that there’s almost nothing an upholstery cleaner can’t fix.
In conclusion...
We make our furniture made with your home in mind: open, modern, versatile, and most importantly, functional. On the whole, our approach is to design for timeless appeal that fits with all kinds of decor styles—all in hope of producing something adaptable that you’ll really want to keep.
Whether through a slight pitch in the seat back or an extra layer of wool around your sofa cushions, every construction and material choice is made to create longer-lasting, comfier furniture. Medley designers pay extra attention to how each item will be used for years to come, focusing on the item getting better with time.
All in all, our message is this: investing in quality, eco-friendly furniture now will leave you with something you can enjoy for the long-run. Worth it! With 0% interest* payment plans through Affirm, a 30-day trial, and a lifetime guarantee on our furniture frames, you can’t go wrong.
Want help getting started? Request free design help or order free fabric swatches to make your vision real.
