‘It’s an icon in the making!’ – John Lewis’ new showstopping sofa is one of the best designs from the brand to date

by Furnishly | Aug 12, 2025 | Design Inspiration

As we find ourselves on the cusp of a new season, transitioning from hot summer to cosy autumn, this is the time when the new collections start to drop. Every brand has its stars and hero pieces – when previewing the John Lewis autumn/winter 2025 offering last month, it was the John Lewis Pleat sofa that shone the brightest for me. And it’s finally available to buy!

Having tried and tested around 250 sofas at this point, including some of the best sofas on the market, I feel comfortable saying that it’s an icon in the making. It’s super comfortable, with deep seats made with foam crafted from recycled post-consumer mattresses, and incredibly stylish and unique.

The Pleat sofa has a timeless look, referencing art deco-style shapes and aesthetic, but it also manages to hit more than one of the biggest sofa trends of the moment.

It hits the curved sofa trend box with the curved shape of both the seat and armrests. Then there is the warm brown default shade, one of the biggest sofa colour trends this year and likely beyond.

The lovely tactile texture of the on-trend chenille material is just the cherry on top, plus it will be delivered within 7 days.

What makes the Pleat sofa special

But the part that really sets this sofa apart from the rest is the pleated base, after which it was named. ‘The Pleat sofa blends low-slung comfort with retro-inspired texture and shaping,’ says Mia Larden, homeware designer at John Lewis, who’s responsible for the design of the Pleat sofa. ‘Soft curves invite you in, while the velvet upholstery and pleated plinth add a refined richness that makes it an instant classic. The pleating was a detail I was set on from the start.’

She continues, ‘Initially, I pictured it running along the seat back, but as the shape evolved, it became clear that it wouldn’t work as I’d imagined. Moving it to the plinth proved to be the perfect solution – it kept the detail I loved, broke up what could have been a solid block of fabric, and allowed us to explore fabric manipulation in a fresh, unexpected way. It’s a feature that truly elevates the design.’

If you want your Pleat sofa delivered within a week, it’s only available as a four-seater with a chaise in the brown ‘Ginger’ chenille upholstery, selling for £3299. I’m a big fan of modular sofas so I appreciated that this design can be broken up into two parts, separating the chaise section from the rest of the sofa.

But if you can wait 12 weeks – which is not an uncommon length of time for a new sofa to arrive – there is also the made-to-measure option where you can choose from over 90 different fabrics, as well as a three-seater size starting at £1849.

The Pleat sofa is part of the John Lewis’ Modern Luxe trend of the season, defined by curved and sculptural silhouettes, luxurious materials and textures and a colour palette of earthy browns and greens.

‘I picture the Pleat in a space that’s warm, inviting, and layered with texture. In Soft Chenille Ginger, it pairs effortlessly with earthy tones, natural woods, and sculptural silhouettes – striking that balance between luxury and ease. It’s a natural fit for a Modern Luxe interior, complete with statement furniture, plush rugs, and soft lighting, yet it works just as beautifully in a more eclectic setting, surrounded by bold patterns and tactile layers,’ Mia at John Lewis says.

The Modern Luxe trend was my favourite aesthetic when visiting the John Lewis autumn/winter 2025 press showcase. Here are some more of my top picks from the look.

Which one of these is your favourite?

‘All our guests comment on how comfortable it is’ – Habitat’s new sofa bed looks designer without the price tag

by Furnishly | Aug 7, 2025 | Design Inspiration

If you’re currently looking for solutions to host overnight guests in style – and comfort – you’ll want to know about one of Habitat‘s latest launches: the Julien sofa bed.

Hot off the press, I think this sofa bed is a game-changer that easily gives the best sofa beds in the business a run for their money.

Why? Because, although it’s not cheap – the four-seater Julien sofa bed costs £850 – that’s still *very* affordable for a sofa bed that can also rival the best sofas on the market.

Although I haven’t yet sit or sleep-tested the newly-launched Julien sofa bed in person, it looks to be the hardest-to-find furniture – a sofa bed that looks and feels comfortable enough to use as the main everyday sofa in a living room.

Such unicorns-of-the-sofa-bed-world do exist, but the few I’ve found are very expensive. For example, the Darlings of Chelsea Bromley Sofa Bed, one of the top sofa beds overall for sit-sleep comfort, costs over £2500 for a 2-seater model. Similarly, the Heals Oswald Sofa Bed, which I highly rate, costs from £2799.

In contrast, budget-friendly sofa beds, like the £230 Habitat Roma Sofa Bed, tend to be more suitable as accent chairs or seating used infrequently in a home office or spare room. These affordable choices tend to look less like a ‘real’ sofa and feel far too firm to curl up and get comfy on – something that’s important to most of us if we’re considering using the sofa bed for day-to-day purposes.

However, Habitat’s Julien Sofa is one of the most comfortable budget sofas I’ve sat on, and the sofa bed looks to be constructed very similarly.

Like the Julien sofa, the Julien sofa bed features pocket-spring foam cushions that give the sofa a good amount of give and bounce. However, on the sofa bed version, the seat section of the sofa bed can be pulled forward and the backrest folded down to create a double bed-sized sleeping area.

That’s another rarity in the sofa bed world. At W137 x L191 the sleeping area measurements do match that of a full-sized bed, whereas many sofa beds give you a *lot* less sleeping space.

You also get a whole lot of sitting space on this generous four-seater sofa. At 238cm wide, that’s a lot of room to stretch out and get comfy, even without transforming it into a bed.

Currently the Julien sofa bed is only available in two colourways – a taupe polyvelvet and a dark green corduroy – but both are great shades, and if the Julien sofa is anything to go by, more upholstery options are likely to become available as the sofa bed’s popularity increases.

The dark forest green upholstery hit the website first, and its first purchasers are already leaving this affordable designer-look sofa bed 5-star reviews.

‘We’ve had the couch for a couple of weeks and it’s great,’ says one happy owner of the green Julien sofa bed. ‘Comfortable, nice texture, easy to pull into a bed. Great quality for the cost.’

‘A number of guests have now used this sofa bed since our purchase last month,’ shares a second reviewer,’ and all comment on how comfortable it is. It is easy to fold out and back again and can be done with one person (although even easier with two). It’s very solid. It’s a beautiful colour and looks so nice in our spare room.’

‘Does not look like a sofa bed,’ raves another. Whilst a fourth says, ‘it’s gorgeous. Really comfy deep sofa with a good quality fabric. The arms are low, and it’s good for lounging. The bed makes up very easily, it’s big, firm, and comfortable. You can store bedding underneath when the sofa is up. Really pleased with it.’

All in all, it seems I’m not the only one to think the Julien sofa bed is a great purchase.