Is a bycast leather couch crap, or craptacular!?

Some vegetarians will hate you, yes.

Do you, or might you, have any pets? I'd worry about the chew-attractiveness of leather... I think most good-quality sofas will last that long if they're not ravaged by cats or dogs. Or grape juice.

If vegetarians give you crap about your couch, offer them the floor. No one is making them sit there. My parents are avid comparison shoppers, and no purchase was ever made in my house without at least a week of research and agony. When we finally got leather couches several years ago, they opted for top grain (or whatever it's called) leather over the bycast. I can't tell you why, since I wasn't part of the decision process, but I do know that they were considering bycast and chose against it, for what I have to assume were valid reasons.

Accord to this, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicast_leatherleather is not really leather; it is a man-made product. I guess this makes you safe from militant vegetarians, but puts you in danger of facing some rant about peak oil.

I should add that I don't have any pets. I don't have any vegetarians either - but I'm a single man living in Portland. Vegetarians are everywhere here! Also, I enjoy living downtown, which means living in a small space. My loveseat will pretty much be sat on every day. Really, I just want to be sure that bycast leather isn't crap. I don't expect to get decades out of an affordable couch, but I don't want to replace it in a year or two either. 5 to 7 would be great. More? Even better!

Search on Diamond Sofa says they do import of leather and leather match furniture. Leather match I'm assuming to mean "like leather". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicast_leather http://www.eurway.com/sofas.lasso?itemid=3171&categorykey=94&subcategorykey=30&page=1&result=&-session=eo_user:4AC509520cb8c00CAEtGL1A92F2A has a good description of Bicast leather also (I picked the site since I used to live near one of these stores and liked the look and feel of their stuff but never bought there.) I ended up getting a Natuzzi natural leather sofa and it's still nice after nearly 10 years and 2 dogs with no cuts or chewing from the pets. I think for your purpose, $400-800 will get you a nice looking and durable loveseat - be it natural leather or Bicast, as long as you like the look and feel and the cushioning inside isnt cheaply made, it should last you at least the 5 years you are looking for. Especially the size of the furniture, less than 70 inches wide will probably be pretty sturdy if it's wood frame inside. Shop around and compare to look and quality of the one you posted, ask for a deal, and get something you will like. Looks like Bicast gets some votes in the look and feel and durability (stains etc) category, but by the same token I think it can use cheaper leather to start since it will be "treated" and thus you can expect to pay less for something made with that material. I suppose a leather snob might bash bicast, but really, if you get your money's worth and you like it, who really cares, which also applies to vegetarians who may be angry at your material choice - it's what YOU like and you really arent going to please everyone in life - so get yourself a good deal on something you value and be happy.

Vegetarians are everywhere here! You know what else is everywhere there? Leather http://portland.craigslist.org/clc/fur/688187174.html and http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/fur/682058724.html http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/fur/684405134.html. Buy used and you'll anger less the vegetarians (I'm one) and get real leather for possibly cheaper.

I don't really understand why you'd want to buy a leather couch anyway. In the summer they get hot, in the winter, they're really cold. If somehow it gets ripped, sewing it up will be harder, and the seam more conspicuous. Unless you live in a desert, when it gets hot and humid in the summer, you'll stick to it and it'll feel gross. I guess leather looks nice, but it seems like a less practical material for a sofa. If you have your heart set on it, I'm not likely to change your mind, but you said you've never owned leather furniture before, so make sure that you know what you're going after before you drop the cash.

To me, leather makes sense in a car, where fabric will get grotty and wear out really fast, but I hate it in a chair or sofa. It's so uncozy! You slide around on it, and it's cold in cold weather and sticky in hot. Also it gets scratched. If you want something durable but cozy, there are lots of great microfiber fabrics out there that wear like iron, don't scratch, don't fade, come in all different textures and colors, and will last a lot longer than 5-7 years. Oh, and that are in your price range.