Frames

Upholstered furniture pieces are built around a wooden frame. Manufacturers add springs, padding, cushions and fabric to shape the frame into a sofa or chair.

Quality upholstered furniture begins with a kiln-dried, solid hardwood frame. Avoid soft wood frames and those built with green or air-dried lumber, which holds excess moisture. As the wood dries, these frames will warp, weakening the joints and overall sturdiness.

Occasionally, manufacturers choose not to use hardwood, but with good reason. For instance, a sleep sofa's frame must be aligned precisely so the mattress mechanism glides smoothly. Since dried particle board holds even less moisture than dried hardwood, particle board is sometime used at the front of a sleep sofa frame.

Joints hold the frame sections together. The best joints are formed by inserting two dowels from one section into holes created on the intersecting piece. Glue, screws and wooden blocks reinforce the corners even further.

Insist on quality joints. Frames held together by staples could easily collapse.