Spills, jumping, sharp corners, homework

Living-room furniture for a house with kids

A living room with children in it is a gym, a dining room, a fort and a homework desk. The furniture that survives it has a cover that wipes clean, a frame built for a running jump, tables without corners at forehead height, and storage that closes. None of that has to look like a daycare. The pieces below are on the floor in Northfield, where the fabrics can be tested with a wet cloth and the tables can be measured against a four-year-old.

Performance-fabric sectional for a family living room, Kensington Furniture

Kensington Furniture is a family-owned store in Northfield, New Jersey, since 1912, in its fourth generation. Performance-fabric sectionals, storage ottomans, round coffee tables and youth furniture are on one two-acre floor. Call 609-241-0807.

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Five rules for a living room with children in it

In order of how much grief each one saves.

1. A cover that wipes, in a colour that hides

Performance fabric, mid-tone, small patternNuvella, Durapella and Bassett performance fabrics clean with water and mild soap and shrug off juice, markers and most of what a toddler does. Mid-tones and tweed-look patterns hide crumbs between vacuumings; white shows everything, dark shows lint. Leather wipes even faster and scratches less than you fear from children; it is cats that puncture it.

2. A frame built for jumping

Hardwood or engineered frame, sinuous springs, loose reversible cushionsKids land on the same cushion every day. Ask what the frame is and how the seat is sprung; flip the cushions monthly so both sides wear. A tight-back sofa has fewer cushions to end up on the floor as fort walls.

3. No corners at forehead height

Round or oval coffee tables, or a storage ottomanA rectangular coffee table with hard corners sits exactly where a running three-year-old's face is. A round or oval table, or a padded storage ottoman that is also the toy box and the extra seat, ends that particular trip to urgent care.

4. Storage that closes

Ottomans with lids, cabinets with doorsOpen shelves are invitations. A storage ottoman, a console with doors and a lidded bench under the window turn the nightly clean-up into thirty seconds and keep the room looking like the adults live there too.

5. A sectional with a chaise or a cuddler

Everyone fits, nobody fights over the cornerA chaise is the reading spot and the sick-day bed; a cuddler corner holds two small people and a parent for a film. Both keep the room in one piece for movie night without a third sofa.

Homework, screens and the dining table

The kitchen or dining table is the homework desk for most families until middle school, so choose one that wipes clean and chairs that do not tip. In the living room, a lift-top coffee table brings a laptop or a puzzle to lap height and hides the cables inside; several are on the floor.

The three covers families ask about, compared

Judged on what children do to a sofa.

Performance fabric (Nuvella, Durapella, Bassett performance)Protected leatherOrdinary fabric with a stain treatment
Juice, markers, mudWater and mild soap; most liftWipe off; condition afterwardsSome lift, some set; act fast
Jumping and wearTight weave wears well; flip cushionsWears in, not out; scuffs polish outPills and thins at the edges sooner
Crumbs and furBrush off; tweed colours hide themNothing clingsCling to the pile
Feel in summerNeutralCool then warm; sticks to bare legs in AugustNeutral
Best forToddlers to teens, any budgetFamilies who want one sofa for fifteen yearsA formal room the kids rarely use
On the floor nowNext-Gen Durapella sofas, sectionals and recliners; Biscoe with washable pillowsLeather sofas and recliners from Ashley, La-Z-Boy and BassettAcross the floor

Floor models rotate; the ones named were on the floor when this page was written.

Test it with a wet cloth, and a child

Bring them

The store is used to it. Let the children climb on the sectional you are considering; you will see in a minute whether the cushions stay put and whether the corner holds two of them. Ask a consultant for a fabric swatch and press a wet cloth into it in front of you.

Measure the coffee table against the child

Table height at or below the smallest child's forehead means a rounded edge or an ottoman. Nesting tables and a storage ottoman are the usual answer until everyone is taller than the table.

$0 DOWN, 0% INTEREST FINANCING

36 equal monthly payments on furniture, no minimum purchase. Mattress purchases of $999 or more: up to 60 months. Kensington Furniture Synchrony HOME™ Credit Card, subject to credit approval.

See if you prequalify

Tell us the ages. A consultant calls you.

How many children, how old, pets or not, and what the room has to do. A Kensington consultant calls back with the covers and layouts that fit and has swatches and the sectionals ready for the whole family to try.

Or call 609-241-0807, Monday to Saturday 10 am to 7 pm, Sunday 11 am to 5 pm.

What is it for?

A Kensington consultant calls back the same or next business day. No spam, no list.

Delivery, testing and the floor

Delivery and pickup

We deliver throughout South Jersey: Atlantic City, Ocean City, Cape May, Somers Point, Linwood, Margate, Ventnor, Galloway, Mays Landing and the Shore towns between. In-stock pieces are available for pickup or fast delivery.

Delivery is white-glove: our crew brings the piece in, sets it up in the room and takes the packaging away. Removal of old furniture or a mattress is available for a charge and has to be arranged when you schedule the delivery.

Bring the kids

Every sectional and ottoman on this page can be climbed on at 200 Tilton Road, and every fabric has a swatch you can wet. Call 609-241-0807 and a consultant will have them ready. Our crews deliver, set it up in the room and take the packaging away, so the fort can go up the same evening.

Come see it at 200 Tilton Road

Kensington Furniture & Mattress, 200 Tilton Road, Northfield, NJ 08225. Exit 36 off the Garden State Parkway. Phone 609-241-0807.

  • Monday to Saturday10 am to 7 pm
  • Sunday11 am to 5 pm

Get directions

Family living rooms, the questions we get

What is the best couch material for kids?
A performance fabric such as Nuvella or Durapella in a mid-tone or tweed-look colour: it cleans with water and mild soap, wears well under jumping, and hides crumbs. Protected leather is the other answer if you want one sofa for fifteen years; ordinary fabric with a stain treatment is for the room the kids rarely use.
Is leather a good idea with young children?
Yes, better than most people expect: it wipes clean faster than any fabric, does not hold crumbs or smell, and children's scuffs polish out. Its weak points are cats' claws and bare legs in August. Choose a protected leather rather than a raw aniline.
What coffee table is safest for toddlers?
A padded storage ottoman: no corners, a lid for the toys, an extra seat. If you want a hard surface, a round or oval table, or nesting tables that tuck away. Avoid rectangular tables with hard corners at forehead height until everyone has grown past them.
Which sectional works best for a family?
One with a chaise or a cuddler corner: the chaise is the reading spot and the sick-day bed, the cuddler holds two children and a parent for a film. Performance fabric, loose reversible seat cushions and a tight back keep it looking right between clean-ups.
How do I stop the cushions ending up on the floor?
Choose a tight-back sofa, so the only loose cushions are the seats, and accept that the seats will become fort walls. Loose reversible seat cushions are still worth it because you can flip and rotate them as they wear.
Can I test the fabric before I buy?
Yes. Ask a consultant for a swatch of any performance fabric and press a wet cloth into it, drag a fingernail across it and rub a dark cloth on it in front of you. Take one home for a week if you like; that tells you more than the label.
What is a lift-top coffee table?
A coffee table whose top rises to lap height for a laptop, a puzzle or a plate, with storage underneath for the cables and the remotes. Several are on the floor in Northfield; the product pages list the dimensions.
Is youth furniture worth it or should I buy adult pieces?
For bedrooms, a full-size bed with a plain headboard lasts from six to sixteen; bunks and lofts earn their keep when siblings share. For the living room, buy the adult sofa in a family-proof cover rather than a kids' sofa nobody sits on.
Where can I bring the kids to try sectionals in South Jersey?
Kensington Furniture is at 200 Tilton Road, Northfield, NJ 08225, off Exit 36 of the Garden State Parkway, open Monday to Saturday 10 am to 7 pm and Sunday 11 am to 5 pm. Call 609-241-0807 first and we will tell you which models are set up that week.
Do you deliver to the Shore towns?
Yes. Our own crews deliver throughout South Jersey, and in-stock pieces are available for pickup or fast delivery. Delivery is white-glove: we bring the chair in, set it up in the room, plug in a power recliner and take the packaging away. Removal of an old chair is available for a charge and is arranged when you schedule.
What financing is available?
Furniture financing at Kensington is 36 equal monthly payments with $0 down and 0% interest, no minimum purchase, on the Kensington Synchrony HOME credit card, subject to credit approval. Prequalifying does not affect your credit score.