Sleeper sofas, like Lark Manor’s Rasberry Rolled Arm Sofa Bed, turn an ordinary room into a multipurpose space where you can host guests. A quality sofa bed should be comfortable to sit on but able to provide a supportive night’s rest. It also needs to complement your decor and disguise its dual purpose. And who wants to wrestle with folding and unfolding a bed when you’re tired? No one. Therefore, transitioning from sofa to bed and back again should be a simple task. We put the Rasberry Rolled Arm Sofa Bed to the test to see how multifunctional it truly is. Keep reading for our full assessment of the sofa’s design, comfort, size, price, and more.
Design: Streamlined and buttery soft
If we had to choose three words to describe the Rasberry, they would be simple, effective, and classic. The genuine top-grain leather upholstery is gorgeous, and you get to choose from 15 colors. Before ordering, you can also request three free upholstery samples from Wayfair, which we did. We planned to use the Rasberry in a home office that has a big black desk. To keep the look and purpose of the room streamlined, we ordered three different shades of dark brown and opted for Vintage Flint because of its gray undertones. We could not have been happier when the Rasberry arrived. The top grain leather has a buttery softness that feels wonderful against the skin. The antique flint hue also lends the sofa a slightly aged look that blends perfectly with the rest of the room. Initially, we were concerned that the Rasberry might be too big for our 11 x 12-foot office, but the 33 x 81 x 35’-inch profile didn’t overpower the room. We especially like the low, 33-inch back as it prevents the sofa from gobbling up wall space. Prior to ordering, we also didn’t realize the sofa has 2.75-inch legs. The solid wood legs are thick and sturdy, so the sofa won’t collapse if you flop onto it after a long day. While we didn’t expect the legs, they were a pleasant surprise. And if sofa legs aren’t your thing, they’re removable. There’s just one small detail we don’t love about the sofa’s exterior design: the edge of the cushions doesn’t line up with the seams on the back. It’s not a huge deal, but even after readjusting the cushions, the seams still wouldn’t line up. Interestingly, the seams on the lower edge of the sofa do match up with the edges of the cushions. Again, it’s not something guests will likely notice, but we hate knowing it’s uneven. Our next design check was the mattress. The mattress is supported by a metal frame with springs. The frame has three metal bar supports at the head, waist, and foot of the mattress. In between are wires crossed through each section for another layer of support. The bed’s maximum weight limit is 350 pounds, which should be just enough for two average-sized adults. But like other sofa bed mattresses, the Rasberry’s innerspring mattress stands just 5.5 inches high, so if the weight of the sleeper(s) is close to the maximum weight limit, they may feel the support structure through the mattress.
Comfort: Firm cushions, typical sofa bed mattress
Comfort was the real test for the Rasberry. In the sofa’s description, the foam cushions are described as medium-firm. After testing it out ourselves, we’d say the cushions border on firm rather than medium-firm, but they’re still comfortable. The firm foam works in your favor as dense foam gives the sofa better longevity. We absolutely love the low, rolled arms. In our experience, when you lay down on a sofa, the arms are so tall that you need a pillow to get comfortable. The Rasberry’s arms are at the perfect neck-supporting height, whether you’re lying on your side or back. We slept on this mattress for several days. It’s a typical 5.5-inch innerspring sofa bed mattress that fully folds into the sofa. While it cannot compare to a regular 9- to 12-inch mattress, we slept reasonably well on it. The mattress was comfortable when back and side sleeping. We didn’t get any undue pressure on our hips or shoulders, but our testers were below the sofa’s maximum weight. Heavier sleepers may find that they can feel the support structure. The spring suspension makes some noise when you climb into bed, but we didn’t get woken by it when we shifted positions throughout the night. You also have to be careful when getting in and out because of the thin mattress. If you weigh enough, your knee or hip can push through to the support structure underneath.
Size: Great for a living room, office, or bedroom
As previously mentioned, the Rasberry sofa bed measures 33 x 81 x 35 inches. To make sure you’re able to get the packaged sofa into your home, Wayfair recommends a 34-inch door width minimum. The sofa comes with a room of choice delivery, which means Wayfair’s delivery team will place the Rasberry in your preferred room and unwrap it. Our home layout and doorways put the delivery people to the test, and they passed with flying colors. They had to maneuver the sofa down a hall, around a corner, and then do some shifting and wiggling to get it into our office. The sofa came wrapped in several layers of cardboard, which we asked to be kept on to protect the leather—and it’s a good thing we did. Our 34-inch doorway offered barely enough clearance and the rest of our office furniture added to the challenge. We (along with the delivery people) eventually had to take off two of the legs to get the sofa through the door unscathed. The Rasberry isn’t a huge oversized sofa by any means, but it comfortably seats three people and works well in our small office space. The back is covered in leather, so the Rasberry can work in an open floor plan or against a wall. The manufacturer does recommend protecting the leather by placing the sofa out of direct sunlight.
Ease of Use: Fast and easy
One person can easily set up and close this sofa bed. The cushions have a tight fit, so they don’t slide around while you’re using the sofa, yet they’re quick to remove. There’s a single handle in the middle of the bed for pulling the mattress out. One person can complete the process in a few minutes. Folding it up again is just as easy. On the first fold, you have to push until the metal leg clicks into place, then lift and slide the mattress into the sofa. We tried to move the mattress around a bit when we were putting on a mattress pad. It’s deceptively heavy for a thin mattress, though, and moving it without the help of the support structure was quite a chore. It’s important to note that we didn’t have a hard time lifting and folding it with the support structure, though.
Price: High-end fabric = high-end price
With a $1,500-price tag, the Rasberry sofa bed is far from cheap. But, it’s made with genuine top-grain leather that not only looks and feels extremely luxurious but is also durable. The leather definitely adds on a few dollars, but you just can’t compare top grain to composite. The sofa also features solid-wood legs and sturdy mattress supports that are sure to last. While the mattress isn’t anything to write home about, the fact that the sofa bed doesn’t look like a sofa bed is also worth a good chunk of change in our book.
Competition: Comparable options minus the leather
Ebern Designs Tynemouth Convertible Sleeper Sofa: The convertible design of the Tynemouth sofa is slightly different than the Rasberry. The back of the sofa lays down to create a sleeping surface with the seat cushions. If you want a modern look, a low price (under $600 on sale), and an alternative that doesn’t involve a folding mattress, this model might be right for you. Wayfair Custom Upholstery Sarah Sofa Bed: The Sarah Sofa Bed may not have leather, but does feature a modern design, solid wooden legs, and more than 171 fabric options to choose from. While it has an MSRP of $999.00, you can often find it for less than $700. If you’ve got the extra dough to spend on genuine top grain leather, the Rasberry Leather Sofa Bed is worth every penny. The leather is buttery, the bed is easy to set up, and it makes a great addition to living rooms, offices, and spare bedrooms alike.
