A Tour of Groovy 1970s Sofas

The 1970s sofa came and went. For a while it was glorious

groovy sofas

What’s the point in taking a look at 1970s sofas? Sure, it sounds like an antiquated and mundane topic on the surface, but sofas are a reflection of the culture.  You can learn more about the 1970s by looking at its sofas than you can from a history textbook.  Simply put, sofas are where humanity gathers. It’s where families spend most of their time together, where man and woman interface, where much of daily life takes place.

So, you armchair historians, it’s time to put away those books and start looking at some sofas!

 

superstud sofa

This sofa has seen a lot of action. Can you even imagine the kind of things you’d find between the cracks and under the cushions of this particular piece of furniture?  Panties, sex toys, seminal residue, etc.  When digging for loose change, it’s probably best to wear latex gloves as any coins will likely be encrusted in congealed ejaculate and cocaine.

Let’s hope the upholstery is stain resistant.  I’d also recommend administering a military grade sterilization spray twice a week.

The problem is, this sofa is the kind of sofa you dreamt of, not the kind you actually had.  The standard Seventies sofa looked something like this…

 

trinity sofa

The holy trinity of 1970s colors are all represented here: Harvest Gold, Avocado Green and Burnt Orange.  In no way does it go with the red carpet, but let’s not nitpick.

It looks so tacky and ancient, it’s hard to believe this was something a young couple would save up for and excitedly place in their living room. Fast forward a decade or so, the pastels of the 80s have reared their ugly mauve head, and this poor couch is sentenced to the curb with the trash. (wiping tear from eye) The life of a 1970s sofa in a 1980s world was one of great hardship.

 

vintage red couch

A common misconception about the décor of the 1970s is that everything was earth toned.  Indeed, there was a sort of “browning” of everything, but there were also some bold colors in use as well.  Whether this was the natural result of widespread psychotropic drug use, or just a reaction against the conservative tones of previous decades, who can say?

 

hot tub sofas

If you have the loot, why not put a hot tub between two animal skin sofas?  If you have to ask why, take note that this chain smoking geezer has three beautiful women disrobed in his living room.   One girl is playing him a song, the other is pretending to laugh at his horrible joke, and the third pines for his attention.  Life is good when you have a hot tub betwixt two sofas.

 

green LR

This cornea-shattering living room comes to you from 1971.  I was only a wee babe, too young to appreciate its subtle beauty.

The bold Seventies decor is the perfect complement to the bold Seventies lifestyle – perfect for recreational drug use and the unexpected orgy.  My understanding is if you bought two lime wedge tables, you got a gram of cocaine free.

 

checkered sofas

What do you get when you have a generation paralyzed by the threat of mutually assured nuclear annihilation and traumatized by an existential dread from a hopeless proxy war in a distant jungle?

That’s right.  You get strange sofas.

 

shagging sofa

This cozy sofa easily doubles as a guest bed, card table, and intercourse mat.  The transition between a polite game of cards and sweet lovemaking has never been so seamless.

 

seventies sofa

The goal surrounding many of these innovative sofas was to transform the social gathering.  Where once there were a couple stuffy couches and chairs, now there are cool inviting spaces to lay and sit to carry on the conversations.  I suppose these days it’s much the opposite with the focus on the big screen television.

Nowhere is the stress toward bringing people together more evident than in the legendary “convo pit”….

 

convo pit

The convo pit, which had its origins in the sixties, was a step-down area of the living room lined with sofas.  Of all the wild ideas in retro décor, this one is the best – that’s not this author’s opinion, it’s a scientific fact.  Want to bring together your family, friends, neighbors, and community?

Want to stop society’s self-destructive trend toward isolationism and its unhealthy submersion into electronics?  Bring back the convo pit.

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