The beauty of sofas is that they turn any location into a place where you want to be. I am referring to a phenomenon that extends beyond your typical place for a couch, say, in the living room of your home. What I am talking about is when you see a sofa having ventured outside the usual confines; when you come across one sitting unexpected on the sidewalk or in a bar. There is some sort of quality to sofas that makes their presence in an outside or public setting seem like a pleasant little surprise. It's as if the disparity between the public landscape and the casual intimacy of a couch transforms the piece of furniture into a miniature thrill ride from its rarity. It's like testing out a bed in a furniture warehouse; it brings out the kid in you. There isn't anyone who, at least a little bit, didn't love to lie down on the beds in the middle of a department store and experience the world around them from that isolated perspective. In a mall, on the third floor, in a sea of merchandise and people, with elevator music playing in the background and mothers and children and couples wandering and chatting about, there you lie, cozily nestled among the puffy, pretty pillows, granted that space as your respite, an island unto itself.

But back to sofas. Take, for example, an outdoor sitting area outside of a restaurant bar. It's an immediate draw to be walking down the street and to see couches alongside tables; all of a sudden that space is redefined. Say you and your friends decide to sit down. You take a seat on the soft fabric, feel the cushion support, lean back comfortably. It feels like such a contrast from the dirty concrete that it rests on. The sofa, and you, are exposed to the urban elements: car exhaust, bits of dust and dirt, the heat of the sun, the chill of the night, unexpected weather or visitors. And yet that's what makes it so fun. Plus there's the prettiness of it. The colors and textures of the fabric against the gray, stone facade of the street. It is a statement. Luxury unsuspectingly yet defiantly amidst the street world.

So there you are, in that intimate setting, surrounded by the least intimate of surroundings. You sit on the sofa as you have your tea party on the ceiling. If you lift up your feet then you are truly taken out of the world of everyday rules. Who would have thought, really, that such a simple thing as a couch could provide such a context? The sofas of the world want you to sit down and kick back and feel childlike and interpret anew.

So when you go out into the world today to choose a sofa for your living space, relight that kindred spirit and remember that furniture shopping can be fun! You may even want to consider going a bit outside of your budget for that perfect piece that will highlight the room.