This journey really started 3 years ago. My little family and I suddenly found ourselves on the hunt for a new home; the place we were renting had been sold and we suddenly found ourselves in a new house with an empty lounge and no sofas. Zorora had recently launched in South Africa and I was impressed by their designs and turnaround time. We didn’t want to wait 6-8 weeks for new sofas to be made and delivered, so we ordered 2, 3-seater Liras from Zorora and in less than two weeks we had brand new sofas and a beautiful lounge to enjoy. It started to feel like home.
Fast-forward 3 years and we’d found and bought our dream fixer-upper, a lovely (but outdated) old home in Johannesburg with an established garden and a lot of face-brick that was begging for a new lease on life. We renovated over 5 months and transformed the home into a beautiful, open and bright family home that suited our needs and the way our family lives and entertains. From the first viewing and many hours playing with the original plans and some Tippex, I knew exactly which walls needed to be removed, which lines needed straightening out and had a good idea of how to add both light and volume without changing the footprint of the home. I’m lucky in that I have the ability to read a floor-plan and visualise the end result.
With the renovation nearing completion and a sense of the finished (now double-volume) living room, I realised we needed sofas that better suited the space. I walked into Zorora to find out about having my Lira sofas reupholstered in a new colour, and left my phone number with the sales assistant in the Kramerville Showroom. What evolved from the phone call that followed can only be described as my personal dream come true: the opportunity to design the sofa of my dreams. I’ve always believed strongly in the power of true co-creation and collaboration and Zorora echoed my sentiment. On that amazing first phone call I realised that Zorora as a business was forward-thinking and open-minded and they were keen to explore my ‘dream sofa design’ as a challenge and potential new range to add to their collection.
It was clear from the outset that they weren’t just humouring me and my wild design intent; they were serious, and so was I. In the weeks that followed I described my perfect sofa and the elements I was looking for, little details that I was battling to find locally. The sofas I’d seen would tick one or two of the boxes, but nothing delivered on all of the details. I was looking for a particular back height, a certain length, a detail on the arm-rest, a detail on the seat, a specific ‘sit’. I shared visual references, fabric references and a mood board of the tone I was trying to set. I wanted something imposing that filled the space in a classic and timeless way, without being old-fashioned; a sofa with sleek and sophisticated lines that didn’t compromise on comfort, quality or practicality. And because life with kids can be messy, it needed to be a slipcover design using FibreGuard fabrics. Despite slipcovers being extremely practical and easy to clean, I love the idea that one can completely reimagine a space and sofa by simply changing the cover down the line if you feel like you need a new colour in your life.
And we got to work.
The incredible Cape Town-based Zorora design and production team worked tirelessly at perfecting the proportions, lines, sit and details and after many meetings and subtle design tweaks to make sure she was perfect, we arrived at what I can only describe as my dream sofa. A sofa that is timeless, sophisticated, comfortable and elegant. The Misha sofa is liveable luxury that delivers on style without compromising on practicality. It’s a sofa that can hold her own and we’ve intentionally created sizes that suit bigger homes and spaces as well as smaller ones. The 4 Seater for example is a beast at 3.4m in length; this is a sofa that makes a statement but doesn’t steal the show. Easy to layer, easy to design and decorate around, a timeless style that won’t date and will remain relevant despite homes and trends evolving.
The Misha Collection is available in 3 beautiful colourways, colours and textures I carefully hand-selected. After referencing the thousands of Pinterest images I’d saved, I kept coming back to these three beautiful tones; a rich Oxide brown, a deep Camouflage Green in a velvet-esque stripe and a relaxed Wheat with a linen feel. The colours are sophisticated, tonal, earthy and lush. I’m glad I designed this sofa as a Slipcover because it was near impossible to choose my favourite and I know I will need to own all three at some stage in my decorating journey.
We carefully considered and designed around so many little details! For example it was important to add Ottomans to the collection that can function not only as a complimentary coffee table, but that can be pulled up against the sofa to transform a living room or pajama lounge into the ultimate cozy movie-watching experience. As a child we used to turn our living room into a ‘Christmas bed’ by pulling mattresses through; this is the luxury version of that and I love it so much. The Misha Ottoman Medium can be added to the Loveseat to create a lush chaise-longue that I can imagine in a bedroom or office, or even on a patio.
What I didn’t say at the top of this blog post is that I’ve regretted not studying industrial design or architecture, but this project has allowed me to satisfy that urge in the biggest, most audacious way and I’ve loved every second of this process. Working with Zorora to co-create this family of sofas has been a dream come true and we’re so proud to be able to offer this product to South Africa. We can’t wait to be a part of your home and we hope that we make movie-watching, wine-drinking, book-reading and conversations all the more cozy. Please share a snap of your new sofa with us on social media, we can’t wait to see how you style your space!
Thank you for supporting us and all the beautiful hands that bring these hand-crafted sofas to life.
Misha & the Zorora Team x
