Help Me Choose: Zebra or Tiger Print Fabric to Reupholster My Free Sofa
If you saw my latest social media post, you already know I am torn. I found the most incredible designer sofa for free on Facebook Marketplace, and now I am trying to decide between two animal print fabrics to reupholster it in. So many of you have been asking where the fabric is from, so I am putting everything in one place here, the full story, both fabric options, and where to shop everything I will need to bring this project to life.
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How I Found This Sofa For Free
I love chasing a good decor trend, and I am always looking for pieces on Facebook Marketplace that I can flip into something new. The moment I saw this sofa I could tell it was a real designer piece. I recognized it from ADAC, the Atlanta Decorative Arts Center where interior designers source furniture, which is exactly the kind of thing my years working as a designer trained me to spot. This sofa is a Bernhardt Mily sofa, and I found it completely free. The only catch was that it needed a deep professional cleaning, which ran me two hundred seventy five dollars. Even with that cost, getting a designer sofa with great bones for under three hundred dollars is a win in my book.
This is actually how I approach most of my home updates. When I fall for a new trend, I sell the pieces I am replacing on Marketplace, then use that money to fund the new find. I almost always list things for a little more than I paid, so by the time everything sells I usually get my money back, sometimes more. It is how I get to keep changing up my space without the guilt of spending a fortune every time my taste shifts.
How I Narrowed Down the Fabric
Before I ever stepped foot in a fabric store, I did what I always do first, I shopped online. I found four animal print options I loved the look of, and I used AI to preview each one on a photo of my actual sofa just to get a feel for color and scale before committing to anything.
NAVY LEOPARD 
NAVY
RED AND TAN 
TAN AND RED
ANIMAL PRINT 
Once I actually got to the fabric store and held real samples in my hands, reality set in fast. The scale on several of these prints looked completely different in person than it did on my screen, and a couple of the colors were noticeably off too. It is such an easy trap to fall into when you are shopping for fabric or furniture online, so lesson learned, always look at a real sample in person before you commit to a large scale print like this.
That trip is how I landed on my two real finalists, Okapi Onyx and Tanja Tribal. I brought both samples home and used AI again to preview each one on the actual sofa so I could compare them side by side before making a final call.
The Fabric Decision
These are the two real fabric samples I brought home, and I genuinely cannot decide between them, which is exactly why I need your vote.
Option one is (A) Okapi Onyx, a bold black and white pattern with a graphic, almost sculptural stripe. It reads more dramatic and modern, and it would make this sofa an instant statement piece.
Option two is (B) Tanja Tribal, a softer brown and taupe tonal stripe. It feels a little more livable day to day and would blend more easily with the rest of my space while still bringing in that animal print texture I love.
Both fabrics are from Fabrics and Fringe. If you want to see either pattern in person before deciding for yourself, I would recommend ordering a half yard sample of each one first. It is the best way to judge the true scale and color of a print like this before committing, since photos never quite capture how a pattern this large reads on a piece of furniture this big. I need about fifteen yards total to cover the sofa, which puts the fabric cost for either option at around three hundred dollars.
Item | Cost |
|---|---|
Sofa, free on Facebook Marketplace | Free |
Professional cleaning | $275 |
Fabric, about 15 yards needed | About $300 |
Total so far | About $575 |
A Little About Me
Before this, I spent years working as an interior designer, and reupholstering furniture has always been on my list of projects to try. I am a lifelong DIYer. I have built headboards completely from scratch using plywood, foam, and my sewing machine, including one curved headboard that pushed my skills more than I expected. A full sofa is a bigger project than anything I have tackled so far, but I am excited to learn as I go and bring you along for it.
What I Will Need to Reupholster This Sofa
This post is really just about picking the fabric, so I am not linking every supply yet. Once the sofa is finished I will share the full reupholstering process, including the staple gun, batting, and thread I end up using. For now, here are a few sewing machine options I am considering, depending on your budget and skill level:
About This Sofa
This piece is a Bernhardt Mily sofa. Since it was a one of a kind Marketplace find, I am linking it below along with a few more zebra print sofa options I am loving right now, in case you want the look without hunting Facebook Marketplace yourself.
Shop Everything From This Post
Want it all in one place? Everything mentioned in this post and my latest TikTok is shoppable right here.
Vote in the comments, Okapi Onyx or Tanja Tribal, and I will share the big reveal once the sofa is done.
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