Elegant and practical!  Our dog won't stay off of our good living room furniture.  I bought this couch as a way to keep her off of our furniture, yet still have something that would still look nice in our living room.  It serves that purposes!  It is beautiful and well constructed.  The velvet is very plush and soft, and that makes the dog want to be on the couch.  So we now have a way to keep the dog  off of the good people furniture, but without putting an eyesore in the living room.  Perfect!