I’ve spent hours on the couch flipping through Netflix, working from home, and using it as a place for my friends to crash after impromptu visits. Here’s the thing: Couches—just like most home decor—can be quite expensive. Although the instinct for many might be to buy the easiest, cheapest thing you find online, having an investment piece that will grow with you through the years is definitely worth it, and it’s an idea Haley Lu Richardson backs up 100 percent.
In honor of Lovesac’s 25th anniversary, the White Lotus star joined a roster of celebs (including Travis Barker, Shaun White, and Brandy) to celebrate the furniture store’s milestone with a campaign centered around rewriting the rules of comfort. Lovesac is known for its removable and machine washable fabric (with more than 250 fabric cover choices), so the partnership was a no-brainer for Haley, who shared that it was her parents’ affinity for the brand that first introduced her to Lovesac.
Below, Cosmo speaks to Haley about her intimate relationship with her couch—which she admits has seen some “rated-R” moments, how she feels the most comfortable at home, and whether her White Lotus character, Portia, would have one.
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I heard you and Lovesac go way back. How did this partnership come to be?
Well, I knew of Lovesac because I grew up with this Lovesac couch that my parents have always been obsessed with. Literally, it’s been years and years and they will not shut up about it. Whenever a guest comes over, they have to rearrange their couch in front of their guests to show them how much they love this gosh darn couch. I knew of Lovesac because of that, but then I saw that mixture of other people included in this campaign, which was, like, Travis Barker and Brandy, and it was such an eclectic, fun mix. It was genuinely so fun, and I can’t wait for this commercial that we shot to come out because, to be honest, I’m honestly more proud of this commercial than I’ve been about some movies I’ve done in the past.
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I’m curious…do you remember what it was like furnishing your first apartment after moving out of your parents’ house and leaving your Lovesac couch behind?
Oh my god, it was so…it’s such a mark of freedom and adulthood. And it’s this continuation of not just getting to know yourself but also then getting to express yourself in your own personal space and surrounding yourself with the things that you picked out, you bought, you worked hard for, and that really represent you. I’ve honestly just been doing that recently in the past couple of years. When I lived with my ex-partner, we read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo, and I got so into it and he did too. Together, we just purged all of our hand-me-down furniture, and we actually picked out things intentionally that felt like us. And you know, you feel really accomplished when you make your space and have the money and time and connection to your own tastes to be able to do that. It takes time to get there. So we did that together, and that was kind of my first stage of ever doing anything like that. Now, since I’ve been alone, it’s been like a whole new stage of doing that. I have a lot of pink in my house now. I’ve got a lot of pink. I’m all about comfort and cozy but also, like, cool.
So you’re def a Barbiecore fan, I see! What advice would you give to Gen Z when it comes to picking out home decor?
First of all, I only use Pinterest for my interior decorating ideas like that. So honestly, I don’t know if Gen Z uses Pinterest anymore or if that’s, like, too millennial of a thing. But I have [mood] boards for each of my rooms in my house, and I collect things that I would want and [bookmark] links to things that I want to get now or in the future. I have to see how it would all look together. I do that to start, and then that’s also how you can find what kind of style you actually are really drawn to.
Taking the time to build and then maintain a cute home is difficult. Have you ever had to deal with a furniture mishap, like a bad couch stain?
*laughs* All of the ones that are coming to mind are probably inappropriate. I mean, the couch is a nice place to do a lot of things. I’ve had to get my old couch steam cleaned a bunch because, you know, I just couldn’t pop those covers off and put them in the washer like you can with these [Lovesac] ones. The PG-13 version of things that I’ve spilled are, like, wine—a lot of red wine because I drink a lot of red wine. Oh, my cat also gets dingleberries a lot.
Let’s just say a lot happens on a couch. We’ll leave it there. From wine spills to dingleberries to rated-R fluids.
Listen, all of our couches have seen some things at one point or another. With that being said, crashing on a friend’s couch is a rite of passage. If you could give any of your famous friends a Lovesac couch for moments like these, who would it be and why?
Well, I did get to give my best friend, who is an actor, a couch. Caitlin Carver, I gave her a couch, her and her boyfriend—they live together. So that was fun. I guess I did get to pick, and I picked her! And this couch that I got is so cool. It has a sound system inside of the couch. When I’m watching TV, it literally feels like it vibrates, as if you’re in a movie theater. The sides of the arms of the couch have a phone charger, so you can just set your iPhone on the couch and it charges it. Isn’t that amazing?
What’s the last show you binged on your movie-theater-like couch?
I watch a lot of reality dating shows. I spend a lot of my time just binge-watching them. So a good couch is so necessary because I don’t have a TV in my bedroom—I do it all on the couch. Unfortunately, it’s been Married at First Sight recently, and I say “unfortunately” because the newest season of it is painful. Married at First Sight is probably the craziest of all the shows—it is an extreme scenario.
Your campaign theme is centered around “rewriting the rules of comfort.” Paint me a picture of Haley Lu Richardson at her most comfortable at home.
Well, definitely naked. I don’t have air conditioning in my house, so it gets pretty hot. I like any excuse to not wear a lot of clothes, but I also do like really thin, soft, extra-extra-large T-shirts. I love that. I love candles and incense lit. I love cuddling with my Squishmallows and my cat, Darbin, who’s essentially a living Squishmallow. I love having some music playing—I have a nice sound system and I love music. It’s just very healing and therapeutic for me.
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All. The. Vibes. Your White Lotus character, Portia, went viral for her eccentric fashion, which, TBH, made me feel a little insecure because it’s very close to what I wear, but if you could take a peek at her home, what do you think it’d look like?
I don’t think she has looked inside herself to really know what her style is or really put effort into doing things for herself. So I think that her apartment is probably pretty simple. I think it’s probably pretty messy. But not in, like, a fun artistic way…in, like, a messy way. I do think she probably has a couple of knockoff trendy pieces…like, the Amazon knockoff versions. I imagine, you know, that squiggly mirror that was, like, cool—I feel like she found a knockoff of it on Amazon. I feel like her apartment is sad.
Would she have a Lovesac couch, or is this too adult-y for her?
Too adult-y. I feel for Portia, obviously, because I played her so I had to really understand her. But I don’t think she truly values herself. I don’t think she’s gotten time to get to know herself enough to really understand her strengths and her dreams and her ambition and all these things. I just don’t think she values herself yet and so I can’t see her giving herself nice things, whether it’s saving up for something nice or even just putting the time into making a nice space for herself. Which is sad. Because I want the best for Portia. I really do, after all we’ve been through together.
Where do you stand on coming back for season 3?
I mean, I feel like I probably would have heard from Mike [White] or someone if they were gonna have me, but I haven’t. I think Mike is just so smart. That show is so specific and great and fun. It’s just such a fun ride. I would probably trust anything that Mike created. If I heard from Mike about even another project, I would probably trust that whatever he wrote or came up with would be something I would want to do.
Daisy Maldonado is an associate shopping editor at Cosmopolitan who loves writing about fashion trends, must-have beauty products, and digital culture. When she's not writing, you can almost certainly find her shopping (she knows her credit card numbers by heart) or obsessing over celebrity news. Although she’s acquired an extensive closet over the years, her favorite item she owns is a Harry Styles Love On Tour hoodie she purchased at his concert in Manchester. Daisy's work has appeared on Refinery29, The Daily Beast, E! News, Allure and more. Keep up with all of her chaotic travels, NYC life and fashionable moments on her Instagram.
