Shopping for Furniture

I guess I've always been a little odd regarding my beliefs on furniture - I really don't care what it looks like, as long as it's comfortable.  I truly enjoy looking at beautiful houses, with elegant furniture, but for my own use, I want comfort and usability, rather than "a look."  The other thing that I really consider is the fact that I have pets - at the moment, two cats with their claws.  And cats always claw things - it's just their nature - and there is no reason in the world that would cause me to declaw a cat.  (Here, let me cut off all the ends of you fingers, up to the first joint...)  Because of this, I always want to sit and relax in/on any chair, sofa, love seat, chaise or lounger that I might purchase.  I have seen a lot of items that look marvelous, but are either hard as rocks, too soft, or provide absolutely no support for my lower back.  I don't want to waste my money.
  The other consideration for me, is that I am a short person - always have been, always will be.  I have a 27-inch inseam.  (I can buy pants that are cropped or Capri-style that fit perfectly as long pants.) The majority of furniture built today seems to be based on a belief that everyone in the United States is 5 feet 8 inches, or taller.  If I sit back in a "normal" chair or seat, my feet have no hope of touching the ground.  I sit with my knees bent at the edge of the seat, with my feet swinging in the air, and with 3 to 7 inches of space between my back and the back of the chair or seat.  It is not comfortable.  I have a low, over-stuffed reading chair that a friend gave me 10 years ago.  The fabric has faded greatly, and my cats have sharpened their claws on it.  It is usually covered with an afghan.  The same thing with my sofa/love seat; it was given me, and it's low and comfortable, and the cats have scratched the arms - that one is covered by a king-sized blanket.  I love them both, and they fit me well.
   In any event, my room mate is seeking a new sofa, or love seat, or large chair that will fit her proportions.  I'm 5 feet 1 inch, if I stretch; my friend Beatrice is 5 feet 7 1/2 inches tall.  Two weeks ago, we found a dining room set that we both liked.  Now Bea is looking for a comfortable living room seat for watching television, or entertaining.  We have visited several "furniture warehouses" and Furniture Row; we have stopped in and looked in any shop or store that looked promising.  Yesterday, we booted up the PC and looked for "furniture stores in my area" in a search.  There were quite a few listed in our area, and, looking at multiple websites, we made a list of places to visit.  One store in Boulder showed 57 choices of fabric-covered love seats, as well as 43 suede or microfiber love seats.  We were quite disappointed to find the store had only 3 types of love seats on display, out of the 30 that I had seen.  Two of our last stops stated that the stores sold clothing, furniture and appliances.  The Sears store had only kitchen appliances; the Penney's store had clothing and kitchen appliances.  Neither had any furniture.
   Beatrice did see a settee that she liked very much at Pier One Imports, where we had stopped to look at Halloween and Thanksgiving items.  And there were a couple of interesting items in Home Goods, but, otherwise the day was a bust. We're just going to have to keep visiting the warehouses until they have something that Beatrice wants....