Furniture

[cschin4]

I really need some new furniture. But, I hate to buy it. Seems it never holds up or never looks as good as I think it will when I get it home. I am thinking of getting leather but it is cold to sit on and i am afraid the dog's claws might tear it. I tried a sofa cover over the existing and it just didn't look right. How do you decided what to buy and what were your best deals?
I think i need a sofa and loveseat. I would also like to get some comfy furniture for my kid's TV room. I looked at beanbags but the new bean bags are already flat before you buy them and I think they would probably be more comfortable at regular furniture height.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

I have some furniture bought new, but from places on the level of Ashley's, the national chain. I was pretty dumb about furniture and failed to see that it was not very well made. On the whole, I am much more satisfied with things I bought second hand, and old but not antique. For example a late 1960's dresser and bedside table are just so solid and function so well. Solid real wood, and no wiggle in any joint. No cardboard, chip board, particle board or even masonite anywhere. I paid $20 for the dresser and $5 for the bedside table! That was a steal from an AMVets store. Now that I understand the quality, I can say I would be willing to pay $200 for the dresser and maybe $80 for the bedside table if I had to buy them again.

Recently I bought two upholstered chairs, also from the late 1960's. I needed small pieces for my small house and mostly, you just cannot buy them any more. As average new house got bigger, so did the furniture, especially upholstered pieces. A huge amount of the new stuff would look ridiculous in my house (as does my stupid sofa ). Anyway, again, these chairs are just so well made. The upholstery was worn out, but not the padded and cushions. The frame is fairly lightweight yet these chairs seem to be sturdy as can be. These are now my "reading chairs," and I expect to sit in them sideways sometimes, with my back pressing against one arm and my legs flopped over the other. A chair has to be built well to take that. I expect these can. A new chair built equally as well?---I really don't think I could afford the price! I paid $100 for these from a Craigslist user. I expect you could find chairs much better, but I had a special restriction on the size, as they had to fit up a non-standard narrow stairwell. It took some years to find some like that, so I was willing to pay!

My sofa is the most disappointing piece I've bought new. I have back problems and there are times when I cannot sit on a soft, sinky sofa, so I chose this one for its firmness and low height for my short legs. Most all other considerations were thrown to the wind. After rearranging the house at the time we got the sofa, we now use it far less than expected. Even with only light use, this new thing has sort of collapsed in its seat supports so that it is awful when my back is bad and peculiar it its support even when my back is okay. The cushions are not removable, so I cannot even do a quick fix like putting a supportive board under the cushions. The sofa looks great and stylish. It doesn't look broken down, but it is. So disgusting. Warranty was finished before this developed. $600+ from Ashley. To be fair, though, $600 is cheap for a new sofa. I feel like I bought not a sofa, but a picture of a sofa. Looks good: functions not like a sofa at all.

Some wood pieces I bought new from another low end furniture store. I think it was called Value City(?). These are interesting. They are made of pieced & glued together small bits of tropical wood. Here, I at least new to inspect how the joints were put together, and they looked okay. I've had these pieces about 8 years. One is my computer desk ant it gets a lot of use. Still good tight joints and sturdy legs. However, the finish is the strangest thing. The finish if lightening where my arms touch. But on some matching pieces I see the finish is lightening just with "age" and sun exposure....My oldest brother was actually a fine furniture maker and told me the pieces were cleverly made and he thought surprisingly well joined for its price. He was not offended by the pieced together wood, either, the way some people would be. He said it makes good use of resources to not waste even the small pieces. My brother has passed on; I wish he was here to refinish these pieces for me.

Oh, the stores will label wood furniture in a way to lead you to believe that they are made of different wood than they are. For example, you may see signs saying a piece is available in CHERRY finish. Well of course, a cherry finish is not cherry wood, nor an oak finish oak wood, mahogany finish mahogany wood, nor oak finish oak wood. If you want the good hard woods in new furniture, you will pay much more.

Ha! The only pieces I have that are really good, truly solid hardwood are the old pieces bought second hand and the bookshelves we made ourselves.

I have two old pine tables. Pine is not a hardwood, but even so these two tables are well made. One is a heavy round coffee table whose entire top is mounted on a lazy-susan. Sturdy enough my husband, a big guy, could sit on it. I could not afford to buy new a similarly well made table these days. Oh, that one was $60 at a low-end "antiques" mall. I don't know the age, but I suspect early '70's.

Anyway, my advice is take your time and maybe even read up on what makes a piece of furniture well made. I learned the hard way, mostly. I was even fooled by some of the cheapo stuff I bought. Whenever I get around to replacing that sinky sofa, I will definitely look for old, tested, sturdy, and re-upholsterable! Even if it has to be stripped down to the frame and all new soft portions remade. (That was my second new sofa that was crap in my opinion.)

[PrincessPerky]

I will ditto the idea that new is crap for the most part, I have always assumed couches in the 10 thousand range are decent, but wouldn't assume on the price alone. I can say that my husbands bedroom furniture that was second hand when he got it (sometime around my birth year) Has stood up not only to his childhood, but to our kids. (mattress is another story, but the frame and dressers are fine) His bunkbeds from the years prior work well too, but no longer 'bunkable' so we had to buy a new cheap bunk bed. I am not happy with it. the top bunk doesn't feel as sturdy as the one I had when I was a kid - built by a friend and BIG, none of the claustrophobia trouble in the bottom bunk. If I wanted my kid to sleep like they do in the navy I would sign him up and get paid for it!

anyway on couches I have had second hand from folk who paid top dollar and second hand from folk who paid next to nothing, they all suck, my floor is more comfortable. Thankfully we are all young and no one seems to mind much, guests spend more time in the kitchen (the table that is particle board and metal, something out of the 50s, actually holds up rather well considering the abuse, but nothing compared to my grandmothers wooden table, though far sturdier, not rickety with repairs even when all three inserts are in). So at some time in my life I hope to get decent kitchen chairs, something more comfortable than a folding metal chair anyway.

PS don't get leather! brrrrrr in winter and sweaty in summer.

[MonkeyMama]

This is why I like buying used (Craigslist and such). If you end up hating it, you are not out a lot of money. & the truth is - everything in our house used/hand-me-down has lasted longer and is more durable than most anything else we own. (All our dining room furniture - 2 sets - were bought used or given to us. As well as some chairs, shelving and dressers).

We did buy a fair amount of new furniture at an "Oak Warehouse" by our home. I would search out warehouses. We bought the kids' furniture there very cheaply (high quality/should last forever type furniture) as well as a nice couch for $200-ish and leather theater seating in the $500 range.

In the city we used to live in, we bought our furniture from a hole in the wall place that would haggle deep discounts. We bought our couch and a coffee table there.

I think really, you just kind of luck into these places. Well, you have to search them out. We need to find a new one, since our warehouse went out of business and we do need to buy a bigger bed for our youngest (he is still in a used toddler bed we bought).

In this day and age though - the used market is incredible. People are so desparate to unload high quality/never used furniture - I would personally start there.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Oh yeah another source for quality used furniture is office, restaurant, aand hotel resalers. They have furniture which is meant to be heavily used the public. When we went to buy our sturdy pedastle dining table at such a shop (warehouse) we saw a lot of super sturdy things.

[wincrasher]

Always spend for quality. Most of my furniture comes from Thomasville. Heirloom quality, solid hardwoods - should last a lifetime. When they say it's cherry, they mean 100% solid cherry. Not strange wood names from Asia that you never heard of. They mean hardwood trees that grow in North Carolina and Canada.

I'm had mixed results with upolstered pieces. Look for solid framing and items you can have re-covered. There are still people out there that can make a crappy old piece into something you'll want to keep. Microfiber material is a god-send. It's virtually indestructable and is very comfortable.

[ScrimpAndSave]

I worry about used furniture that has fabric because of possible bed bugs and other gross things...

But when it comes to wooden tables, chairs and things that you can disinfect...I am ok with that.

I have way too many students with bed bug problems to go buy used couches and mattresses. Ick.

[kork13]

Always spend for quality. Most of my furniture comes from Thomasville. Heirloom quality, solid hardwoods - should last a lifetime. When they say it's cherry, they mean 100% solid cherry. Not strange wood names from Asia that you never heard of. They mean hardwood trees that grow in North Carolina and Canada.

Ditto.

I bought all of my bedroom furniture (plus a sofa table) from a factory floor sale, which just happened to be 20 miles from my family's home in SW Oregon. All of it is solid cherry wood, and because it was all the floor models from the previous year, I was able to get nearly $8000 worth of furniture for only $1800. Absolutely worth it, in my mind, because I'll be able to keep them for a lifetime.

My parents' bedroom set and dining room table/chairs are solid oak. They've had the same set since they got married 25 years ago, and it is all still in outstanding condition, even in spite of me and my 4 siblings. The biggest thing to remember is that QUALITY is always worth it when it comes to furniture.

[maat55]

I really need some new furniture. But, I hate to buy it. Seems it never holds up or never looks as good as I think it will when I get it home. I am thinking of getting leather but it is cold to sit on and i am afraid the dog's claws might tear it. I tried a sofa cover over the existing and it just didn't look right. How do you decided what to buy and what were your best deals?
I think i need a sofa and loveseat. I would also like to get some comfy furniture for my kid's TV room. I looked at beanbags but the new bean bags are already flat before you buy them and I think they would probably be more comfortable at regular furniture height.

One idea, is if you buy an leather piece, you can have the cushions reupholstered in an coordinating fabric you like.

[maat55]

[QUOTE]

My sofa is the most disappointing piece I've bought new. I have back problems and there are times when I cannot sit on a soft, sinky sofa, so I chose this one for its firmness and low height for my short legs. Most all other considerations were thrown to the wind. After rearranging the house at the time we got the sofa, we now use it far less than expected. Even with only light use, this new thing has sort of collapsed in its seat supports so that it is awful when my back is bad and peculiar it its support even when my back is okay. The cushions are not removable, so I cannot even do a quick fix like putting a supportive board under the cushions. The sofa looks great and stylish. It doesn't look broken down, but it is. So disgusting. Warranty was finished before this developed. $600+ from Ashley. To be fair, though, $600 is cheap for a new sofa. I feel like I bought not a sofa, but a picture of a sofa. Looks good: functions not like a sofa at all.

Not well built sofa's have zig-zag springs or just webbing as support. If this is the case, you could have foam webbed in underneath like an spring unit.

Anyway, my advice is take your time and maybe even read up on what makes a piece of furniture well made. I learned the hard way, mostly. I was even fooled by some of the cheapo stuff I bought. Whenever I get around to replacing that sinky sofa, I will definitely look for old, tested, sturdy, and re-upholsterable! Even if it has to be stripped down to the frame and all new soft portions remade. (That was my second new sofa that was crap in my opinion.

Sometimes it's hard to tell well built from not by just looking. One test is to feel the bottom(the underneath area, sometimes you can tell from under the cushions, but I feel the very bottom) for coil springs. Most good builders use them. If you have loose cushions and your fabric is in good shape, you can have an upholsterer redo the cushion inserts.

[maat55]

[QUOTE]

I will ditto the idea that new is crap for the most part, I have always assumed couches in the 10 thousand range are decent, but wouldn't assume on the price alone. I can say that my husbands bedroom furniture that was second hand when he got it (sometime around my birth year) Has stood up not only to his childhood, but to our kids. (mattress is another story, but the frame and dressers are fine) His bunkbeds from the years prior work well too, but no longer 'bunkable' so we had to buy a new cheap bunk bed. I am not happy with it. the top bunk doesn't feel as sturdy as the one I had when I was a kid - built by a friend and BIG, none of the claustrophobia trouble in the bottom bunk. If I wanted my kid to sleep like they do in the navy I would sign him up and get paid for it!

If you are willing to pay high end, you might as well have your sofas and chairs custom built. That way you can choose your style and dimensions.

I build with 5/quarter poplar, do ten way(8 way is the norm, but the first tie has the most pressure so I tie it twice) tied coil springs.

Custom builders take more pride in their work and will always out do the factories.

[snafu]

Are you & family particularly hard on furniture? How many years do you expect to get from your sofa? Nothing lasts forever. If your existing sofa has good 'bones' and you like it... get it re-upholstered. Lazyboy makes sturdy furniture although styling is limited. Ikea furniture stands up well to children's use.

If you like the idea of used furniture, vacuum it thoroughly, rent a steam vac with upholstery brush, spray with a fine mist of vinegar/water to rid yourself of those miniscule mites.

BTW, airplane and restaurant seating are chalk full of invisible to the eye bugs.

[segmond]

buy used from craigslist, take your time, and you will find something really nice from a very clean house, for an awesome price. if you are going to spend a lot of money, spend money on furniture that you will not need to replace in 20yrs.