Furniture shopping

[Brad Johnson]

SWMBO and I have been furniture shopping. A reclining love seat for the basement home theater setup, a larger dining table to replace the aging WalMart special she brought from her previous house. It still amazes me how much furniture costs for what it is, and how much you have to pay for decent quality.

The love seat was our first purchase, it's also the first new "nice" furniture I've ever bought. Everything else has been built from a box, hand-me-down, or purchased used, and bought for function rather than form. The love seat wasn't cheap, but it's nice, comfy, and very good quality, though a bit disconcerting considering that it cost more than every other home furnishing I've ever bought combined. The dining table? It made the love seat look downright affordable but it's the kind of furniture you keep for life. It's okay, though. We budgeted knowing that our desire for better quality than the local BigBargain Furnitureland stuff was going to be spendy. We actually ended up spending a little less than expected, but only because of a dining chair mis-tagging which the seller volunteered to honor.

SWMBO and I consider ourselves so very, very fortunate to have gotten where we are. Our combined incomes give us a lot of flexibility and freedom that we didn't have as single folk. It's allowed us to begin building "Our Home" with a few carefully-considered pieces much higher in quality than we're accustomed to, or that we ever thought possible. It's a nice start to the rest of our lives together.

Brad

[zahc]

I'm getting to the point where my wife is starting to ask for something nicer than a few cable spools, ikea tables, and garage-sale couches.

When I go to furniture stores I'm shocked not just at the prices but how cheaply built it all is.

[MillCreek]

My wife and I have been looking for several various high-quality pieces for years, without a lot of luck.  We are willing to pay through the nose for something we only have to buy once and never replace, as opposed to Ikea crap or something from Macy's. We were fortunate in that we found a nice dining room table, dresser and nightstands all at Bramble.  The problem with Bramble is that they build to order in Indonesia from mahogany and then put it on the slow boat.  We learned it was generally 3-5 months from the time we bought it to the time we received it.  We have reached out to custom furniture builders for a few items, and we never heard back from them.  Business must be good.

[Ben]

I'm getting to the point where my wife is starting to ask for something nicer than a few cable spools, ikea tables, and garage-sale couches.

When I go to furniture stores I'm shocked not just at the prices but how cheaply built it all is.

You might give Parma furniture a try. I got some pretty nice stuff from them and they have a lot of sales. They deliver all over the valley.

[Calumus]

Oddly enough, the sofas from Ikea are decent quality especially for what you pay. We got a sofa with a chaise, and a couple of chairs when we moved last year. Everything's really comfortable, and you can change the covers on everything if you decide to switch up colors.

[Brad Johnson]

The love seat came from Lay Z Boy. Built to order in their Neosho, IL factory. Might give them a look.

Brad

[Hawkmoon]

When I married my late wife in 2003, one of the first things she wanted was a "nicer" dining table than the solid oak trestle table I had built from a kit. I thought that was a pretty nice table, but my then-new wife wanted something in a darker wood, with four legs rather than two pedestals. So we went shopping.

I was amazed to find that, even in real furniture stores, most of the dining tables had fake wood veneer tops. Some of them were good fakes (if there is such a thing). I guess they don't do faux wood in my wif'e native country, because she didn't spot them as fakes, even though they were obvious to me at first glance. Worse -- the saleswoman didn't know the difference between a wood top and a faux wood veneer.

[Kingcreek]

We are fortunate to have a 3 generation family owned quality furniture business locally. They buy for ok Amish and the few domestic manufacturers left.
When we bought our dining room set, it was a new experience. Canadel (made in Canada) we picked out a shape and finish, style of leg, style of chair back, etc. made to order and delivered in less than 4 weeks.
We were able to get new quality built in a style and color to complement our other antique furniture and oak floors. We searched antique dealers far and wide before buying this but tables our everywhere and matching chairs rarely survive. We wanted 8 and couldn’t find them.

[Larry Ashcraft]

My dad restored and sold antique furniture for 30 years or more. He was well known for doing it right, vs just refinishing the wood.  Side story: Once a woman bought a set of  dining chairs from Oak Express and wanted him to apply the finish. He was appalled by the construction and use of staples, so he completely rebuilt the chairs properly before finishing them, using screws (proper slotted screws, no Phillips).  He vowed to never take on a job like that again.

Anyhow, our old house was a 1933 Arts and Crafts bungalow, and it was completely furnished in his oak (mostly) furniture.  We didn't even have recliners, just oak rocking chairs. Our dining table was a round maple one that he had found at the old Wootton Ranch (Dick Wootton built La Veta Pass in the 1880s I believe, and made his fortune charging cattle drives .10 a head to use it).  When mom was selling her home, we bought their dining table, which is a 54" round oak 7 slider (most oak tables are 48" 5 sliders).  It will take 10 leaves and fully extended it is 13 feet long and seats 22.  Perfect for our large gatherings.  The chairs are mostly matched single slat oak with leather seats, with a couple of Gustav Stickley ones thrown in.

Anyway, all this to say, if you like antique oak furniture, it is out of style now, and you can buy really nice pieces at bargain basement prices.  I've seen some pieces in better antique stores that I was tempted to buy, but we don't have room for any more.  We do now have a couple of Lazy Boy leather recliners, that we ordered when the new house was being built.  Sandy found some really cool recliners at a little shop here that were made by the Amish, but $6,000 each is out of our budget.

[MillCreek]

^^^I like to learn something every day.  Why are Philips screws contra-indicated in building furniture?

[Larry Ashcraft]

^^^I like to learn something every day.  Why are Philips screws contra-indicated in building furniture?

They weren't invented until the thirties (I believe), so they're not correct on furniture made before the twenties.

[makattak]

My dad restored and sold antique furniture for 30 years or more. He was well known for doing it right, vs just refinishing the wood.  Side story: Once a woman bought a set of  dining chairs from Oak Express and wanted him to apply the finish. He was appalled by the construction and use of staples, so he completely rebuilt the chairs properly before finishing them, using screws (proper slotted screws, no Phillips).  He vowed to never take on a job like that again.

Anyhow, our old house was a 1933 Arts and Crafts bungalow, and it was completely furnished in his oak (mostly) furniture.  We didn't even have recliners, just oak rocking chairs. Our dining table was a round maple one that he had found at the old Wootton Ranch (Dick Wootton built La Veta Pass in the 1880s I believe, and made his fortune charging cattle drives .10 a head to use it).  When mom was selling her home, we bought their dining table, which is a 54" round oak 7 slider (most oak tables are 48" 5 sliders).  It will take 10 leaves and fully extended it is 13 feet long and seats 22.  Perfect for our large gatherings.  The chairs are mostly matched single slat oak with leather seats, with a couple of Gustav Stickley ones thrown in.

Anyway, all this to say, if you like antique oak furniture, it is out of style now, and you can buy really nice pieces at bargain basement prices.  I've seen some pieces in better antique stores that I was tempted to buy, but we don't have room for any more.  We do now have a couple of Lazy Boy leather recliners, that we ordered when the new house was being built.  Sandy found some really cool recliners at a little shop here that were made by the Amish, but $6,000 each is out of our budget.

I will have to be on the look out for antique oak furniture, then. I don't really care what's in style, and I appreciate things that last.

[Larry Ashcraft]

I misspoke above.  "Uncle" Dick Wootton built the Raton Pass, not the La Veta Pass.  There is still a town halfway up on the North side named Wootton.  Charlie Goodnight was one of the ranchers that brought cattle from Texas to Denver for the gold rush at that time.  (Which was 1859, so my dates above may not be correct.)  Charlie found an oasis west of present day day Pueblo that he fell in love with, so he built a home there.  The Goodnight Barn is still standing, and is undergoing a multi-million dollar restoration.  Probably didn't cost Charlie any more than $110 to build it in the 1860s.

I will have to be on the look out for antique oak furniture, then. I don't really care what's in style, and I appreciate things that last.

Not hard to find.  I was looking for something cool for my wife last year in antique stores here, and was stunned at the really nice pieces at IKEA prices or less.  Something my dad would have sold for $600 in the 90s, is now worth $200-$250.  Dad liked the more ornate, hand carved stuff, but my wife and I prefer the Arts and Crafts or Mission styles.  No matter, it's all there.

[AJ Dual]

Oddly enough, the sofas from Ikea are decent quality especially for what you pay. We got a sofa with a chaise, and a couple of chairs when we moved last year. Everything's really comfortable, and you can change the covers on everything if you decide to switch up colors.

This is my experience too. Our Ikea couch has held up better than the previous one from a furniture store that cost 3x as much. And the covers actually come off and can be washed and go on again without fraying like crazy or shrinking on you. And if one gets wrecked, you can just get another cover from Ikea.

Further, the design doesn't have those crevices between the arms, back and base that collect tons of crap and crumbs from the kids. It's all one smooth surface underneath the cushions and very easy to clean.  Some Ikea furniture is your usual particle board flat-pack kit stuff that won't hold up well to family life, but their couches are good to go and superior to many that cost more.

[MillCreek]

About three years ago, we got a leather recliner, loveseat and couch as a set from Costco.  They all have power recliners.  I was hesitant in buying them and I wanted to wait until the cat died, but my wife overruled me.  They are nice enough pieces of furniture, but between the dog and the cat, parts of the furniture are scratched to hell.  I discovered there is no polish or leather treatment that makes the scratches go away.  The 'scratch fillers' are essentially like shoe polish and wear away quickly. When it is time to replace this set, I hope we can find something similar covered in a durable fabric.

[Calumus]

Some Ikea furniture is your usual particle board flat-pack kit stuff that won't hold up well to family life, but their couches are good to go and superior to many that cost more.

Exactly. Our set is about a year old now, and it's still looks and feels brand new. Meanwhile the Lazy Boy couch my parents spent $3500 on when they moved to SC 4 years ago is shot. Cushions are all flattened despite being rotated, and the wire supports underneath are cracking and falling out. My parents are average sized people, and the couch isn't used for more than a couple hours a day. The repairman had also been out 3 times to fix the foot rest mechanism when bolts have fallen out and the arms that raise the foot rest hate twisted...
I think furniture is one of the few times where you don't actually get what you pay for.

[grampster]

My paternal grandfather was pattern maker, a painter in oils and a maker of wood furniture.  My brother and I got the two pieces that he built back around the early part of the 20th century after our aunt died who had them after Gramma passed away.  They both are hard to explain.  One doubles as a table after you expand it, it sort of unfolds,  and the other is like a cabinet but is more ornate.  I don't know what kind of wood is used.  My brother has both pieces now as we don't have any place for either of them.  Both pieces are well over 100 years old and you'd never know it by the quality of them.