furniture

[heeyy_joe]

For the Florida condo, we wanted to be able to accommodate additional guests beyond one guest bedroom. We found a high quality sleep sofa (some people might claim that's an oxymoron) for $2,500 made by a company called American Leather. The sleep sofa utilizes a tempurpedic memory foam mattress and our guests so far have remarked at the high comfort level. The sofas come in a limited variety of fabrics but we had no trouble finding a size and style to suit us. Highly recommended.

 

[MooreBonds]

Garage and estate sales, and craigslist, should have some good options, especially if you are patient and can transport. Second hand furniture is very inexpensive.

+100!

Bought my first house 3 years ago. Between mainly warehouse sales, closeout sales from Home Decorators (division of Home Depot) plus the employee discount of a friend that worked for them, and Craigslist stuff, I have spent less than $3,500 for my entire house furniture (2 bedrooms, family, living, dining room) and furnishings.

The best part of Craigslist is that not only are the prices much lower (assuming it's in good quality, which can take some shopping around), but the range of styles is so much greater than what you can find in stores! Found a great modern dining room set for just $300 (spent $275 more for a new, larger glass top). My sister was going to give me her old dining room set, but it had 5 chairs. Looking at what it would cost to buy 4 new chairs to make a set of 8 chairs (4 and 4), it would have been MORE money to do that with just the cheapest Wal-Mart chairs, than to get a great dining room set I loved with 6 chairs and a fill-in bench.

I much prefer CL over estate/garage sales because you usually have no idea what is at the sale before you get there, and with just one trip to an Estate sale and back home (60 minutes), in the same amount of time you can look at hundreds of postings on Craigslist.

So now, when I someday get married, I can easily list everything on Craigslist if I had to unload it and probably get not too much less than I paid for most of the stuff, and not have any heartburn over throwing out/selling something that I originally paid thousands for.

When my grandma passed on 2 years ago, I elected to not take any of her furniture, even though the manufacturer (Karges) is the "last great American furniture company". She had some great pieces (dining room set, master bedroom set, coffee tables), but it didn't really go with much of my decor, and even though the stuff is ridiculously expensive and beautiful (thousands for just a coffee table, tens of thousands for a dining room set), I didn't want to 'pay' that much for it. Might keep an eye out for Karges stuff if I ever see it on Craigslist...

 

[Meadbh]

For the Florida condo, we wanted to be able to accommodate additional guests beyond one guest bedroom. We found a high quality sleep sofa (some people might claim that's an oxymoron) for $2,500 made by a company called American Leather. The sleep sofa utilizes a tempurpedic memory foam mattress and our guests so far have remarked at the high comfort level. The sofas come in a limited variety of fabrics but we had no trouble finding a size and style to suit us. Highly recommended.

I have this daybed in my spare bedroom, with the rolling drawers and brown fabric. It makes a really comfortable double bed.

Night&Day Furniture - Futon Frames and Bedroom Furniture

 

[Moemg]

I really like Broyhill . It looks good and really lasts .I bought a sofa & loveseat in 1995 that are still going strong . Broyhill is a middle of the road brand price wise.I think I paid $2100 for the sofa & love seat . My SO & I have five grown children between us so any furniture we get sick of gets recycled. In fact that Broyhill set is now in residence at son #2's house . I have gone for the shabby chic or coastal living style.

 

[LoneAspen]

Very interesting thread. Since leaving home in my early 20's, I've owned two homes of my own, both on acreage in Colorado, and I bought a few select pieces of Ethan Allen, and the rest were whatever I thought looked good from other furniture stores.

But I only bother to buy and fill a place with furniture if I own it. I'm kind of funny in that when I rent a place (as I do now), I don't consider it a "home", so I turn into a minimalist and only have the absolute bare minimum to survive.

For example, I rent a 3000 square foot house in a nice neighborhood for just myself. I can't stand shared-wall housing like apartments and condos because I can't deal with noise. Had some bad experiences when I moved out on my own after college into apartments and had to deal with noisy neighbors playing stereos loud, etc. Can't deal with it. So everything I've rented after that has been single-family housing. I think I make up for the fact I can't live on acreage here, by renting larger homes, LOL.

But...I have zero furniture in this house on the lower level. None. No chairs, sofas, nothing. Upstairs, I have a desk and office chair in the office, and a bed in the bedroom. Where I splurged was turning one of the bedrooms into a home theater, where I have a couple of nice leather home theater chairs.

I have no need, nor desire, to fill a rental with furniture when a) it's just me living here, and b) it's not "home" to me. It's just a place to sleep and go to work from until I'm able to move on with life.

When I eventually do get my own home again, I'm sure I'll get some nice pieces to fill it with. But as long as I rent, I just don't have that desire. The first rental I had, the owner went into foreclosure and I had to move and find another rental. It sure was nice not having to deal with a house full of furniture when unexpected things like that happen with SFH rentals.

 

[someguy]

I will definitely check our Smith Brothers in Berne, IN. I have read several good things about them elsewhere. Thanks!

Yes. Check out Smith Brothers of Indiana. Run and built by second or 3rd generation Swiss craftsman. They have great upholstered furniture at reasonable prices. The wife just bought a very nice sofa, tilt back wingback/armchair and matching ottoman. Very good quality. We did pay $2800 but that was for all three pieces. Believe me, being a frugal LBYM type it hurt to spend that because I was very happy with the 15 year old couch. In fact that 2$800 was about a full 8% of our typical yearly expenses. But you know what they say, happy wife, happy life.

My brother actually runs a furniture store in Massachusetts and this is one of his featured premier brands. He says it is very well made and it appears to be. He carries some of the other "big names" and says a lot of the quality has gone way down hill on the "high end" stuff.

 

[Throwdownmyaceinthehole]

We've bought several pieces by south wood, 10 to 20 years ago. Reupholstered a couple of chairs and sofa, the other pieces are still in very good shape.. The are classic pieces and I find it hard to find those in the stores.

 

[savory]

We bought really nice stuff many years ago. Still is nice. DW is tired of it and wants to go forward with a minimalist approach. There are a few dings and nicks but the people buying our old stuff are getting great furniture at a fraction of the cost. In the future, we will be purchasing from Craiglist, estate sales, or second hand stores. After making all the decision about what to do with my parents furniture, some fairly nice mid-century stuff, I do not want my children to deal with it. Just back up the truck and feel no guilt.

 

[RockyMtn]

Consignment stores are great places to buy furniture. Wouldn't buy a mattress there but just about anything else works. Buying new furniture is kind of like buying a new car to me....just not worth the extra price.

 

[Helen]

We bought a new house almost three years ago and needed new furniture. We went with a mixture of new and used and didn't pay a lot for any one thing.

My best find was when I went to Sears to buy a thermos for winter hiking and stumbled upon a 50% off Lazy-Boy sale. I had been wanting a Lazy-Boy so I tested them out and picked the one I wanted. That worked out well because two weeks after they delivered the chair I fractured my ankle. The Lazy-Boy with a pillow under my foot was a perfect place to perch.

 

[HighRoller]

We like to change things pretty often but we also like good quality. So except for a few key pieces of very expensive furniture in the formal areas we buy things like sofas, recliners, etc in the mid-price ranges and replace them every 3 or 4 years. Usually donate the used stuff since it's typically still in good shape.

 

[mountaintosea]

I always have pets so I buy cheap. Also don't care about such things.

 

[plex]

The only piece of furniture I see spending a significant amount of money for will probably be a fully adjustable leather desk chair, since I will be working from home soon and will need to have adjustable arm-rests in addition to the usual standard features. Normally my chairs cost $50, but I'm not sure if I will be able to find a new or almost new one for less than $300-$400 that has fully adjustable arm rests. I also get new mattresses, but those are inexpensive. Everything else is perfectly obtainable from CL at a very good price, the most expensive thing in my house always tends to be my computer equipment, by a long shot.

 

[jollystomper]

We entertain folks several times a month so we did spend money for a nice dining room set and living room furniture several years ago. But other furniture (with the exception of mattresses) isn't a big deal to us. Our kitchen table is the same one I first bought when I got my first apartment 30+ years ago.

Also, when raising several rambunctious children one quickly learns that a lot of expensive furniture in the house is not a good idea. Function wins out over style.

 

[brett]

Our experience in buying furniture is similar to our experience in buying other items.

Once you get by the really cheaply made items, quality of construction does not necessarily vary directly with price. Discounts can be substantial....especially if you buy towards the end of January (common year end), have no issue with negotiating a price decrease, and are willing to walk out. Worked for us once. The owner ran out the door and offered us a great price if we did the deal. We were ready and saved us a good chunk of change.

Moreover, in the case of upholstered goods, some higher priced fabrics could very well be a mis match with your lifestyle and thus imply poor value for use.

 

[haha]

Most of my un- upholstered furniture is either Craigs List and I think pretty good, or hand me down from a son and very good. I only have one upholstered piece, an Allen Edmonds couch that my son gave me in 2007. It is extremely comfortable, fits my space, has never shared space with cats or dogs, is in good condition and is long enough for me to sleep on. Nirvana as far as I am concerned. If the fabric ever wears out I would very likely just have it re-upholstered.

Other than my mattress, which is 5 years old but still excellent, I doubt I would ever replace any of my furniture. Second hand upholstered stuff is just a vector for bedbugs.

If for some unforeseeable reason I were dating a different woman who did not like my furniture, she would be replaced, not the furniture.

Ha

 

[W2R]

Second hand upholstered stuff is just a vector for bedbugs

+1

Plus, you just don't know what might be soaked into it. Ewww. Maybe I am overly squeamish, but I draw the line there as well.

 

[ESRwannabe]

My parents were/are real pack rats, especially my mom. When I grew up the house was always filled with "junk" (to me at least). It wasn't like a "hoarder" mental problem amount of stuff and it wasn't truly junk. It was mostly antiques and art.

Anyway, it affected me and made me very adverse to having lots of things. I like having lots of empty space. An almost empty room looks good to me and is relaxing. A room filled with lots of stuff, even if it is expensive antiques and art, stresses me out.

Needless to say having too much furniture and such is not a problem for me.

As far as price goes I wouldn't mind paying a lot for something nice. I could care less about brands, but if I can tell the difference in the quality then I would pay up. For example a chair that is noticeably more comfortable.

All of my furniture came from gifts or hand me downs so far. I haven't really bought any myself. My parents are always trying to give me furniture. They like to shop as a hobby. They actually run out of space to put it all in their giant three story house. So, I probably will never have to buy furniture.

 

[haha]

My parents were/are real pack rats, especially my mom. When I grew up the house was always filled with "junk" (to me at least). It wasn't like a "hoarder" mental problem amount of stuff and it wasn't truly junk. It was mostly antiques and art.

Anyway, it affected me and made me very adverse to having lots of things. I like having lots of empty space. An almost empty room looks good to me and is relaxing. A room filled with lots of stuff, even if it is expensive antiques and art, stresses me out.

Needless to say having too much furniture and such is not a problem for me.

As far as price goes I wouldn't mind paying a lot for something nice. I could care less about brands, but if I can tell the difference in the quality then I would pay up. For example a chair that is noticeably more comfortable.

All of my furniture came from gifts or hand me downs so far. I haven't really bought any myself. My parents are always trying to give me furniture. They like to shop as a hobby. They actually run out of space to put it all in their giant three story house. So, I probably will never have to buy furniture.

I am the same way, and my mother was the same. Rooms full of horrible heavy old "antique" furniture. One Christmas when we were preteens my brother and I got these air guns that shot hard little plastic balls. We were up early before he rest of the family except my baby brother. We starting shooting the ornaments off the tree, and baby brother was laughing and we were getting hysterical too. It didn't end well for us, but I think it indicated the stress we felt at her insane preoccupation with stuff.

These attitudes made me a not very good husband in some ways, as it's a rare woman who really likes apple crate bookcases, even though she may put up with it for a time.

I remember taking my son to visit an engineer up at WWU who was mentoring son, and who had recently been divorced. He had typical good sized suburban house. The huge living room contained only a monster TV, a work table and chair and computer, and a treadmill. I remember thinking, well divorce stinks but at least you get to lighten up.

Ha

 

[FIREd]

My parents were/are real pack rats, especially my mom. When I grew up the house was always filled with "junk" (to me at least). It wasn't like a "hoarder" mental problem amount of stuff and it wasn't truly junk. It was mostly antiques and art.

Anyway, it affected me and made me very adverse to having lots of things. I like having lots of empty space. An almost empty room looks good to me and is relaxing. A room filled with lots of stuff, even if it is expensive antiques and art, stresses me out.

Same for me. My dad and his wife are hoarders. Not as bad as what I sometimes see on TV, but that's only because they have a very large property and the density of clutter is not quite as impressive. I'm glad that I won't be the one inheriting their house (and their mess).

When we downsized, I did not want to feel cramped in our smaller space so I made sure that the clutter would be kept at a minimum. Living a in a large city is very tough on the senses (or stimulating depending on your point of view ) and it is nice to seek refuge in a space that is quite the opposite - quiet and visually empty. Lots of beige on beige, few knick-knacks or even pictures on the walls. Some people find it sterile and boring, but I find it relaxing.

 

[CoolChange]

...few knick-knacks or even pictures on the walls. Some people find it sterile and boring, but I find it relaxing.

I feel the same; and, when I have lived by myself, I have had a similar style (or, lack there of depending on perspective). Most people seem to find this really depressing and were always giving me things to brighten the place up. These things generally made good X-mas or housewarming gifts down the road.

Sadly, most of the people I have lived with (and, I suspect most people in general) seem to abhor any unobstructed flat surface (walls, floors, counter/table tops, etc.) and feel compelled to sit/hang things everywhere possible.

 

[sparkee]

Interesting no one has mentioned IKEA (even though it's clearly not "high quality!"). We have a number of pieces from there, as well as from places like World Market (a leather love seat for about $400 on sale and a leather covered chair for about $300).

Most have lasted/served us very well.

However, the issue for DW and me is that, like some others, we've had some antiques and other pieces that we (at some point) we just didn't care for anymore--e.g. we had some oak pieces that just didn't meet our taste any longer. We still have an antique wardrobe we like, and moved it from Tacoma, WA to Texas, but will be very unlikely to move it back to the Olympic Peninsula when we retire there in a few years (space in an 1100 sq. ft condo, plus what we actually need there . . . and it's hell to move!).

My wife loves real mid-century modern furniture and, if we could afford it, might go for furnishing the condo with it, but it's unlikely. We're more likely to bring a few pieces from here and do a combination of Craigslist, IKEA and other cheap stores, plus maybe a few quality pieces if they're just right. We won't need that much to fill the place anyway, which is the way we want it!

 

[Dawg52]

My nephew bought a lot of furniture from an estate sale. Looks great too. When I buy furniture, I buy La-Z-Boy type stuff. In fact they have a plant and sales office near by where you can find good deals.

 

[Snoozie]

Anyone have specific comments on sofa or chair brands? Ideally purchased at least a year or two ago but within the last 5-8? I agree that a lot of brands have gone downhill, or have introduced lower quality lines to meet lower price points. We have a three piece set purchased for maybe $1200 from a value furniture store that has held up shockingly well despite a lot of abuse while a much more recently purchased and better treated leather sofa in the $2-$3K range has flaking leather and horribly sagging cushions.

We just purchased furniture for our sun room last fall 2012 (after I couldn't stand looking another day at the blue crap my husband bought 20 years ago from a neighbor!!) - and it is from Smith Brothers of Berne - they make really great quality furniture. Not sure where you are - but Google them to find retailers for their furniture. We got a couch, loveseat, swivel rocker with footstool in the fabric of our choice for right around $5K. And we are thrilled with it! I agree with the other commenter - go with neutrals (at least for couch/loveseat) and you can then change up the pillows, etc when you are ready for a change. We did the swivel rocker and footstool in a print. $500 for that - so not a huge expense to change out down the road - but we tend to keep things (cars, etc.) and wear them out before we buy again. Also we have them cleaned every year when the guy is here to scrub the carpets - which helps with their longevity. Good luck!

 

[jimnjana]

We've furnished two rentals with all estate and yard sale furniture and household items. We splurged 15 years ago and bought a Keller Furniture Oak Bedroom set for our bedroom and we bought a leather living room set last year. We're pretty selective on what we buy at yard sales, Atlanta and Florida are target rich environments for premium quality furniture. A couple of examples, a Broyhill chair and a half with ottoman with tag still on for $100. Complete Oak bedroom set with Queen size bed and mattress set (in plastic, never used) $300.