Furniture?

[ddrueding]

Here's a new one...

I need to buy furniture. IKEA is about a mile away, and we were there for a few hours last night. I'm not happy with their designs or build quality. I've been checking out some sites online (e.g. furniture.com) and am not sure what I'm doing. Considering I've never put much thought into furniture, does anyone have suggestions? The mattress (CA King Tempurpedic) is being delivered Tuesday.

 

[Bozo]

Go to a real furniture store first. Make sure what you choose is comfortable, both on the eyes and the behind.
Then look online.

Bozo :joker:

 

[Mercutio]

I like Mission style stuff myself.
Never been to an Ikea, but I hear their stuff is particle board.

On the other hand - and keep this in mind - a couch is something you'll either have for 20 years or something you'll get rid of in three or four. The three-year couch is perfectly OK, especially for a young person. It's not going to be well-made, but it's also going to be light and easy to move.

 

[Buck]

Buy what you like and feel comfortable with; this has taken from IKEA to Sears, Pottery Barn to Macy's. If I like it and it fits the need particularly well, I'll probably buy it.

 

[P5-133XL]

Your furniture choices depend much upon your children (or expectations of children). If there are no plans for children, buy whatever you like because in general you'll take care of it and it will last a reasonable amount of time; at least enough time that you will not be sorry for the purchase. unless it is of the super cheap variety, you'll probably get tired of it before it fails.

If you have children, or plan do, the equation drasticly changes. Children are one of the four destructive forces in the world (Warter, Fire, children, and pets). They can't be children and still treat furniture well. So, then you are left with only the two extreames because nothing in the middle has any value. Either you buy so that the furniture is totally industructable or you buy super cheap and consider it to be disposable. Anything in the middle, and you will have wasted your money because the children will destroy it before its lifespan would normally be up.

The same apples to pets, but to a much lesser degree. Get a dog or a cat and it will chew, scratch, urinate, or otherwise attempt to destroy your belongings.

By the way, I'm with Merc, I like Misson as a style.

 

[Buck]

I forgot to mention, this also includes consignment shops. Older furniture, such as sofas, are typically better constructed. Buying an old couch because of it's build quality and then putting on new upholstery might do the trick.

My most recent sofa is a leather loveseat for my office from Macy's Home Store. They have nice sales a few times each year.

I've also had a local carpenter make some furniture that I've designed. This can be particularly nice because you can better manage quality. The down side is ideas. I had to research some ideas by looking through a bunch of Architectural Digest magazines.

 

[ddrueding]

Thanks for the feedback guys. There are some local furniture shops that I'll be taking a look at either today or tuesday*. I'll also do a swing by Macy's and check out the Stanford shopping center. My concern with shopping around here is that you get away from IKEA pricing very, very quickly. The couches we were looking at there were a few hundred; and the place down the street sells them for many, many thousand.

*Apparently, in Russia, January 1st doesn't exist. You party on the 31st until 8 or 9 in the morning, and then sleep until it's dark. You then get up, eat something, puke, and go back to sleep. Tuesday is then spent recuperating. As a side note, Russians like to complain. Further, they like to compare their suffering with the suffering of others as a way of competition.

 

[Handruin]

As a side note, Russians like to complain. Further, they like to compare their suffering with the suffering of others as a way of competition.

I also knew someone who did this...and she was also Russian. May just be a coincidence, or maybe not.

Competitive suffering is one of my pet peeves. I know exactly what you're talking about.

 

[jtr1962]

From an indestructibility standpoint the stuff made with metal tubes and mesh can't be beat. It's also very light plus easily disassembles in case you move often. The only thing is either you like it or you don't. If you like high-tech decor then you'll probably like it, otherwise you won't. I'm personally not big on wood furniture (dents too easily, finish gets ruined quickly, too maintenance intensive), glass tables (for obvious reasons), and especially those horrid overstuffed sofas everyone seems to have nowadays (cheaply constructed, uncomfortable, ugly). Definitely also avoid the cheap particle board crap. It's ludicrously heavy, and it sometimes emits a formaldehyde odor. It's not just kids who are rough on furniture. I tend to be. Even if I'm not all the time I don't like living in a museum where if I put a glass down a little hard or sit down too quickly something breaks (i.e. my late father popped springs in my sister's couch and one of my brother's chairs).

Just a suggestion but avoid carpets as well. You build up static walking on them (not good for electronic devices), they're very maintenance intensive, and they're dust magnets. I haven't been in a carpeted room yet where I don't have trouble breathing no matter how clean the person is.

 

[Clocker]

Another vote for Mission style furniture. We have it in our dining room, great room and bedroom. I would hesitate to buy something online w/o seeing it in person.

 

[ddrueding]

I also knew someone who did this...and she was also Russian. May just be a coincidence, or maybe not.

Competitive suffering is one of my pet peeves. I know exactly what you're talking about.

I actually don't have an issue with it. Once I recognise that a person has this trait, I am able to ignore it completely. I just told the GF yesterday that if she has a real problem, she'll need to find some way to let me know. I now just say "that's nice" and it really doesn't bother me. I learned this from watching other Russians

 

[ddrueding]

Ugh...just spent many thousands of dollars. Got a 6' leather couch with reclining ends, a wrought-iron CA King bedframe, and an oak bar. I still need a big desk (long enough for 2 people...8ft?) and a low media center.

 

[Buck]

Pictures!

 

[ddrueding]

That's the worst part...none of it will be delivered for weeks. It's all designer special-order stuff. I get the bed-frame and bar mid-January, and the couch on the 28th. And we may be visiting the GF's relatives in Houston for her birthday, which means none of it until late Jan. Just in time for our trip to Moscow

 

[Buck]

Yup, that happens. My most recent purchase was an Italian leather sofa for my den. They were out of stock, so I had to wait two months before mine arrived from Italy. At least the price was right.

 

[mubs]

How can they ship something heavy like furniture all the way from Italy, price it reasonably and still make a profit?

 

[Will Rickards]

Maybe they just ship the leather

 

[ddrueding]

Shipping by ship is very cheap; if you are willing to wait a month or so.

If you spend $2-3k on a couch, a pretty small percentage of that will get it anywhere in the world...eventually.