Shortly after I moved in with the Husband, we purchased new bedroom furniture. And that is the extent of furniture we have purchased together. There are some items that need to be replaced, some items that should be replaced, and some items that are perfectly fine, but make me cringe. My question is do we go cheap or do we save up to buy something that will last us forever? Do we just make do with what we have and save for a rainy day? It's really just all stuff and I wonder if it's worth the investment. Will our tastes change so much that we will want to replace it? Will it outlast dogs? kids? moves? Am I too old to be shopping at IKEA, scouring thrift stores, garage sales and craigslist? On the one hand it feels like I should have outgrown that after college (even though it seems to be trendy now), On the other hand, I have a really hard time spending large amounts of money, so that method makes sense to me.
What is your "go-to" place for furnishing your home?
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Yeah, we're still big patrons of IKEA - I don't really know how to shop for "adult" furniture :)
When we bought our house last year, we furnished most of it from IKEA and Craigslist...nothing wrong with saving some money and seriously, new furniture from furniture stores is soooooooo marked up it's ridiculous to spend what they're asking if you can find the same thing for 1/4 of the price elsewhere.
We don't have an IKEA store in reasonable distance, and we do struggle with this same thing. We mostly make due with what we have, and I do a lot of thrift store and garage sale scouring--even though we can afford 'grownup' furniture. It's all just so expensive! And like you said, how long will it last?? It's hard to get a handle on it!
Ikea is still in our apartment, we are trying to save up for a grown up couch and I'd love to get a chair that we have professionally recovered. It's such a slow process. Some days I love our apartment and furniture, but some days I want to say to hell with savings and get the stuff I want. So far, I am still lusting after a few items I want- a couch, new rug, dining chairs, etc.
Thanks for the affirmation :) I struggle with seeing these beautiful furniture pieces on pretty decorating blogs, but I know they're not realistic purchases for us. I also don't want to end up buying new pieces every few years because we tire of them or because they're poor quality. I think about my grandparents and even my parents who still have most of the furniture they received or purchased when they were first married.
Holy cow I am in the same boat you are! We just bought a couch, and we've been searching for one since NOVEMBER--it's taken us this long to find one we both like. Ugh. Blending 2 styles is so much harder than it seems! I want to do a gallery wall with thrifted frames...but he thinks all the frames should match perfectly, hence making the project to expensive. I wish we had an Ikea around, their stuff looks cute! And I don't think you're ever too old to scour thrift stores or Craigslist....it's better for the wallet, the environment, and people will ask you where you got stuff.
We've kind of done both. I'd had a lot of my furniture since I first moved out on my own, so it was quite old even though I had bought it new at the time. I bought quality pieces, and they lasted over 10 years, so I tend to stick to that. However, you can always find quality pieces for less! Shop sales, look on Craigslist and buy it gently used, save up points at places. We bought our sofa and loveseat on CL when a woman purchased them and had them delivered to her house, and they didn't fit in her living room and she couldn't return them! Got them for a steal. Purchased our dining room table and chairs at World Market, with a coupon and a sale, we got quite a bit off and paid less than for real wood furniture than the plywood stuff at the furniture store next door.
Long story short, I say buy quality for stuff that you love and will want to hang onto, but don't pay full price or buy it new. If it's something you know you'll eventually want to replace (like our TV stand), go for something you don't mind paying less on and replacing sooner.
We love IKEA! The same things to be found as in Pottery Barn, but so, so much cheaper! Oh, and I love the Joel Dewberry fabric in the previous post. I'm a freelance clothing designer and I love making shirtdresses out of his fabrics! =)
Kristina J.
We have a mix of Ikea & expensive and it works out great for us!
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