If I could find something used that was of sound construction with fairly simple lines for a budget-friendly price, then I would choose the used furniture. Otherwise, I would buy from Ikea. I know it's about one step up from a cardboard box, but it's a functional place holder until I can find and afford what I really want.

How long would you consider something being a "functional place holder"? I know sometimes things start out that way and then stick around forever. On the other hand, the sister I am talking about has been on her own for over 30 years and only has a few pieces of decent furniture to show for it. She has bought a lot of "temporary" pieces, that only lasted temporarily, and had no more extra money when it needed to be replaced than what she started out with, so bought more "temporary" things, and so on...how does this cycle stop?

I would and did get temporary ikea furniture til I could buy what i wanted. By the time I was ready to replace my dressers they were 9 years old and falling apart ( I bought them at age 19). Now I have nice solid maple ones.

The nice thing about the ikeA stuff is you never feel bad about tossing it to the curb when you want a change of pace.

When both are not an option, function always trumps form for me. I think it is greener to buy used, well made,possibly dated furniture over faux trendy desposible furniture from ikea, taget, homegoods or the likes there of. The only time I did not follow this rule was when buying cribs. I would have loved to buy used but it was during the massive crib recalls. So mine are pressboard and will most likey be given away or tossed.

Vintage Drexel, Thomasville, or Henredon all the way.Or, some little known brands from N.Carolina before 85', there was some good sturdy stuff coming out of that area then even at lower price points. In new budget price ranges things are made of cr@p! I have made that mistake a few times and will not do it again. You usually can not sit anything on the tops, the drawers fall apart and have to be glued, finishes are horrible...a complete waiste of money.If you can manage to find some chair that does not need new upholstery you have hit the jackpot, they are out there. Plus, down the road if you wanted to refinish or paint the items for other uses you are starting with something solid.

Pal, you should come to Florida for a few weeks with a small uhaul. All the snowbirds have gone to their other home so there is not as much competition. The people further south want the modern stuff so you can find good deals on the things you are looking for. They only get pricey if you go to the Stewart/Martin county area where such furniture is valued.

I would buy something older in good shape but I would paint it. It doesn't take That long.

Downstairs, in the room with the wallpaper border now gone, I have older, late sixties Ethan Allen furniture. I had debated about painting it, but it still looks good! I think it must have fifty coats of factory poly on it. That stuff has seen some very heavy abuse and use and it still is not bad looking at all, in a dated way, however- Early American.

I always buy old pieces, paint them, add cool hardware and maybe some fun contact paper for the drawers. The kids love them, they're unique and they hold up for years! :)

Skip the place holder and go for quality, even if it is a little dated. Lots to pick from out there.

Vintage. I guess I am odd. I have all vintage dressers in all rooms but one. That one set DH bought about 8-10 yrs ago. It is garbage, and has actual nails and staples popping out that can poke you and or rip your clothing. It is in a room that in not used often and always has been. Like you said though, it has been moved twice, and the drawers on the night stands dont close right either. On top of it all it is ugly!

I dont usually bother painting or staining. I am able to find pieces in a color that is OK for me, I wash them down outside and they are good to go.

Perhaps I misunderstood. I thought this was for a child's bedroom. That's why I said Ikea was sufficient for the near term as children can be tough on furniture.

I think we had a similar discussion in the inherited dining room thread when I said that if I don't like the appearance of a piece, I don't want it, even if it's great quality. I don't consider myself a fashionista because that term connotes one who follows fads. I do have specific tastes, however, and I'd rather have an inexpensive throwaway that fits my design aesthetic or go without rather than have a quality piece that doesn't fit my design style.

As for the ecological impact of my Ikea choice, I find that the melamine covered MDF that makes up many of Ikea's pieces is great raw material that can be turned into shelving in garages, closets and craft rooms. Of course, it probably off-gasses like crazy, but...you can't have everything.

I can cheap out on some thing, but in my experience, nothing with a drawer can be made cheaply and still work well.

I would do one of two things:

1. Paint an old piece. Even a diy paint job --- that isn't costly. I'd splurge on anthropologie knobs

2. Forego it altogether and reconfig the closet. Eg, if you bolt that ikea stuff to the closet interior, it holds up ok. Maybe add in some hanging shelves. This assumes you have a double closet. I find that, other than working adults, few people need all the hanging space in closets. I would also add storage via trunks or ottomans to supplement the closet storage. Even under-bed storage. Or a row of cute pegs. This closet-centric not only allows you to use cheaper stuff to store clothes, but it will make the room seem bigger.

It depends on how good CL is in the area. In my area if you go antique, traditional or MCM you can get some beautiful, quality furniture around a IKEA price point. That said, I got my son some one step above Target/IKEA for his room because he is relatively easy on furniture and he wanted minimal, modern furniture, which is hard to find on CL.

I would go to a furniture store (not high end) and buy a well made dresser. But I'm picky about dressers. I need deep drawers and wood construction so the dresser will last. Dressers get a lot of wear and tear.

A lot of nice looking & well made dressers aren't that expensive, depending on the store.

The depth of drawers are very important though. Plus you wouldn't have to paint. Painting sounds easy but if you're like me, you don't want to do it. lol

jterrilynn is correct. Mother furnished her entire home with used furniture and did quite well with it...a lot of it was in great shape as it was...no need to paint. However, there is a lot of FL looking stuff...very light colored. Fewer dark pieces that work well in the NE.

I'd still opt for good used stuff. The 2 matching headboards I got for my guest room were great looking and only $25 each.

I.WILL.NOT.BUY.FURNITURE.FROM.TARGET.OR.IKEA.OR.PIER1.OR.ETC.

I prefer to fill in with my old stuff that may not match or go with my decor goal but doesn't look like it could fall apart. Hence, my EA china cabinet remains in a sea of more contemporary furnishings.

Hi - if you are able to find a good vintage piece than go for it. They are built more sturdy. However, Ikea does have some stronger, durable lines. I like the Hemnes line. It's wood not MDF. We've moved our Hemnes furniture from our condo to our home, and everything is just fine. Sometimes you need to readjust a few of the parts but I've had to do that with other furniture I have as well.
I've posted a link to the Hemnes bedroom line at Ikea. Hope this helps!

Here is a link that might be useful: Hemnes Bedroom line

In my area, there are several individuals who buy the sturdy, vintage stuff, then refurbish it for resale on Craigslist or at a flea market-type boutique. I think there are a couple of regular posters here who do the same (coopersbailey?)

That might be another option.
Dee

Pal, this whole set will end up selling for around $650. Maybe even less because most do not want this style down here. They may get more but most likley not unless they put it into a nice consignment shop.

Here is a link that might be useful: bedroom set

This is for the guest room your father will be using, right? It sounds like your dilemma is framed not by quality and style, but by time, money and availability. You may also have a little voice in the back of your head wondering why you're going to the trouble to source quality, unique things when your sister is likely to get rid of them at some point, anyway. So don't torture yourself about vintage Henredon vs. Ikea. Just set your list of needed pieces, your dollar budget and your completion deadline and get the best possible items available within those parameters.

If the goal is to have it done in 60 days, then you have time to get something upholstered or refinished if you find it soon and at a good price. But if you don't find it soon, you'll be leaning more toward Ikea.

I love antiques and most of our wood pieces (dressers, tables, etc.) are antique. I've only painted a few pieces and only something that was not in good shape. It's not hard at all to find vintage pieces in good shape and nice wood. Well, I'll rephrase that as it might be a bit hard to find certain kinds of wood. I've updated in the last few years by adding a few painted pieces. Love the ASCP and so, so easy!! My parents taught me to by the best quality (furniture) I could afford. I'd rather have something that will last a lifetime.

But, I agree with Jakabedy for the room you are working on. Don't stress yourself over it!

tina

what mtnrdredux said about drawers...

i have my parents old drexel bedroom furniture in my guest bedroom, and while it is not exactly my style, i am amazed at the fit and finish of the drawers...

i've considered painting it (chalk paint) but i can't even bring myself to do that! the wood finish is impeccable as well

Well this more of a survey or a rhetorical question, but it did come up because I am thinking of the room for my father.

But really I know people in both camps, so I wanted to see what the proportions of people were in each.

As for my sister, since she is in her mid-50s my personal feeling is that she should buy some stuff that is worth keeping--that's my control issue taking over.

I figured this was "a survey or rhetorical question." You know better than anyone what to do Pal, design maven that you are!

You will acquire solid furnishings! Can't imagine you doing otherwise. Your trained eye will guide you to the best of what is available, wherever you are shopping. No doubt you could make something from Target look very high-end, if you chose to go that route. You'd also know "just" the right item to grab at the flea market! You will create a room that will be functional, comfortable & beautiful, wherever you buy, whatever the price point!

It's so nice of you to make the effort to create a lovely retreat for your dad, & to be thinking down the road for your sis as well. I only hope you'll post pics of the completed project!

I have no experience with IKEA since there is no store close to us, but have ordered a couple of cabinets recently from Crate and Barrel for our lake condo. They took about an hour to put together and are decent, nice looking pieces. However, if you want better quality, do you have a nice furniture store that might have a display model or 'warehouse' sale going on? I picked up some Lane end tables when we were furnishing the condo for $79 & $99 that were in perfect condition. Browse around and ask if they have something discontinued that might fit your needs in your price range. I personally wouldn't want to go to the trouble of painting something either that would just get chipped in a couple of years. As to chairs, have you considered a sturdy rocker with a cushion or were you looking for a smaller, upholstered chair?

I don't think you can class this sort of thing completely under "control issues" Pal. There are too many emotions involved even if you think you have a handle on it. You want to contribute in a way that's part of you, your creative side. You want to contribute in a way that you feel your father will most benefit from his living environment and that includes spending money in a certain way. Your sister will be contributing completely different than you and will be maybe putting more concentration on food, housekeeping for another another, doctors trips ect . It's probably hard for you both to understand where the other is coming from because you are both looking at making your father comfortable in opposite ways.

Love the quality of those 30-50 yo pieces, but generally hate the style. Case in point, the 70's Drexel Heritage Meditteranean everyone's parents had back when I was a kid. Or the 1940's pecan anything. I see it for sale on CL and shudder. True heirloom quality furniture is not at issue for me, just the mass produced stuff of any era. Chances are the pecan suite your grandmother bought at the local department store after the war isn't that special.
I am also at the age where overall Ikea is no longer fun and interesting. I never want to assemble another piece of furniture! DH and I went through that phase well over a decade ago. I did buy an Ikea dresser and desk for DD this year. It is actually really cool looking, but loading those flat boxes and gritting my teeth through the 2 hr assembly process was an ordeal I will not repeat.
So, it becomes an issue. I dislike RTA and vintage, but don't have an unlimited budget.. Often, that means places sit empty until I find the right mix of form, function,and price. I won't tell you how long I used a planter for a bedroom side table or a box for a dresser. I am always on the search for the perfect something. I often find it, love it for a few months or years, find a new perfect something, sell the last one and move on only to repeat the process.

If this is for a young person's room, I do think that letting the young person express *her* taste is paramount, actually. So what if your furniture is still around? If your niece doesn't like the furniture that is chosen for her, every day will be oppressive and silencing, iykwim.

You don't say how old she is, but if she's old enough to have a voice in the choice, I'd say let her choose, from whatever venue, giving her a budget. She'll love the pieces every day and feel empowered, and if they're lower-end, maybe learn about furniture quality *without* having 'boring' pieces shoved on her to make her feel resentful, like her boring old uncle chose her furniture for her *own* room...(if the teen years haven't hit yet, they will soon, esp. if you buy furniture that will survive a nuclear holocaust...)

(and I agree with SheetalN -- not all Ikea should be written off--some is better quality than others)

OTOH, everything I wrote above may be irrelevant -- I'm not aware of past threads that are evidently being referred to here so I can't figure out if it's for your niece or your father or whoever else! Sorry if the above doesn't apply.

Fly, it wasn't very clear but, I was just comparing the quality of my nieces 2 year old furniture, which is falling apart vs. my 43 year old furniture that I've had since I started school.

I am getting a room together for my dad to stay in at my sister's house. For a number of years my parents would not stay overnight at her house because of blinds or curtains that fell on your head if you tried to move them and furniture with wobbly legs or drawers that would fall apart if you opened them. It was completely the opposite of their own house.

But the question wasn't really specifically about getting a room together for my dad, it was more of a survey of Point of View.

I know someone who had mostly high quality furniture but liked having a white sofa. So, she bought cheaper white sofas and got rid of them when they got too dingy. I also know people who love to completely redecorate and buy fairly inexpensive furniture for the room because they can handle $7000 or so every 5 years or so, but not $50,000. (Which is what it can take, unfortunately, to do a room from the walls and floor up with all good quality goods)

Conversely I grew up with parents, (and in a general culture) where most things were kept for decades.

I think most people are somewhere in between.

Pal,

I bought good quality when we bought our first home. Sitckley, Kindel, Baker. I now realize that one's tastes do change, and I really cannot decide whether one should buy very high quality furniture and force yourself to make it work forever, or whether one should you view (at least some) of your furniture as fashion pieces. I cannot stomach buying very good stuff and then selling it when you redecorate, as you can easily lose 70% of what you spent when your pieces are "out of style". That seems overly indulgent.

I thought the room was for your niece or sister. If it is for your Dad to visit, does he visit long enough to put his stuff away in drawers? Or might a really generous ottoman/bench (for luggage) at the foot of the bed and a nice coatrack do just fine?

If he does need drawers, I would get a closet system. In my experience, the mdf drawers hold up ok if they can be bolted to something solid!

I don't think you know the answer until the future turns into the past.

On the one hand, I am grateful that I bought good quality couches in the '90s. When we bought this house I thought the style wasn't quite right, and went shopping for new. Quality was abysmal. Finally a salesperson at the Boston Design Center inquired about the furniture I already had. When I told him who the manufacturer was, he stopped me and told me to keep them, because a couch with the equivalent quality of construction today would cost $10,000-15,000, plus fabric. That was roughly the price I originally paid--minus a zero.

On the other hand, I had to dispose of some very nice armoires for almost nothing, because they didn't fit my space, and apparently they don't fit others' spaces anymore either, so no one wants them.

I did end up buying a lot of new furniture for downstairs. It looks good in my '20s house because it all has that light-on-its-feet, more slender profile that was popular back in the day. However, should we move someday, I will probably find myself in a Victorian or a modern building, since that's the way the housing stock runs around here. Will I regret my purchases then? Who knows?

CL is fine, but yard sales and Goodwill are usually cheaper...and in our area, you can find some wonderful dressers for less than $30. Again, a little paint, new hardware and line the drawers...and they work beautifully, especially in a kid's room.

For my niece, we painted an old dresser white...painted the knobs dark purple and made them the centers of some lavender and turquoise flowers. I am NOT artistic, so a spool of thread made a nice six petal flower! LOL

We also painted an old bookcase the lavender color and later added a small desk. My niece has had them for years and doesn't want to change them. I told her to paint over them if she wants (she was in the Hannah Montana stage and we even painted her name on the side of the dresser in that style) but she doesn't want to change them. She said her friends think they're cool, because no one else has anything like them.

Watch out for bedbugs with any used furniture.

Ah, I see, thanks for clarifying for this clueless episodic reader of the boards!

There are no real bargains to be had here, because everyone knows what they have, or thinks they have something. You can pay $100-200 for a decent dresser, but that is still relatively cheap.

I understand the draw to contemporary transitional style furniture, especially when you are young, but I have noticed that a lot of what the "genuine" contemporary transitional furniture really is gets called dated. (Its basically the post MCM disco-deco at its core).

I am going to use the term loosely here, and probably somewhat incorrectly, but if you buy (reproductions of) "First Period" furniture, this is not going to be dated. That is, anything that is made like it was the first time around. Strictly this means from 1600 - 1820. Even Duncan Phyfe isn't technically first period (some people think) because it is an amalgam of a couple previous periods).
In a looser sense I think this could include Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau, French Art Deco, and Modernism. (the first wave of all these). True vernacular furniture does not really go out of style. (Shaker etc.)

But anything that is a revival that is too transitional with the period in which the revival is going on, will date to the modern period that its from. And that either bothers you or it doesn't. So a Sheraton dining set copied from Sheraton period pieces looks like it did in 1800, in 1900, in 2000, etc. But a Transitional 30s (deco-moderne-ish) Duncan Phyfe dining set from 1940, will look like your grandmother's furniture from 1940. Same as the Ethan Allen/Baumritter "colonial" furniture from the 1950s-70s, no one is going to mistake that for anything but--and some of the cheaper stuff got downright goofy.

Of course sometimes "correct" true period, looks wrong in the wrong house, while a transitional version might not, and this is where spending a lot of money can become problematic. Stickley (craftsman versions), as mtnrdredux mentioned, can be a pretty insistent furniture style that does not look good everywhere. I have a sofa table and glass-doored bookcase that are in one of my bedrooms because they don't look right in my LR (and unfortunately it probably won't in the next house either)--I am not ready to give it away just yet. Luckily, early reproduction labeled Stickley doesn't do terrible at auction around here, so I may have an out.

I think if Pottery Barn actually coalesced into a particular identity, it has been around enough that it may identify a real style. However, right now I feel like I can look at Pottery Barn and say about when they were producing it. They try to be too many different things. Room and Board, while clearly MCM-influenced has a much tighter "look", that may become identifiable as "good early 2000s" someday.

I think this secretary in my living room illustrates what you describe as 1940's "Colonial," lol. I know it's nothing "fine." Fortunately, I enjoy it nonetheless.

If the furniture doesn't function properly I will grow to dislike the piece, no matter how much I liked the look when new.

A sore toe from a chest without drawer stops after the drawer is pulled out too quickly and lands on your foot, a back-ache from a cheap mattress or sofa, a bookshelf that bows when filled - those types of irritations will quickly rub the charm right off the fashion pieces.

Heck, with homeowner bankruptcies finally slowing and (hopefully) hitting bottom, there should be tons of good used furniture out there.

True vernacular furniture does not really go out of style. Agreed!

Stinky-
Actually I really like midcentury colonial revival furniture. Even stuff like Cushman Colonials which is the big paddle shaped orange maple chairs and such. And from 1940, its 70 years old, semi-antique + .:)

Pal -
I'm a functionalist first. If I had a choice between out of style, but solid and perfect for the function furniture or something on-trend but of shoddy construction, I'd go for functional.

Especially for your parents, who are worried that if they sit on something at your sister's, it will collapse on them.

I just took delivery of a sleeper couch (double bed) and two chairs and a passel of small tables from a hotel renovator's liquidation center. $600 for all of it.

Solid, clean, and sturdy. Not ugly either, although I foresee some slipcovering in my future, maybe paint one chair.

No contest. Used 'good stuff' beats crappy RTA particle board every time. Over the last year I have collected a bunch of dressers, tables, beds etc for a future second residence. Most of it is better quality than what I have here in my home. There is little made now that is as well made as 40 or 50 years ago. I cringe at the money I dropped at Restoration Hardware, Ethan Allen, etc. over the last 20 years...

Case in point: One of the dressers in the garage is a serpentine front twelve drawer dresser. Each drawer is different, wider top to bottom and mirror reverse curve right to left. All are inset, and fit perfectly and operate smoothly. It is a thing of beauty.

Here it is easy to find workable pieces for next to nothing at Goodwill, garage sales or on Craigslist. And if you don't want to DIY, there are many people who can paint and wax and rehab pieces into whatever custom look you seek.

Much better product for less than IKEA or Target.

For some reason, whenever discussions turn to old vs. new furniture, I am reminded of the conversation in Downton Abbey between aristocratic Lady Mary and that parvenu Sir Richard Carlisle (cad extraordinaire). When contemplating a home for after their marriage, Sir Richard asks about procuring furniture for the house. Lady Mary, in her oh-so-aristocratic way responds that his sort buys furniture, her people inherit it.

Bbstx- Oh, I like that comment :)

LOL, bbstx, i remember that.

Can't wait till the new season. I know it's just a big old soap opera, but anything in a British accent manages to sound cultured and erudite.

I read a description of Downton Abbey where someone said it had "the highest threadcount" of any recent series. What a great way to communicate the sumptuous visuals... I want that kitchen!

Bbstx...cute!

Mtn, indeed, what a wonderful turn of phrase..."highest threadcount!"

My DD bought a cheap ikea dresser when she moved into her first apartment after graduating from college. She paid almost $300 for it and it never functioned right after she moved. We sort of fixed it for her when she moved into her current place, but one drawer still does not work properly so I would have to agree 100% with mtnredux on this one.

We got rid of drawers in bedrooms in the early 90s and did more efficient closet storage instead for clothing. It keeps everything in one place and is much more organized....I am California closets' biggest fan :-)
The only actual dresser we have now is a hand painted one that is still in DDs room that has sentimental value and is more of a decorative element than storage. Pal, if you must have a dresser I would buy one off CL and paint it.

My DD bought a cheap ikea dresser when she moved into her first apartment after graduating from college. She paid almost $300 for it and it never functioned right after she moved. We sort of fixed it for her when she moved into her current place, but one drawer still does not work properly so I would have to agree 100% with mtnredux on this one.

We got rid of drawers in bedrooms in the early 90s and did more efficient closet storage instead for clothing. It keeps everything in one place and is much more organized....I am California closets' biggest fan :-)
The only actual dresser we have now is a hand painted one that is still in DDs room that has sentimental value and is more of a decorative element than storage. Pal, if you must have a dresser I would buy one off CL and paint it.

How did that happen?? Sorry!

One of the aspects of this, I guess, is that he doesn't particularly care if it is "masculine" or "feminine" or formal vs. informal--I shouldn't have put it quite so baldly as he doesn't care what it looks like.

He's lived for 40+ years in a house of fairly formal and specific tastes, and it's always been maintained as such. There is somebody there right now touching up the exterior paint, and someone comes in and cleans.

So essentially it all has to be pretty tasteful. It doesn't have to be up-to-date, and if it is a bit feminine or gender neutral (as master bedrooms were in his era) that's fine. But I don't want it to look like there is something cast-off but still functional in there.

Functionalist for high use furniture. A month before my wedding, DH went to help his Aunt who was having a moving sale. He called and told me about all the furniture she was selling. I knew it had to be better than Ikea, which was what we could afford at the time, so I said "buy it all." 15 years later, I still have it all and whenever I shop for furniture that would better suit my taste, I just can't bring myself to pay the price for what I know is lesser quality.

I think you can add alot of your own style and flair with lamps, pillows, mirrors, artwork, accessories, etc.

P.S. You loose a day when you have to assemble ikea or target furniture and you can use that time to instead paint or update a vintage piece.