| image found at thrift-ola.com - Kempton park antiques market…..just the sort of items I’m looking for. |
Hello Dear Reader,
Today has been all about investigating some furniture and effects for our home. We’ve looked in all the usual and unusual places. Obviously, we started with the local charity shop warehouses where they sell second hand furniture. I was shocked that they wanted so much. We live close to the local auction house and know how little second hand modern furniture sells for. We also understand it’s a charity but would question who would pay more than it’s worth when you can buy similar items for so much less. We didn’t get anything from the charity shop for our home.
We looked on line. Surprisingly retailers such as Ikea and even Tesco can furnish your home for far less than my local charity furniture warehouse! I’m determined to buy second hand to stop waste but I won’t do so at the my own personal expense.
Our favourite starting place for anything at all is ebay and we use www.baycrazy.com to find items for sale locally. I need a much smaller dining table and chairs and I’m watching sales on ebay. I’m determined to buy for the very least I can. We’re happy to sand down, paint or wax. We’re also happy to do some repairs. We are ‘watching’ pine tables and chairs that we can refurb with chalk paint and have in our dining room. We’re also looking in charity shops for curtains for the rest of our rooms that yet have bare windows.
We had a touch of cabin fever and needed to get away from the sanding, stripping and mending. We took ourselves around the antique shops of Lostwithiel. We were surprised at how reasonable some very fine pieces of furniture were. Most of which are beyond our intended budget but we did discuss how we could buy one key piece that we would love forever. We were amazed to see completely refurbished and working antique clocks with melodic ticks and hypnotic pendulums that had come out of stations and ceiling oil lamps that had once hung in local chapels with safety certification and ready to be wired in. As we’ve just about got enough free wood to see us through the winter, we might spend the ‘log money’ on one such item.
My advice. Look every where and don’t be afraid to go into local antique shops. Also, don’t be afraid to contact sellers on ebay if something doesn’t sell and make them an offer. Get chatting to people in second hand shops and antique shops, tell them what you are buying for and you’ll be amazed what they have out the back or really want to get rid of. It’s just like selling, you have to establish a relationship with them, sell them the narrative and then when they’ve warmed to you and likewise, then start haggling. Don’t be afraid to ask ‘what can you do this for?’ and if there’s no reduction, what can they throw in with it? Also, don’t be afraid to make them an offer.
Over to you Dear Reader, share your advice or tell your story of where you managed to buy furniture for your home at a very reasonable price. Have you ever fixed something and made good and then been proud of it for years? I always look forward to hearing what you have to say.
Don’t forget to enter my little giveaway, it’s a quick one and I have another one this weekend!!! This time something useful for your kitchen!!! Please make sure you read the original T&Cs from yesterday and follow the instructions to be in with a chance of winning.
Until tomorrow,
Love Froogs xxxxx
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We were very lucky when we furnished out first home 15 years ago, we were given a table, 6 dining chairs, 2 sofa's, 4 bookcases & a nest of coffee tables, all these were given to us by friends & relatives who wanted to update their furniture. The only thing we have replaced was the sofa's they were very small & so we passed them on to someone else in need & bought ourselves a 2 & 3 seater, so we have enough room for everyone to sit down when they visit
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I really think that the charity shops are cashing on the programmes fronted by Kirsty Allsopp. She's really spoiled it for us, sadly. I went searching for patchwork fabric incidentally this morning and popped in a couple of second hand charity furniture shop and found pretty much the same as you regarding prices, but the stock was different to what it was a week or so ago, so perhaps it's selling? I'm looking for something for a specific purpose and will be waiting until I find the perfect one with the right price tag. It could take a while!
I found a lovely chest of drawers last summer. As I was stripping it of the damaged varnish, I found the signature of its maker, the date (1961) and the numbers of pieces (58). I love buying a piece that is older than me and find that kind of furniture has so much more character than a flat-pack from Ikea.
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I have also been quite amazed at the prices that charity shops charge for quite awful items, particularly furniture. I'd look first at Freecycle (having donated quite a few really great pieces of furniture and white goods that we just didn't have room for), Gumtree, local papers and ads in local newsagents. And just asking around can be quite successful. My husband's work has an electronic noticeboard and we have listed and sold furniture that way too.
I would head of the auction houses, we sold most of my late parents' furniture this way and didn't make much money, so the prices must be good!
Good luck, I look forward to hearing how you do! We may be furnishing a house in this way soon, and I would be most grateful for any advice.
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My most favourite and comfy chair is a 1950s one I found on a skip. I didn't need any fancy store for that lovely item.
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We have loads of charity shops and lidl,aldi,poundland and a great carboot sale every Sunday.
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Most of our furniture is sourced second hand, we not only prefer older pieces but find they are far better made than the modern flat pack stuff. Our 1930's bedroom suite consisting of his and hers wardrobes and a dressing table cost just £70 for the three pieces (admittedly about 15 years ago). It was bought from a local project which provided work for disabled people doing up donated furniture. Our bed was our best bargain, it's a 1907 Wooden Edwardian bed and was “won” off Ebay for £25 - we did have to travel to Biggar to pick it up, a round trip of 260 miles - and had to purchase a roof rack to do so (which cost more than the bed!) but even adding these expenses on it was a bargain. My dining table was £15 in a second hand shop and I sourced four chairs on Ebay for £25. Large wooden chest used as a coffee table - Ebay as well as two 1950's rexine chairs. Like yourself however, I have yet to find furniture bargains in the charity shops, as you have found it is actually cheaper to source new from Argos or Ikea. Oh nearly forgot - got a small double bed for the spare room (4ft) free from freecycle and it had only been used once as the lady giving it away used it in her spare room and a fabulous farmhouse style wood carver chair also off freecycle - I've seen similar in second hand shops selling for £100!!!
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I agree with the charity shop prices i only go in to the smaller charities now that dont fund massive wages for lots of area managers and directors , we have completed two rooms in our house buying furniture from Ebay, charity shops ( the smaller ones ) freecycle , a generous friend and using what we already have. I tweeted pictures of the rooms we did on a budget and they were favoured by one of the carpenters of one of the TV programs so we must have made good job, If anybody is interested look back a few pages on my blog to see what created.
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We gave our 3 piece suite to the local charity shop and they advertised it for £100! £100! That's such a lot of money for a second hand bit of furniture. I was shocked. Everyone told me I should have sold it myself - but I think it's good to pass things on, in the same way that people were kind enough to gift furniture to me when I bought my home. I think charity shops are very expensive now, when I had my son I used to buy all his clothes from there, but these days it's sadly cheaper to buy from places like Primark - which goes against all my ethics. It's a tough one xx
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It's really poor in our area for bargain shops which I hate so much! I see all the shows on TV and think how lucky some people are lol. I tend to use Ebay but there is one store which was great for bargains - Not so much now though. It's called Green Horizons.
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I live in Godalming- 6 great charity shops and 3 in Farncombe. There is also a Poundland in Guildford but nothing like B&M or Home Bargains nearby.
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We have a charity shop in Goole, East yorkshire called Olive Hunts (named after the lovely lady who started it). Sells everything and anything all in aid of local charities! They do really well with getting donations and it can be a real bargain hunters paradise! nothing nicer that having a good old rumage x
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We have quite a good charity shop it is aged concern but very good prices, I also tend to use gumtree alot and sometimes ebay can get some local bargains.
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Forgot to add location Leicestershire.
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We talked up all our friends when Mom moved to our city. One family had a bed and fancy frame from a woman going into assisted living and another had a tiny dining room set which was perfect from another relatives home. Both were very inexpensive. I think I traded a quilt for the bed. I found end tables on our local craigslist.com and much of her wooden furniture was collected from thrift shops or auctions over the years.
I wish more young people would stop and think that there is a lot of this solid wooden furniture available for pennies on the dollar.
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While there are Goodwill stores here in Goshen, Indiana, I like looking on line for gently-used items. We also have older furniture, dressers, bookcases, etc.that we will be painting and putting on new drawer knobs. I love to re-do things, especially if they are things that we really love!
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I look in local charity shop which don't charge the earth and ebay we are a;lso after a smaller dinning table and chairs but not seen what we want at a price we are willing to pay so we keep looking.
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We are planning on having the wedding reception in our garden, and rent the plates, chairs and silverware from a thrift store. You can rent furniture for events here.
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Good morning, you mentioned that you have free wood for your fire, would you be willing to tell me how you have managed to get it for free ?
Thank you.
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One of the charity shops in my area (Derbyshire) sells second hand baby clothes dearer than they are from the original shop. I used to support our local hospice shop but the prices they re-sell at is out of reach for most people. I have found a small independent one now that prices baby clothes at 50p - £1 for good brands and their furniture is very reasonable. I have bought all sorts from there for my kitchen and living room - all good quality items at an affordable price.
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I love my local charity shop (chasetown). always lots of bargains to be had and are cheap unlike some other charity shops!
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I can get stuff really cheap from home bargains!
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A local chain of furniture stores here has a whole warehouse of scratch and dent furniture, it's new, but damaged and usually very reasonable. We've bought a number of pieces there.
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I actually don't mind buying new (on sale, of course) if it's something we'll be using and enjoying for many, many years to come. If it's something like a sofa or sectional, or a bed for hubby and me, the top priority is for it to be solid, sturdy, durable and of good quality because it has to last. Those are things I'd not anticipate replacing for at least a decade. Side tables, coffee tables, nightstands, artwork or decorative accents are perfectly fine purchased at garage/yard sales, thrift stores, antique shops, etc. but I want the anchor pieces of furniture to be clean and trustworthy.
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In my entire adult life, I have only bought 3 pieces of new furniture. Two loveseats and a sofa. Learned the fine art of haggling from my Mom who raised 8 children on a very tight budget. I have had similar experiences with the inflated prices at charity thrift stores. I have stripped off paint, sanded and stained all of the wood furniture I own. Love taking a trip to see my parents as when I leave the back of my SUV is stacked to the gills with goodies that, with a little bit of work, will be gracing a part of my home.
trisha
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I look out for bargains in my local facebook selling pages..
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I also put the word out to family and friends and have received nice used furniture. These have included couch, living room chair, beds, and dining table.
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When I needed a larger bit of furniture to use as storage at the large farmhouse we used to rent I watched on eBay for furniture being sold 'for Collection only', you can get some fantastic pieces if you are willing to drive for a while and pick them up. I 'won' a large old sideboard with roomy cupboards and drawers and the perfect size for where I wanted to put it for just 99p.
When we got there to pick it up it was beautiful. The lady selling it had cleaned it up and polished it perfectly, the wood was glowing - I gave her £10 and went home very happy with my bargain.
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