Furniture - where should I be looking to buy online?

[Inthesleeplessnightgarden]

Moving to the UK after living abroad. We have a house but it's totally unfurnished. Now, normally I would be happy with just a camping chair while spending weeks mooching around junk shops for the perfect armchair / dining table etc but I really need to have furniture in and ready to go as soon as we get there. House is a Victorian cottage and would ideally be furnished with a mix of old and new, not overly expensive but would eg go for wood over MDF. Prices in John Lewis for eg armchairs eye watering and in M&S everything a bit too matchy. Where should I be looking online? Have seen ok sofa in ikea but not taken with their beds or dining tables. Am out of date with UK shops. Please point me in the right direction?!

[OrlandaFuriosa]

eBay. Seriously. Brown wood do out of fashion ŷou can get superb antique bàrgains.

[OrlandaFuriosa]

And I kea for the basics like bookshelves.

[TheToys]

made.com is good. Got fabulous, good quality, reasonably priced dining chairs from there.

[WhatKatyDidnt]

Sofa.com and Warren Evans (beds, wardrobes, drawers) are not cheap but are both good value.

[JT05]

I'll second Warren Evans for beds, very well made. Beware of anything with flimsy slats!
Oak Furniture Land seem to have some simple, well constructed pieces. We have been looking there for small cupboards, for our recently moved into, cottage.
If you have time, some charities have furniture shops, worth a browse.

[icklekid]

We have some lovely sofas from barker and stonehouse, our dining furniture was from habitat (in homebase where we were actially looking!) Some of it will be too modern but they both have some nice furniture

[concertplayer]

It all depends how long you intend to stay in that house as you do not
want to spend too much money if you need to move again in say
a year or two.
Furniture 123 has some good oak stuff good prices
Have a look at your local independent shops/stores too

[Inthesleeplessnightgarden]

Thanks all, some helpful starting places. Much appreciated!

[Needmoresleep]

As a landlord I often buy from Oak Furniture land. They deliver quickly, within a couple of days if you choose the right item, and efficiently. Some other firms use outside delivery contractors who can be awful.

If you want a good quality bed/matress, though not cheap, look up "premier inn - buy the bed", though mattressman can also get most things and deliver quickly.

[Needmoresleep]

Oh and on appliances and white goods, sadly, I don't think AO can be beaten. Their delivery is good, often next day and they let you choose the time slot, and they will disconnect/reconnect. I used to use John Lewis, but no one in their Scottish call centre seemed to understand the realities of London traffic/parking. Nor would they collect several goods and deliver them all at once. Useless if you are trying to furnish an empty property to a quick turnaround, and don't want to spend days there simply waiting for deliveries.

[NotCitrus]

eBay is great for furniture and can search for stuff within X miles. I've used it plus Shiply to deliver items to me. If you want brown wood furniture there is loads!

[wonkylegs]

No no no no to Oak Furniture land - they have some nice stuff but if things go wrong their customer service is tortuous and takes forever to sort anything out. They delivered (completely smashed) broken furniture 4 times before I gave up and eventually asked for a refund which they then took 6wks to process. Good thing the furniture & the money weren't urgently needed.

[NotCitrus]

I agree Oak Furniture Land like delivering smashed stuff and trying to get you to accept a repair and won't refund, only let you buy another and then return the first... Fortunately I called my credit card company, offered to email them pics, and got a refund within 2 days! Credit cards are equally liable with the retailer if the item cost over £100 and usually very helpful.