what do we think of Dunelm?

[QueenoftheNights]

I used to think they were the poor man's John Lewis but recently they appear to be trying to go upmarket; swish brochure with this month's Ideal Home mag.

BUT when I went to my local store a few months back it was so disappointing. It's a big store but had a horrible warehouse feel about it and very dated displays. All the accessories were just dumped on shelves, it seemed pricey for stuff that you'd find at Wilko for less and it just felt depressing- like the old BHS used to be.

Any comments on quality and if it's worth another trip ( my closest is a good 12 miles away.)

[FissionChips]

Awful quality and over priced crap.

[Lostandfound81]

Awful cheap tat

[Lostandfound81]

John Lewis and dunelm don’t even belong in the same sentence

[MirandaWest]

We have some things from dunelm that we like

[Nicklebox]

We have one that just opened - I think there stuff is great bought lovely duvet cover, decent quality and price.

[borntobequiet]

Paid quite a lot for sheets - cotton rich so though they contained some polyester I thought they wouldn’t “bobble” so quickly. (I just seem to rot pure cotton.) After a couple of months they were very uncomfortable. Similar from Aldi at half the price fine after much wear and washing. I won’t be buying from Dunelm again.

[Holimay]

lost

I bought some clothes pegs there which fell apart as I tried to use them. I am disproportionately annoyed about it. Ours is next door to a Homebase which has a much better cleaning/storage selection.

[Aprilshowersnowastorm]

Tbh it should have a health notice on the door at our local one.
Candles +more bloody smelly stuff as you walk in and all around the till area.
As a massive allergy sufferer I was ill all day. Wouldn't have entered had I been aware.

[thenightsky]

I used to like it about 10 years ago but now it has Wilko standard stuff at twice the price. Even the selection of fabric has gone down.

[MinorRSole]

Dm adores the place so I dutifully paid a visit and the one I went to was awful. It was badly laid out and even having a browse just felt like hard work. Maybe it's just my local store but I wasn't converted.

[QueenoftheNights]

confirms my thoughts thanks.

But they do have a very well photographed brochure with Ideal Home this month so it looks as if they are trying it's just in reality it looks cheap.

[QueenoftheNights]

I was looking for ready made curtains and soon lost the will to live. They were all crammed onto rails (samples of them) so tightly you could hardly see them, no natural daylight, so colours not really true. I just wondered if I was unlucky with that store or if they were all the same.

[starfish8]

Nah, not for me. I really wouldn't be fooled that their marketing department have done a fancy brochure!

For homeware I stick to John Lewis and Marks and Spencer. Curtains made to measure locally. I've actually found some Asda George surprisingly good value/quality for bedding - especially for kids sheets.

[EnriqueTheRingBearingLizard]

There are a couple in our neck of the woods and they're quite depressing warehouse type places, but you can sort through and find some decent stuff if you're lucky.

Emma Willis has just brought out a bedding collection with them.

[QueenoftheNights]

I have never ever bought a thing from them and always had made to measure curtains from J Lewis but wanted a quick update of my lounge so was looking around.

I won't waste my time going back. It was a huge , depressing warehouse type shop. Even B&Q was more inspiring.

[wowfudge]

Sounds like quite a bit of snobbery on this thread due to it being a warehouse type place. I don't like everything they sell, but they are good for towels, bedding, curtains and they are one of the few places with a decent haberdashery and selection of fabrics.

[EnriqueTheRingBearingLizard]

I don't think it's snobbery, just an assessment. I described the stores near me as being depressing and that's how I find them. Similar but much better laid out and display areas are Homesense, especially the one that's been recently refurbished.

As I said, you can sort through and find some good stuff. I've also ordered on line and found that service very good.

[Lostandfound81]

I don't think it's snobbery, just an assessment.

^ this ^

I think dunelm sells very poor quality items. Not snobbery. My opinion.

[theunsure]

I buy quite a few bits actually. But always online as I hate the stores.
The wooden curtain poles have been good - we moved to a new house recently and had to buy poles for the whole house. The ones we bought were as good as John Lewis but much cheaper.

The Made to Measure service is good for curtains - the Ready made are a bit hit and miss.

The furniture is tat.

The "Hotel" range is reasonable quality - better than the cheaper end of JL. We have some hotel duvets for the spare room.

There are some nice bits in the Dormer range too.

I am a big JL fan but if you mix up the better bits from Dunelm with pricier things it looks just as good and eases the purse strings.

I also bought 2 bedside lamps and a bedroom ceiling light there about a year ago which I love and they get lots of nice comments.
A whole house of Dunelm would be a no-no though.

[PasstheStarmix]

I love the Dorma bedding. Fenwick used to stock Dorma but it’s now exclusive to Dunelm. I the store itself is hit and miss and something are fab but others stuff can be alittle overpriced for what it is but to be honest so can some things on Debenhams and JL etc. Good and bad everywhere. I tend to like Ikea’s prices better !

[PasstheStarmix]

some things*

[PasstheStarmix]

in*

[SnuggyBuggy]

I like to check out the bargain bucket.

[PasstheStarmix]

I agree with pp’s above about the furniture

[BareBelliedSneetch]

They have one of the best haberdashery departments locally. But that’s only because it’s getting harder to find haberdashery!