Tell me about quality houseware, items and furnishings. Starting from scratch!

[78thcat]

I hope to be moving into my own home this year after a lifetime of renting. My current rented flat is furnished so I'm going to be starting from scratch when it comes to buying everything I need for the new house. Exciting and daunting! I'm a big fan of the 'buy it once' philosophy and would like to find new or secondhand quality items that last, rather than things that break after 5 mins. I also think there's a real pleasure in using things that are well made.
It would be great to know what brands, items, or types of materials I should be looking out for. What are your favourite items?
Some of the few quality items I own and love are:

-Denby bowls and plates
-French flax linen duvet covers and pillow cases
-Wool filled duvet (from Wool Room)
-Carbon steel frying pan
-Pyrex measuring jug and oven dishes
-Solid wooden chopping boards
-100% wool blanket
-Salter measuring scales (old fashioned sort)

What else should I be looking out for and how can I get better and noticing good quality? Do you have any tips and tricks? Is solid wood furniture better than composites/flat pack? Planning to keep my eyes peeled in charity shops, car boots, shop sales and online, this summer to keep costs low!

Any help appreciated.

Yes to Denby and Pyrex.

I like Le Creuset oven trays and Salter frying pans.

Arket for vases.

M&S or John Lewis for bedding and towels.

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie

Thank you. I haven't heard of Arket so that's a new one for the list.

My carbon steel frying pan is Salter. It's lovely.

Good to know about JL & M&S for towels and bedding. I've decided to only ever buy white towels as it makes me feel like I'm in a hotel!

Unfurnished doesn't mean bits and bobs like vases and bed linen! It means no furniture! Beds, sofas, tables etc.
Don't buy anything wooden from Ikea is what I would say; tables, wardrobes etc - it is seductive on the showroom and looks ok for 5 years but then needs replacing. You'd do much better to look on Facebook marketplace, your local auction house or vintage shop to look for interesting pieces which have already stood the test of time.

Definitely look out for second hand solid wood furniture, it’s timeless and will last forever. Take a tape measure with you wherever you go, and floor plan with maximum sizes etc. Check for woodworm before buying- I’ve made that mistake!

You can also get well made comfortable leather chairs and sofas second hand and give them a good clean up. They’ve gone out of fashion a bit but again I think they’re timeless and you can update them with cushions/ throws etc

I like to buy my glassware from charity shops, they often sell cut crystal glasses at a fraction of the cost of John Lewis etc and they’re so lovely to drink out of.

I buy plain white bone china plates whenever I see them and have a good collection now, look at the bottom they usually say bone china underneath. Bone china is stronger and more durable than porcelain, again it should last forever.

I really hate having to throw things away that cost a lot of money because they’re not well made and haven’t lasted, so I will always try to buy well made second hand instead. I’ll come back if I think of anything else!

There's a seller on eBay called Clearcycle UK. They sell refurbished furniture from various places. We just got an extending oak dining table for £208 which would've been £630 new, for instance.

I have a beautiful wooden coffee table from ikea. It was only around £180 and still looks great after 20yrs. Obviously the cheap ply stuff is designed for students etc, but some of the furniture is good quality. I have solid wood drawers that have also lasted over 20yrs. Conversely, some of the mid century furniture I’ve picked up at auction or from second hand shops hasn’t been as long lasting!!

I agree with PP about IKEA, avoid their budget ranges, but for some of their higher end items you'd be pleasantly surprised. Our dining table is 100% wood and people are shocked when we tell them where we bought it - it's definitely a long term purchase.

Most of our other furniture is from smaller local businesses - but also look online - I've had some nice things from Rockett St George and even the odd bit from Wayfair (again you need to use caution but there are some decent quality quirky bits to be found). Auction houses are also worth a look.

Please don’t buy JL towels. They used to be great, but the last ones we had were pulled and shedding after two months use by two quite careful adults.

Christy for towels, every time. There is a website called just linen which has older colours at a good discount. They also sell Christy and Sanderson bedding.

The white company for towels.

I admire your approach OP. Unfortunately I have found that in recent years many brands which were previously known for reliable quality have changed their product to one of much poorer quality.

It is such a shame and means that often a cheaper product is genuinely comparable or even better than it's more expensive branded cousin.

This is another reason to look for secondhand items which were made back when quality and finish were more reliable.

Our John Lewis towels didn't last.

I have single bedding from IKEA that I bought when my kids were small, over 20 years ago that is still going strong, ditto the ektorp sofa!

Secondhand all the way for me.
Solid wood furniture. Beautiful linens.
No mass produced crappy wall art.
I don't spend out on towels or frying pans though. Buying expensive doesn't really help.

I would try TK Maxx as I have got a lot of good brands from them over the years. Wanted a white Le Cruset teapot and eventually got it there for £9.99 as opposed to the $70 plus tax one I saw when visiting abroad. So I bought 2 plus my bodum glass storage jars which I have now had for a least 20 years so definitely worth a browse now and again.

Also got my Orla Kiely towels there and still going strong but also love M&S Egyptian towels the plain ones.

Dh needed a set of drawers and saw some in a pop up shop. They were probably Victorian but had loads of storage compared to anything modern and managed to negotiate a really good price. Hold twice what anything modern would.

M&s towels don't last either. Bought a set for myself only, spontaneously ripped within 3 years. I ended up cutting them down for rags.

Wayfair actually has done decent quality furniture but it tends to be the more expensive ranges. I have 2 chest of drawers in the dcs room that are nearly 30 years old. They are solid pine and I just paint them using Frenchic paint when I want a new colour. They look as good and are as sturdy as when new. It's best to buy good quality proper pine or wood furniture as it really lasts.

Also consider looking around to see if there are any local places that make furniture. We were lucky enough to have a local place that makes oak furniture. The stuff is solid, classic and should last forever. (Their customer service was beyond frustrating but that’s another story!).

Only buy White Company if you don’t mind that they fund the Tory Party.

After quite a lot of research I bought Soak & Sleep towels last year and they’ve washed & worn really well. I was disappointed by the towels in John Lewis, M&S and Dunelm.

https://www.soakandsleep.com/750gsm-supima-cotton-towels.html

A decent set of knives will last, look at Victorinox, Wusthof or Global. Try to see in person if possible as you need to feel them in your hand.

Curtains are another place where second hand can save you a lot. Handmade interlined curtains go for hundreds to thousands but have very little second hand value. The difference between handmade, heavy lined curtains and off the shelf at eg Dunelm is substantial.

Duralex glassware is great, looks gorgeous but is really hard wearing and practical, also some styles of glasses stack well in the cupboard. Not expensive to buy new, but also loads on eBay.

Depends how much you are going to use the furniture and where it is, Ikea is fine for children's bedrooms and spare rooms, places like that, most people wouldn't buy top notch for all the rooms, for these sort of rooms I would recommend the Pax wardrobes and Billy bookcases. We have had some furniture from the Ercol outlet though it looks like their showroom is closed at the moment for refurbishment but they have a shop on eBay

Christy do the best towels, and there's a really good site which pp mentioned, justlinen.co.uk which is a department store I'd never heard of, it also has a kitchen outlet too.
Just a word of warning about white towels, by all means have them but consider a slate grey to contrast (being practical and thinking it's hard to get some stains off white towels!)

I had some white kitchen towels which were stained by coffee or tea, it was impossible to get out, I put them in the caravan to use in there

I think victorinox knives are very good, whereas I found sabatier knives crap.

Thanks for the replies. Really helpful to hear about people's experience with furniture especially. I'm going to need the full gamut: beds, sofas, table, chairs, etc.