AIBU to feel disheartened by the cost of furnishing my first home?

[binocularsgranda]

I am single and live alone. I moved into my house about a year ago and it's my first home so I've had to get everything from scratch. My furniture is a mixture of freebies and things I bought over the months before I bought my house.
Once I have paid regular bills, mortgage etc I have £400 left each month for petrol, food, toiletries, clothes, shoes and parking.
I went for a walk around a home furnishings shop this evening to window shop essentially, not because I was planning to buy anything, just for a look. Even though I hadn't intended to buy anything, I left feeling disheartened. I can't see how I will ever be able to afford even the floor lamp for the living room, bed for the spare room or shelving for the dining room that I need. Yes I can - and will - look online for people giving things away but I think that should be my choice, not my only option because any other route to furnishing my home is simply out of reach. I have very little left over to save each month (and I am frugal - my outgoings are as little as they can be via comparison sites etc). It made me wonder how people afford to go into, for example, Next and buy a sofa. AIBU to feel down about the gap between everyday finances and the prices of necessities? I just want to make my home my own, nothing extravagant.

Goodness please do NOT buy furniture on finance. FFS what stupid pills are people on.

Give yourself some grace, you are just starting out. Get yourself onto Gumtree, Marketplace etc. Ask around friends or at work as often people are getting rid of things. Summer sales are on - check the sales and clearance of Argos and Dunelm which often do very good deals on things like lamps and furnishings in the sale.

Enjoy your new place😊

My DIL upcycles using marketplace or charity shop. She bought an oak tea trolley today. That's being upcycled. Cost her £1.

I am almost 50 years old, been married for 30 years.

Just this year I bought the sofa I have always wanted.

The coffee table that sits in front of it is the same freebie I got 30 years ago.

Picked up bits and pieces as we went along. Just get what you need for now, and if you can get it free/secondhand do that.

Don't put pressure on yourself to meet/buy some 'ideal' set up.

Dh slept on a blow up mattress on the floor for 6 months till he could afford to buy a bed for his first flat - that was 30 years ago.. so nothing’s changed. I just filled mine with unfashionable brown furniture and slowly renovated or upgraded. It’s not a new thing….

Well done buying a place - recognise your achievements.

We came back to the UK 10 years ago in our mid-40s, bought a lovely big flat in a desirable area and had no money left. All our furniture was off freecycle, Gumtree or local furniture charity shops (we bought new mattresses and bedding). Over the next 2 years we found and bought more of what we preferred and passed on what we no longer needed through freecycle. It is possible to make do with what you need for a while and buy what you want over time to get your place exactly as you’d like it.

My first place the only thing I bought new was a divan bed and ikea sofa. Everything else was given, bought second hand (my fridge and TV were second hand too) or borrowed. Auction houses can be a good source.

Ive had several sofas in good condition off FB marketplace for about 40 quid. I get ikea ones with removable, washable covers. I wash them and put throws on them. Please don't get one on credit. FB is great for loads of things. Car boot sales. Charity shops.

My first flat (20 odd years ago) had my bed, and a dining chair, it took me years to furnish it properly. I think I had about 2 forks, 2 knives and 2 plates for months before I could afford to buy anything - even buying a new coffee mug was out of reach.

Even now most of my furniture is second hand or been up cycled…the kids have had new bed frames and mattresses but that’s about it, and I could probably justify buying new I just don’t want to - but I’ve always been that way.

My sofas are from Facebook marketplace (Laura Ashley) one was free the other was £20, both in fantastic condition - all my previous ones have been ebay or facebook ones (small kids and dogs - now bigger kids/teens and dogs)

My Welsh dresser was a freebie which I spent a few weekends sanding and painting. My bed frame was seconds as it had a bolts missing so cost peanuts compared to brand new.

Dh and I like nice belongings but we don’t pay silly money for stuff and our house looks lovely (so I’ve been told) when I decide I want to change things I look for new throws or paint a wall a different colour.

Do not finace anything…debt for a sofa when you have such little disposable income it’s not a priority. Check Facebook from the end of October people buy new sofa for Christmas delivery and you can get some real bargains from then on.

Think it's totally normal to furnish your first home with second hand furniture. In my first flat had a bed from my gran, dining table and bedroom furniture from my mam, fridge freezer from my dad etc. My second place was similar. Got my own house now but still got some of those items mainly in the guest bedroom as it's perfectly fine for a room that's rarely used.

The other furniture we replaced gradually but none was bought on credit. Just get something temporary from Facebook marketplace and replace it further down the line when the budget allows. Also if its your birthday or Christmas ask for money towards a lamp if that's what you want. Also shop around, Next is expensive and so are places like Furniture Village. Dunelm is great for slightly cheaper furniture and supermarkets decor is too.

Also don't go into debt for it or spend every penny. Better to have money leftover for savings than have all your furniture sorted.

My first home had almost nothing, no carpets, no heating. Would you believe it we got burgled. Took all of my jewellery. The insurance cheque bought our furniture and new kitchen.

Many of us got our first sofa & bed on finance. These two things are important - you need somewhere nice to sit in your home and a decent quality mattress with a bedframe. Don’t overstretch but go for something that will last.

Everything that isn’t fabric …. FB market place, recycle centre, hand me downs. I have some amazing second hand chest of drawers, mirrors, a wardrobe (that I got from the tip!!). Charity furniture shops seem to be ridiculously expensive round here.

Don’t feel bad for financing the things that are most important for you and don’t feel bad having second hand stuff… or an empty space where something will go in the future when the time is right.