Nice non-£££££ furniture

[Bentina]

Where can I buy decent furniture, please?

Redecorating house from scratch and looking to upgrade dining table, sideboards etc. There doesn't seem to be a middle ground between IKEA and David Linley. I recently looked at somewhere like Oak World (it wasnt them, but somewhere like that) and everything looked a bit not-quite-right/ doors a bit off/catches didn't quite fit, and was made in Vietnam. Nothing wrong with Vietnam but £800 for a small wonky cabinet that was going to take 6 weeks to import seemed a bit off! Is there any sort of half-way house?

Apologies if this is a daft question but I've only ever bought IKEA before and dont know anyone whose really good stuff wasn't a parental hand-me-down.

TIA

I've had some nice furniture from next, I only buy it from the sale though because I don't think it's worth the full price.
I think there's a sale coming up soon and it's also worth popping into the bigger stores regularly as they have ex display pieces on sale sometimes.

Actually, I did look at Next stuff when I was in there a few weeks back and there stuff did look nice. Is it reasonably well made?

Independent furniture stores for us, we've got a huge one locally that sells all types of furniture, good quality but not designer sky high prices. Also one or two smaller ones round here.

If you like oak, I have some oak furniture land stuff. Good, solid wood. Didn't need assembly other than adding the handles. It's over 2 years old now. No trouble, no problems. I got a bookcase, entertainment unit, coffee table and 2 sideboards for a great price.

Thanks both. I think I will try and find a small indy shop. I don't mind paying a few quid if the quality is there. It was just that with the 'oak world' stuff it wasn't. Couldn't also help but wonder why we're importing oak furniture from Vietnam - coals, Newcastle etc!

You can buy English oak furniture (look for the woodland trust Mark) but it is often more expensive because our hardwood forests are better protected than those in SE Asia.

Also, a lot of the Indy shops have the same stock as oak land et al, as it all comes from the same wholesale suppliers/importers.

We have a few things from heartland interiors, they are online and make furniture. Mainly pine but they also have oak. Their stuff is very good quality and their delivery drivers are really good, placing it where you actually want it. They do sell some mass produced stuff too in their cheaper ranges but i've only ever bought their handmade stuff and it has been great. I've got a low, wide oiled oak bookcase, an oiled oak double pedestal desk and 2 painted & waxed pine linen cupboards (they are huge, I just use them for different things). They are based in Yorkshire (?) so I didn't see the furniture first, I ordered it unseen but have been really pleased with the finish and durability. I've had them for a couple of years (the desk probably 5 years?) and they are looking great.

Next furniture is also imported, the quality is average. Some of the lines are better than others. I've got an old console table from there that I've had for years (solid wood) and it is great but we've had other stuff from them that has been shoddy - wonky joins, wobbly legs, fell apart within 2 years. Like everywhere, there is good stuff amongst the crud.

Thanks, Squeezy. I will look at them now.

I like Willis & Gambier (some stuff at JL and they have stand alone showrooms), the quality is good but it is more money than the other brands mentioned (not Linley prices though )

I love the stuff from Living Room. Out of my price range, so I can only lust after things, but might be up your street?

www.livingroomonline.co.uk/

Sorry, just realised I think stores are only local to me and not available to order online.

Hi could take a look at barker & stonehouse, they have some quirky stuff, good quality, reasonable prices.
They have showrooms around the country & one in london(battersea) also m&s & jl worth a look.

Have you thought about second hand? When we got our first house 12 years ago we bought everything new, but on a tight budget.
If I was doing it all again now I'd buy second hand (Ebay etc) and hunt out what I wanted, rather than feel obliged to buy new stuff but compromise on quality.
I am currently replacing things but have just missed out on a lovely solid oak draw leaf table for £80 to replace my veneer one .

Go up a price bracket at Ikea? V similar then to Habitat (before it went shit)

Department stores do some lovely stuff and have good offers in the sales. Don't forget M&S too.

And eBay - if you have time to wait for the right stuff you can get some treat deals, especially on well made but not currently fashionable stuff like Ergo,

Our most commented on piece of furniture is a refectory (sp?) table from an auction.

It's solid oak, weighs and absolute ton and is 7ft by 3ft. Everyone strokes it when they see it. £300 delivered.

Have you looked on Black Orchid? they have some very glam furniture but it's out of our price range.

Ebay, preloved and auctions.

I look around find the things and styles I like then set up searches on eBay to alert me when they come up for sale.

We chose a lovely sofa bed just the right size for our lounge that was around £800. Within two weeks we had one off eBa for £150 that someone 10 miles away had purchased to stage an empty house for sale. So virtually new.

Likewise we have a lovely extending oak period dining table that was £60.

Our Ercol suite for the conservatory was £35

I think Ikea stuff is much better quality than Next from my own experience.

I would try John Lewis or possibly Barker and Stonehouse for new stuff, maybe auctions for old stuff.

We have bought a lot from made.com

Thank you all for the lovely helpful responses! :)

There are several places like this near us selling ex display/discontinued m and s, john lewis, laura ashley furniture. I'm sure there will be some local to you.

www.wbfurniture.co.uk/

Can anyone recommend auctions please

We found our local auction house in the yellow pages.

Also www.wayfair.co.uk have some lovely unusual bits and pieces, also www.jossandmain.co.uk if you fancy looking online for stuff.