Where on earth do I buy really nice, good quality, bedroom furniture?

[KellyanneConway]

We have a bedroom move around coming up soon due to oldest adult DC moving out permanently. We are moving into her room and I want to replace all the furniture, flooring and decorate. We need lots of storage and I want something traditional and solid but also quirky if possible, maybe a little bit French/ ornate?
Not Ikea - I have approx 7 years old Pax in every bedroom at the moment and it has not worn well - doors are crooked and drawer runners loose etc. I do not want this again. The John Lewis stuff looks a bit meh. I would consider secondhand and have upcycled an old Stag mahogony sideboard for the home office which looks ok but way too effortful to do a whole bedroom set. The stag quality is excellent though.
I just have no idea where to look. Your standard retail park shop stuff - Dunelm and Oak furnitureland etc. - I don't trust to last. Budget is about 3k bout would go a bit higher if the stuff was REALLY nice.
Please can I have your recommendations? Supporting photos of your own lovely bedroom furniture would be amazing. Thanks.

I’d you can afford it then go bespoke
Dependent on size of room you could get decent stuff for £3k and it can be sprayed or painted any colour

M&S furniture is well made 👍

Ok thanks @rubyslippers that might be an option. I'm not sure exactly what I want so I need to look at some pictures for inspiration.

Second hand all the way.

I have spent thousands on furniture from all kinds of places.

Even more expensive like Cotswold Co are garbage builds.

The only absolutely solid stuff I have bought new was from Oakworld.co.uk - Built like a brick shithouse! But mainly all in one carpentry so you need some very strong men to maneouvre that around.

But all of my second hand - that is all solid and gorgeous.

I have furnished half my house from British Heart Foundation shops, I don’t find modern furniture is built to last
I’ve a wardrobe from there that probably cost all of £40 and has done 8 years and 4 house moves without aging a day

EBay/FB marketplace - antique furniture.
I've just bought a really substantial Victorian mahogany wardrobe for £200. Cost me £30 to get delivered and the delivery guys were complementing the build quality of these old pieces - my wardrobe must be 130 years + and would feasibly look just as good in another hundred years. Plus old furniture doesn't tip over.

I'm not buying IKEA stuff anymore. Most modern furniture is rubbish.

Excellent stuff.
@Babamamananarama @BeastOfBODMAS @LemonSwan did you do up the furniture you bought secondhand or was it good to go?

Honestly, the majority of modern furniture is a bit rubbish, unless you can find a local artisan/bespoke person, which is often, jusitfiably,£££. So auction, antique shop is probably the best way to go.

Second hand. You get some amazing stuff on Facebook or eBay.

@KellyanneConway I’ve always lived in older buildings so most stuff is just left as it suits but have refreshed a few bits.

I live in a relatively low income area with a high elderly population and we have loads of second hand furniture shops which do house clearances. It’s all priced to sell quickly, including furniture which would easily sell for 10x the amount in an antiques shop in the more affluent towns 30 mins away. It’s bizarre and probably a good opportunity for someone with more knowledge than me!

Neptune? Pricey but good

If you're a fan of Stag, then the vintage Minstrel bedroom range is nice.

Stag minstrel paints up nicely too.

Antique, obviously bought second hand - ebay mostly.

There just is no comparison. Modern furniture, even 'good' quality, is just a world apart, you would have to spend thousands to get something even approaching the quality and appearance of a good condition Victorian (or whatever) chest of drawers or linen press that you could get on ebay for a fraction of the cost.

I just buy stuff in good condition and it's good to go!
There's a trend to buy stuff (particularly old dark oak) and paint it with Frenchic paint or whatever, but personally I like the wood most of the time.
You can get some real bargains on FB marketplace, but might need to commit to a fair bit of browsing. But loads of antique dealers sell on EBay and it's easy to find whatever you are looking for pretty quickly as long as you don't mind paying for it. You'd still probably be paying less than new bad quality furniture.
(For example my wardrobe that I picked up locally for £200 might have been on EBay for somewhere nearer £350-£400. I live in Cornwall though so it's much easier to sort transport if local)

I like Ercol. It's expensive new, but you can get it second hand.

Vintage/secondhand/auction. Solid oak superking sleigh bed, on the website still for £4K, perfect condition, for peanuts. Loads of solid wood furniture on our local auction place for next to nothing. Sand it or paint it if you don’t like the colour!

My bedroom dressing table is an enormous Victorian desk, 2m long. It’s gorgeous, solid mahogany, two massive pedestal cupboards with drawers inside, and very simple classic lines. It cost £220 on eBay with the delivery.

Neptune is lovely but v expensive. The painted furniture company is similar but a lot more reasonable.

If you like a traditional style Willis and Gambier Louis Philippe is very solid and well built. We are selling ours because we are going for a more modern design and it often comes up second hand.
willisgambier.co.uk/

You can get Stag furniture already renovated online (Etsy and Vinterior tend to have the more professional pieces on it). I appreciate it will feel costly if you have already upcycled some Stag yourself. I treated myself to an upcycled Stag Bedroom set (dressing table, two bedside tables and tallboy) when I first moved house last year as like you I couldn't find anything I liked. I would look at Kimteriors. She does lovely bespoke upcycling (not just Stag) and will do it to your specifications.

[quote Pokhora]If you like a traditional style Willis and Gambier Louis Philippe is very solid and well built. We are selling ours because we are going for a more modern design and it often comes up second hand.
willisgambier.co.uk/[/quote]
Pokhora - I love the Willis and Gambier furniture. Thank you so much for the link. Where are you selling yours?

I've furnished my house with second hand and a lot of it is pre-owned Ercol.

If you wish new I’d also second marks ans Spencer, their furniture is very high quality, for second hand if you wish something quirky/ornate then auctions and antique houses are fantastic, you can get some great pieces.

Antique all the way should, pick up solid mahogany triple wardrobe for around £2-300 at auctions, plus van hire as mostly required to remove within 2 days. often furniture does come apart you will need a slotted screwdriver and care not an automatic driven screw driver it will be heavy as it is solid. I got a triple wardrobe with beautiful inlaid wood with one section drawers inside and long drawer under hanging space for £110 plus commission typically 20% expect to pay double at an antiques shop but they will probably deliver. Antique beds are harder to find need to make sure all mattress supports are there, as you will never ever get replacement parts