where to start for goodness sake!

[gypsymummy]

We are going to buy our very first house after years of renting furnished flats and I am so thrilled..however where do we start looking for affordable furniture , carpeting, appliances etc??????? i am dizzy already
We won't be able to afford anything extravagant but we would like something decent ..any advvice will be greatly appreciated especially from those with real life experience! dos and don't pleeeeeeze !
Thanks ladies!

See I don't know what 'decent' quality is. One person would think John Lewis brand furnishings were the minimum acceptable quality, and another person would be happy to source everything from Ebay & charity shops. Inbetween you have Ikea and Argos. I am an Ebay/charity shop sourcer myself...

Carpeting usually means schlepping around the local installer shops yourself, go for what seems like 'decent' quality and stay home to watch them install it (you'd be amazed at how badly some installers will do the job if they get the chance).

We found local carpet shops in slightly down at heel villages the best value, and great quality. Cheaper than CarpetRight once you add on all the extras ( fitting, extra for stairs, underlay, rods etc etc ). Avoid carpet shops in expensive villages obv.

Ikea is incredible value - most pieces are really affordable and on trend, if this bothers you.

Freecycle might also be a good place to look, people getting rid of old furniture, some of which is really lovely,or also local auctions. I picked up a lovely solid oak extending dining table ( prob Victorian ) plus a mish mash of 6 dining chairs at a local auction that served me really well for 10 years, for the grand sum of £70 - and that was 11 years ago.

Most of the supermarkets now do appliances - I used Sainsbury's Kitchen Appliances for all of ours.

Congratulations, btw.

We managed to find a shop offering discounted electrical goods. Nothing wrong with them, they just had black marks on one side so had upto 60% discount. Ask around, you might find somewhere similar.

Ikea is worth a look.
In our first flat we could not afford fitted carpets so painted boards and bought large rugs from Ikea.
We still have curtains from Ikea.
Household appliances - I believe you get what you pay for and am a John Lewis disciple but if I couldn't shop there then I would spend as much as I could om washer etc.
Agree that small independent carpet shops offer good value.

thanks ladies , i really appreciate your words of wisdom! we can hardly afford John lewis not after paying so much for the deposit they require nowadays
decent would mean quality that does not require to throw out and get another within say 6 months' time! I think Ikea is ok but their saofs for exmaple cost almost as much as the ones at Tesco direct. Carpets are a total stranger to us so i will be checking out what you ladies have told me as i would not want to be robbed only to find I could have done less money for something "good"!
so sofas and dining maybe will comapre between Ikiea, Tesco ..other stff will try Ebay, Ikea again and Argos maybe? It is really confusing isn't it! Cause you wanna get something good but you don't have the money to go for the really expensive stuff! What about curtains versus blinds? which would cost less and what would you say on either as in pros and cons?
Thanks all !

I would definatly say freecycle but it really depends on your area. We have a very good freecycle group and ALL the things you mention I know I could pick up in the space of a week on our freecycle. Probably not carpets but you probably won't need carpets.

The other place is the local rag. You'll get things cheap in there.

House clearance shops and auctions, lots and lots of bargins to be had in them.

Car boot you might get some smaller items.

For good quality affordable things, secondhand is best IMO. If they are good enough to sell on they are usually built to last and people are very faddy about kitchen appliances, furniture etc, selling after only a year or 2. Go onto ebay, look for brands you've heard of and sort by distance from home. You could easily furnish to a Next/M&S/John Lewis standard.

I would not buy anything unseen from a catalogue - have found Argos to be disappointing in the quality of the furniture. Could not comment on Tesco - again though how can you tell how comfortable a sofa is from a catalogue?

Ikea are a bit hit and miss - we have had things that crumbled in weeks and yet our bed is IKEA and 15 years old. But at least you can see things for real and feel how solid they are in the showroom.

tootootired and rebl thanks a lot ladies..
I agree about sofas and wanting to test them out rather than select from a catalogue..many people have told me Ikea furniture is ok if you do not intend to dismantle it again..second hand does not bother me at all if useful yes..will see how it goes..my head is spinning already..