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Why new furniture doesn’t last long

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Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#121

Post by onecommentman »

5040 wrote: post #57
stetrain wrote: post #4

My biggest issue is that, like so many markets, there is a "missing middle" created by this downward price pressure. For the most part if you want a piece of furniture (ie a nightstand), there are two categories. Either you buy the Amazon/Wayfair version made of pressboard for $100-$200, or you can find a solid wood heirloom version for $2,000+. The domestic plywood or cheaper solid wood options are no longer mass pr…

I was recently looking for a shelving unit for vinyl records. The Ikea solution was 100$. Next step up were 1000$ home-made units on Etsy. In the end, I went with Ikea. Something in the middle would have been nice.

Anyone in the US (without a physical disability) can DIY a shelving unit for vinyl records better than IKEA for well less than $1000 USD. Takes a little time, portable power tools and box level, a few fasteners from online/DIY stores and access to premium lumber. Easy and cheap access to quality lumber in North America is one of our strong points, might as well take advantage of it. Helps if the lumber supplier does cuts and planing, worth the drive to find one. Pride of accomplishment comes for free.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#122

Post by MarkMarine »

stetrain wrote: post #4

My biggest issue is that, like so many markets, there is a "missing middle" created by this downward price pressure. For the most part if you want a piece of furniture (ie a nightstand), there are two categories. Either you buy the Amazon/Wayfair version made of pressboard for $100-$200, or you can find a solid wood heirloom version for $2,000+. The domestic plywood or cheaper solid wood options are no longer mass pr…

As a (hobbyist) woodworker myself, I’ll spend 4 weeks of my spare time (couple hours every couple days) making a piece and then feel like I saved myself 2000$ at the end of it, only to see the same thing on Etsy for 400$. Raw wood was probably 100-200$ alone.

The middle is out there, it’s just not in mass market stores. Honestly some of these sellers must not value their time like I do.

If you know the right things to ask the seller, you can end up with a fantastic piece for short money that will outlast you. Learning that language is tough though, but some time on woodworker YouTube will bridge the gap.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#123

Post by MarkMarine »

habitue wrote: post #114
stetrain wrote: post #4

My biggest issue is that, like so many markets, there is a "missing middle" created by this downward price pressure. For the most part if you want a piece of furniture (ie a nightstand), there are two categories. Either you buy the Amazon/Wayfair version made of pressboard for $100-$200, or you can find a solid wood heirloom version for $2,000+. The domestic plywood or cheaper solid wood options are no longer mass pr…

I wonder if the missing middle comes from plywood / mdf just being more predictable than wooden boards so it's easier to automate / optimize manufacturing on. So one step up from that becomes "real wood" and suddenly you need a human spending a ton of time paying attention to the grain, and idiosyncrasies of the wood etc. Labor costs shoot through the roof for even relatively simple furniture

Plywood furniture is garbage. Plywood cabinets, ok there is a good use for the material. It’s just a shortcut for not having to account for wood movement, but the veneer they put on modern plywood can be scraped through by looking at it wrong. It’s undersized (3/4” is not 3/4” thick) to save money, it’s only got a couple layers, and half the time the middle layer looks like pressed sawdust. Baltic Birch is the only decent stuff, but the cost of it is prohibitive.

The stores you mentioned, even when the furniture is $3000, is made a step up from IKEA in that it’s not pressboard, but it’s probably veneered or made to look “distressed” and dyed as a way to hide the wood it’s made from. You’ll see screws instead of mortise and tenon joints, you’ll see comically obvious grain mismatches, the stuff is just sloppy.

Find a local woodworker, pick timeless styles and get it made from a wood that isn’t that expensive but is beautiful and easy to work like cherry. It will cost something similar to what crate and barrel charges, and you’ll have it in 50 years.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#124

Post by georgeburdell »

blueridge wrote: post #90

I share this list of furniture makers anytime a post about modern furniture comes up. I usually get dinged for posting luxury goods, and am told I must be detached from reality. Here it is anyway: If you're in the market for buy-it-for-life solid wood furniture: https://www.thejoinery.com https://vermontwoodsstudios.com/ https://hedgehousefurniture.com https://57stdesign.com https://www.57thstreetbookcase.com/ (all b…

Being from Portland, I have many pieces from The Joinery. They are absolutely beautiful, and for the ones with a live edge I actually got to pick out the cut of wood.

One more on the list that gets sold through 3rd parties is Wood Castle https://www.woodcastle.com/. They are a bit down market from The Joinery, but not by much.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#125

Post by Gigachad »

onecommentman wrote: post #120
Gigachad wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Solid wood is an absolute nightmare to move. And I've found that most stuff from IKEA lasts quite a long time.

Solid wood furniture designed to be dismantled and reassembled easily is not a nightmare to move. In fact it is easier than moving cheaper furniture whose integrity is compromised with each dismantle/reassemble cycle, and thus is moved whole. It’s a design problem, not a materials problem. And the well-designed easily-movable solid wood furniture will be fought over by your great-grandkids.

I've never seen this. It's always been glued and nailed together.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#126

Post by lbwtaylor »

snypher wrote: post #106
lbwtaylor wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And part of the problem is that it is so hard to tell if the middle priced goods are worth it. For example: - is it real wood but cheaply finished so the wood wears quickly and needs refinishing quickly. Seen this problem so often at priced places like crate & barrel. - how do you tell good quality veneer from bad? - showcase pieces of higher quality than what's delivered to your house. Room & board with their real w…

My cheeky answer is always the bad furniture _has_ veneer :) having said that I have build a lot of "temporary" furniture (eg benches and tables) from 2x4 softwood and they're doing just fine 30ish years later.

Generally true, but one of my most successful mid-price purchases is a dresser in real walnut veneers over solid wood that is aging fantastically. It's just hard IMHO to know how thin or thick the veneer is.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#127

Post by myrandomcomment »

When my wife and I got married we went to a local unfinished furniture store for our bedroom set. We finished it and used it for years. It is now the guest bedroom set. Our bedroom set was inherited from my parents which they inherited from my grandparents. Just recently we received a shipment of my mothers bedroom set from her teenage years that my aunt took after my grandparents passed (this wi go to my daughter after college). We also received my grandparents dining table and a few other pieces. We have my parents 1940s bar, etc. For other pieces we spent years going to estate sales finding the right pieces. When we pass my daughter will receive it all. Some of these pieces are 80 years old and still as solid as the day they where made. I highly recommend investing in good furniture, and in most cases, if you are willing to take the time, you can find amazing pieces via estate sales. Google for listing. We have picked up end tables from the 50-60s that we have seen in antique shops 1/10 their asking price at estate sales. There are tons of sites. It is 100% worth your time.

It was the same thing for rugs. We started with the cheap amazon ones and replaced them with hand made ones via inheritance over time.

Emotionally sitting down in the chair at the dining table my grandfather always sat it was just amazing rush of happy memories. We went with our daughter and added to the family inheritance buy having her help pick out the handmade rug that went under the table. When we where young it was not something we could afford, but now we can we focus on memories for the next generation.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#128

Post by onecommentman »

geodel wrote: post #7

Further, I read somewhere even solid wood available is no longer as good today as 50 years ago.

Dimensional (construction grade) might not be, but it’s hard to say. Go to the lumberyard and pick out your own and you’re probably OK. I’ve sent boards back over the years, but it’s more an hit or miss issue of sloppy QA at the yard.

Solid wood includes what you find at an “exotic woods” store. There the quality hasn’t declined at all AFAIK. For interior work, it is worth a visit to your local exotics just to see what they have. It’s a fun field trip for the kids if nothing else. More expensive, but often no glue or staining required (sealing recommended) and lives on for many decades as the quality hardwood components can/should be resurfaced/repurposed.

Be aware of whether sustainable foresting practices are followed and if the species are endangered. There are many varieties of quality hardwood without those concerns.

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#129

Post by peatmoss »

MarkMarine wrote: post #122
stetrain wrote: post #4

My biggest issue is that, like so many markets, there is a "missing middle" created by this downward price pressure. For the most part if you want a piece of furniture (ie a nightstand), there are two categories. Either you buy the Amazon/Wayfair version made of pressboard for $100-$200, or you can find a solid wood heirloom version for $2,000+. The domestic plywood or cheaper solid wood options are no longer mass pr…

As a (hobbyist) woodworker myself, I’ll spend 4 weeks of my spare time (couple hours every couple days) making a piece and then feel like I saved myself 2000$ at the end of it, only to see the same thing on Etsy for 400$. Raw wood was probably 100-200$ alone. The middle is out there, it’s just not in mass market stores. Honestly some of these sellers must not value their time like I do. If you know the right things t…

If you’re a handtool woodworker you can add to that the thousands of dollars in specialty tools you’ll inevitably acquire. Woodworking is insidious :-)

Re: Why new furniture doesn’t last long

#130

Post by aidenn0 »

nemo44x wrote: post #13

You can get great furniture today that is made from stain grade hardwood and uses high quality fabrics. But it’s expensive. It always has been. Quality, heirloom furniture was never the domain of regular people. It’s through mass production and engineered materials everyone has couches, tables, chairs, shelves, dressers, etc. You want nice counter height chairs made of five hardwood and leather and joint work instead…

But you can't get great furniture pre-assembled from plywood (which a lot of mid-century furniture was). I don't know if the furniture still around from them is just survivorship bias or what, but I've seen many such pieces today.
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