Furniture stores (Alexandria, Manassas, Leesburg: mattress, home, buying)

[Bigfoot424]

Question for those who have bought furniture from the discount stores in the NOVA area. Places like Ashley, Bib Bob's and so on are advertised everywhere. The prices look really low but I wonder if it's the old "you get what you pay for" thing. We've not purchased furniture in many years and when we move to our next home we will be buying a MB set as well as other furniture. I realize we could pay thousands at many furniture stores but I was just curious what experiences people have had with the discount stores. Mainly what is the quality like in their furniture? I won't buy things like dressers if it doesn't have things such as dovetail joints and do these stores have this kind of quality?

[Old Guard]

Bigfoot424, I think you are going to have a hard time finding dovetail joints at bargain and even mid to upper level furniture stores. Most of the budget store stuff seems to be particle board and even if it does not it sometimes has other problems.

I did a fair amount of research on furniture a few years ago. I settled on some brands that had a good reputation then I looked for them specifically. Good luck.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by Old Guard

Bigfoot424, I think you are going to have a hard time finding dovetail joints at bargain and even mid to upper level furniture stores. Most of the budget store stuff seems to be particle board and even if it does not it sometimes has other problems.

I did a fair amount of research on furniture a few years ago. I settled on some brands that had a good reputation then I looked for them specifically. Good luck.

Thanks. I stopped at a Big Lots the other day as there is on near my work. They actually had a dresser with dovetail joints but it was still a cheap dresser. But I believe you are likely correct in your assessment.

[Old Guard]

Bigfoot424,

I am no expert by far. I did a lot of reading. There is a person who runs a business in NOVA that happens to have a lot of posts on another forum that had a lot of information on what to look for, where certain furniture was made, who is not longer as good as they were because they outsource framing pieces. It took me a fair amount of time to sort the chaff from the wheat but I know have a Hancock and Moore recliner and couch though there are other brands I was looking at as well.

Personally, and I know this is just my opinion, I would look for makers that I like and trust and search Craigslist. I would not buy a mattress from Craigslist but I would have no problem purchasing a solid wood bedroom set and cleaning it myself. But that is just one option.

[HokieFan]

My friend purchased furniture from Bob's, and she was happy with the quality. She was also happy with the delivery service, and commented that when she was shopping in the store, she didn't feel "stalked" by the salespeople.

I purchased most of my furniture from ValueCity almost 5 years ago. I've been very happy with the quality and sturdiness. We've had to tighten the legs on the kitchen chairs a few times, but that's all we've had to do. My bed, kitchen table, & chairs are solid wood. They claim the frame of the couch is also solid wood but I haven't looked at the frame to be able to say for sure. I also can't say what type of joints are used.

[vademo]

My first furniture came from dumpster and used them for almost 3 years. Later, I started to purchase from value city, bob's furniture and Ashley's. I also tried to Ikea furniture but was never satisfied with the design or quality. However, they are very affordable and it can survive for a long time (It depends on you). I currently shop from Arhaus. I really like their solid wood furniture. I really enjoy the look and smell of wood! It looks amazing and will survive for a long time. They are more expensive then these brands but still not very expensive. You can also find used ones online for a very good prices.

[Middlin]

When they opened an Ashley's in Manassas I went in there to check it out. Frankly I couldn't get over how cheap the furniture looked and wasn't tempted to buy anything. This is from someone that has bought Target furniture too! I think it depends on the type of furniture and it's use. If you like the look of something and it's not an item that gets a lot of wear and tear then go for it. When we replaced our bedroom furniture we opted not to buy a bed frame since I hate footboards and just had the metal frame which you can't see anyway and bought a really nice headboard online. I couldn't find any dressers that I liked for the price and turned to Craigslist and bought 2 dressers.

[Carlingtonian]

I think you get what you pay for--generally. E.g., Bob's ads talk about a couch being all "bonded leather." Which is basically leather shavings and pieces reconstituted with glue and given a smooth veneer.

For good deals, I'd go for Costco/BJ's, Pottery Barn Outlet, Pier One Outlet. We have leather furniture from Pottery Barn, and it's very solid. Leather on the back side that you don't see, nice grain, etc.

[michgc]

We bought an Ashley couch and love seat pretty cheap 8 years ago - it was actually faux leather, which is what we preferred. My kids were not kind to it (flip over the top, climb over the arms, etc.). I'd say it lasted 7 years in good condition and in the past year the cushions have begun to sink and the material is ripping at the seam. So, yes, in some ways you get what you pay for, but I don't think we did too badly with the purchase - I really didn't want good stuff with a 5-year old, 2-year old, and newborn. I think it would have lasted much longer with adults only using it. In any case, it was worth what we paid for it, which was maybe $800 for the set.

As an aside, I once bought a couch at JCPenney and it was the worst piece of junk ever! It lasted about 1 year before it started to fall apart.

[persnicketygal]

Alas, the Pottery Barn outlet at Leesburg was closed down several years ago, and there are no Pier One outlets around these parts. Although it might be that both have clearance sections. There is a Crate & Barrel outlet in Old Town, Alexandria, but in my experience, it doesn't have a lot of furniture -- it's a small store, a lot of dishes, glasses, other home and decor items.

For furniture, many people still go down to North Carolina -- the High Point area -- Furnitureland South is one large store I remember. I think the Hickory Furniture Mart -- a building with a variety of furniture makers -- is still a draw, too. It used to be that after the big annual or twice-a-year "Furniture Markets," the events for furniture retailers to show off the latest looks, many of the display items would go to resale places there and there were deals to be had. I've heard that it's not like that much anymore (because of the recession). But it still might be something to look into -- it's not a bad drive to get down there.

If I wanted a new sofa, I'd go back to where I've shopped before -- Hamilton's Sofa Gallery. Wide selection of sofas, sectional and easy chairs. Dressers and other casegoods, I'd think Craigslist would be a good choice, because the older-looking items some people are trying to get rid of are the things that tend to have better craftsmanship.