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I don't buy anything from Craig's List, and my only connection with thrift shops is as a donor.
Call me a snob if you wish, but I don't want anything second-hand.
As to my friend, despite being very intelligent and...financially comfortable...he will take and hoard anything that is free, and I have come to view his behavior as a compulsion that he can't control.
Among other problems that he created for himself is multiple foot problems, caused by wearing cast-off shoes:
>When someone wears a shoe, after a couple of weeks, it essentially conforms to the unique contours of that person's foot. Then, if someone else tries to wear it, they are wearing a shoe that will never conform to their foot as a result of the pre-existing wear patterns. As a result, my friend constantly has anywhere from 2 to 5 band-aids and/or corn pads on his feet, due to the faulty fit of all of his shoes.
>And, since my friend insists on not wearing socks most of the time, he is also subjecting his feet to whatever fungi and other disease vectors were left in those shoes by the previous owner. As a result, he has some really funky foot fungus problems that seem to resist treatment.
I can understand somebody doing what he does if that person is short of funds, but my friend could well afford to buy new clothing, shoes, furniture, and household goods.
Oh that is just gross....I won't even borrow shoes that I like from my daughter..I decide how many times I would actually wear them versus cost to buy my own
I do not think you're a snob not too fond of used stuff either..it's one thing if you don't have two nickels to rub together
One other option I could toss in is finding the clearance center for one of the large home furnishing stores like Ashley or Raymour and Flanigan. They will often have one store that has a warehouse section of returned items, floor models and pieces with minor damage that sell at HUGE discounts versus what the items sell for at retail. It's not uncommon to find things like $1,000 couches with a minor (often repairable) defect selling for $150 or less.
R & F has a clearance center on Rt 22 West, in Bridgewater. This is the old Huffman-Koos showroom, and it is worth checking-out when convenient. You never know what you might find there.
R & F has a clearance center on Rt 22 West, in Bridgewater. This is the old Huffman-Koos showroom, and it is worth checking-out when convenient. You never know what you might find there.
lol, defintiely
I am honestly surprised that more people don't know about those, the deals are amazing when you find something good. I was at the Ashley Furniture center in Cherry Hill one time and they had a 7+ piece $25,000 solid wood bedroom set in there marked down to $2,000. The set had a large armoire that the doors were smashed out of during delivery. For that reason, the customer refused the entire set and got a new one. Ashley claimed the loss and then was selling off the set for next to nothing compared to retail. The set was WAY too large for my master bedroom (and I have a large master, this set was huge), but someone who could use it could have just tossed the armoire or had new doors made and gotten a killer deal.
I've picked up a handful of pieces from those places over the past couple of years. I got a coffee and end table set that retailed for $1,200 for $75 because the one end table had some damage on the leg that I easily fixed to acceptable/not noticeable with a furniture pen. That one was a good deal because it was a set that my wife had been wanting for awhile. I snagged a nice bookcase from there as well that retailed for $800 for $35, no damage it was just a floor model piece. I also picked up an entertainment center for our play room that retailed for $1,500 for $100. The back (that sits against the wall) looks like it had been drug down the tailgate of the delivery truck, but none of the visible portions were damaged at all.
None of these are "heirloom" pieces and I don't pretend that they are anything even resembling "good furniture", but as pieces to go with our actual good furniture and in places that see a lot of use, they're a great deal. I don't care if the kids scratch the entertainment center in the playroom...but I might have cared if I had spent $1,500 on it.
Many good suggestions already. As Ms_Christina said, you may want to consider renting depending on what your budget is. Rent-A-Center will rent you pretty much anything from furniture to electronics and appliances for whatever time period you want. The advantage there is they will deliver it and set it up and then come pick it up when you are done with it. The prices can be a little steep, you could easily spend $100 a week for a bedroom set, living room set and TV, but you have absolutely no obligations or hassles and if something breaks, they replace it for you.
In general, they are a total scam that preys on poorer people who can't get credit or afford to buy these items, they are basically the "payday loan" people of the home furnishings world, but your situation is exactly how they started out their business and might be a good match.
Outside of that, it's all thrift stores, craigslist and freecycle. One other option I could toss in is finding the clearance center for one of the large home furnishing stores like Ashley or Raymour and Flanigan. They will often have one store that has a warehouse section of returned items, floor models and pieces with minor damage that sell at HUGE discounts versus what the items sell for at retail. It's not uncommon to find things like $1,000 couches with a minor (often repairable) defect selling for $150 or less.
There are corporate furniture rental companies that are much better than the Rent A Center type places. They do rent to individuals. I used one when I spent 6 months in Houston, got an apartments worth of furniture including lamps, etc for about $150 a month. Here is one in north Jersey area but there are many: Traditional, contemporary, modern furniture collections | Churchill
Outside of that, it's all thrift stores, craigslist and freecycle. One other option I could toss in is finding the clearance center for one of the large home furnishing stores like Ashley or Raymour and Flanigan. They will often have one store that has a warehouse section of returned items, floor models and pieces with minor damage that sell at HUGE discounts versus what the items sell for at retail. It's not uncommon to find things like $1,000 couches with a minor (often repairable) defect selling for $150 or less.
I actually bought my dining room set at Ashley on clearance for $425 with delivery and set up included from the Secaucus store on rte 3. It's a beautiful glass top table with a bakers rack and 4 very comfortable chairs. The minute I saw it I had to have it - didn't even realize it was a clearance item until I saw the price tag. It had a little scratch in the glass top that you can't even see unless you're looking for it. Was originally $1400.
free on craigslist curb alert, just be wary of bedbugs/cockroaches, keep what ever it is outdoors on a freezing cold
night and maybe it will kill what ever is living in it.
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