Understanding Your True Furniture Needs!

Do you know the best way to go about furnishing your home? Will your home look and feel the way you hoped? How much should you spend to know the pieces you've selected will stand the test of time? There's more to furnishing you home than you might think. Below are a few ideas to consider before you begin.

Understanding Your True Furniture Needs  Have you ever bought a sofa or chair that looked like "just your style" only to be disappointed a year or two later when the cushions have flattened or the seams are coming apart? Or, have you had a dresser drawer bottom out because it had more than it could hold?   In today's era of environmentalism, we're constantly receiving messages encouraging us to choose reusable water bottles, unbleached paper products made from post consumer materials and toilet paper without the cardboard tube, all in an effort to reduce our impact on the environment.  While these are all simple steps we can all take, here's another area to consider, furniture. It's most obvious around holidays, such as President's Day, July Fourth, Labor and Memorial Days, there's a lot of furniture deals to be had. Online and discount retailers promise highly recognizable brand name furniture at HUGE, HUGE, SAVINGS and DEALS THAT CAN'T BE BEAT! Great photography in catalogs and online make reasonably priced furniture look amazing; a lot of look for little money. But to get prices so low, what are you sacrificing? The answer, quality; quality in the construction and quality in the finish. Now two thoughts may be crossing your mind. The first, what does this have to do with the saving the environment? Well, we know the better something is made, the longer it will last. Well constructed furniture will stand up to heavy use rather than braking down only to find its way to the landfill. With care, quality furniture will provide years of service and can be refinished or reupholstered for continued use by you, new use in a new space, sold or passed along to others. The second thought, how then do I choose furniture? Here are a few tips to help. Prioritize Your Furniture - The furniture that's used daily, such as, the family room sofa and chairs, kitchen dining table and chairs, beds, mattress sets and bedroom dressers should be your most well constructed pieces and top budgetary priorities. This is the essential furniture in your home.   Keep It Simple - Because buying new furniture with each new trend can be costly and your essential pieces will last a long time, the fabrics and finishes you select should be classic in style and neutral in color, so they're versatile and can be easily updated with fresh accessories as color trends change.   Have a Plan - Have a well designed floor plan and color palette. Just as a road map makes for a good road trip, a strong plan will help you to know exactly which pieces you'll need and the colors to select with each phase of your homes development. You'll know which pieces to purchase first and where best to allocate your funds. You can still strategically use some of those inexpensive, fun and sometimes trendy pieces in areas for low use and high impact. Furniture for halls and foyers, powder rooms, guest rooms and rooms that aren't frequently used don't have to provide a lot of support or endure repeated opening and closing are the places to preserve the budget.   Cultivate Individuality! Celeste Jackson