Shopping for new furniture? Experts say to make it a journey, not just a destination
Marla Caceres, Tribune Brand Publishing
Whether you are purchasing a single piece or redecorating an entire home, picking out new furniture can be exciting. Very few shopping experiences can compare. It is not often that you shop for items that you will not only use on a daily basis but also appreciate for years to come.
But for many, the process is daunting – where do you even begin? What’s the best balance between style, durability and value? Take time to think and plan before you ever set foot in a store. Here are five pointers from experts to help you make the most of furniture shopping.
Know your room. There is more to a room than just its name. Knowing how you and your family interact with a room is the first step to purchasing furniture for it.
“You should know, basically, the lifestyle that you have — is it going to be for family, will it be with pets, are there children — before you go to any store,” said Maria Gaviria, a home furnishings consultant with Baer’s Furniture, a collection of fine furniture stores with 15 locations throughout Florida.
Knowing whether your new piece will be part of a high-traffic area in a busy family home or the feature piece in a less-used room will help focus your search.
Do more than measure. You will need to know the dimensions of your ideal piece, but you should also consider how a new piece will look with your existing furniture.
“How are the pieces that you already have in place? How will they play with what you want to buy?” Gaviria asked. “You want to make sure that everything is harmonious with the pieces you have.”
When you are thinking about dimensions and room layout, a tool like Baer Furniture’s online Room Planner can help. The tool allows you to lay out a room using the dimensions of furniture you already have and the dimensions of pieces you are scoping out online.
Get inspired. Now that your focus is narrowed, the fun part begins — getting inspired. Inspiration can come from a multitude of popular sources — home decor-oriented social media sites like Pinterest and Houzz, television, movies, design magazines. But inspiration can also come from unexpected places like nature and fashion. Collect images of anything that inspires you, whether it is a specific color or texture, or an actual piece of furniture you would love to own.
Anita Catsman, a Baer’s Furniture interior designer based in North Palm Beach, suggests bringing a collection of your ideas. “When you
sit down with a designer, it is extremely helpful to have to get your idea across.”
Think about budget. When thinking about a budget for your furniture pieces, do not just consider immediate needs. The longevity of a prospective piece is important as well. “There is an important difference between value and cost,” Gaviria said. “Are you going to buy something because it’s cheap or because it has value?”
Investing in well-built, timeless pieces may be a smarter choice in the long run than purchasing inexpensive, trendy pieces you may have to replace in a few years.
“What we offer [at Baer’s]]]]]]]] is value — high-quality, valuable pieces at an affordable price,” Gaviria said. Products can range from affordable, every day pieces for the whole family to that once-in-a-generation heirloom item.
Plan ahead. If you do not have the funds to furnish an entire home with your dream pieces all at once, don’t fret. Furniture shopping and home decorating can be an ongoing process.
Make a plan for the pieces you would like to purchase now and what you would like to accomplish with your home in the future. Experts recommend investing more energy and resources into the rooms you and your family use the most.
“I like to put my money in the living room, dining room and master bedroom, and do a little less in the secondary rooms,” Catsman said. “You could be more cost-effective and creative with the spare rooms.”
Planning for a future of furniture shopping makes financial sense because it spreads the cost over several years. But when the process includes so much creativity and inspiration, it spreads out the fun, too. When you’re ready to embark on a shopping journey, stop by any Baer’s location, for wide-ranging selections and expert advice.