Where to buy furniture on a budget?

aliceelizabeths

We are moving to our first unfurnished flat at the end of March,

all we own is a coffee table :S

no bed, no wardrobe, no sofa, no arggg

first on the list is of course a bed!

I know that there is a furniture outlet in Swindon that we will be visiting, and I have signed up to the freecycle Bristol page- awaiting my approval :A

but where else can I look?

where did you all find your best bargains?

savingmummy

Going by my experience i found a industrial estate local to us and there was a bed outlet - very cheap and all branded beds. So worth looking around locally before looking at bed shops.

Ikea do cheap bits, wardrobes, units, sofas, dining sets etc
Wilkinsons do gorgeous bedding, curtains and their kitchenware is cheap too. They also do kitchen utensils and gadgets from 75p.
Asda, tesco, range, home bargains do nice home bits all those essentials.

Sofa - SCS i think its called do lovely sofas and good prices too.
HUGE no-no to DFS!!
Argos/tesco direct have a wide range of sofas but i like to try before i buy so you need to be recommended.

Ebay - you can buy brand new for cheaper there too, some sellers do offer a visit to their shop prior to buying too.
My main bargains have been from ebay saved over 3k on bedroom furniture using a seller on there.

monkeyspanner

Definitely try your local freecycle group. People advertise unwanted furniture and electricals and all you have to do is reply quickly and pick the item up if you are lucky enough to be first to reply and be accepted. You can also place wanted ads.

Some areas have council sponsored reclycling of furniture and electricals.

Look for your community resource centre, this is normally more arts and craft materials but our local one sometimes has furniture.

The Range has small furniture items at reasonable price.

If you have a local Ikea try their Bargain Corner. Our local store also gives away large sheets of chipboard.

British Heart Foundation are opening furniture stores. Not sure what the price might be like
http://www.bhf.org.uk/shop_with_bhf/our_shops/shopping/furniture_and_electrical.aspx

Charity shops for small items

Local auctions might be worth trying.

If you are near to Wales you could try this community recycling online store
http://www.community-furniture.co.uk/shop/

or Track2000
http://www.track2000.org.uk/track/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=46&Itemid=53

NEH

We got our bed frame from Ebay, we didn't expect much for the cheap price but it turned out to be lovely so you can get some bargains on there. We also bought our mattress cheaper online, trick is to go and try a few and then go home and search prices online, though with mattresses some you have to wait weeks for.

Gumtree and local papers are always worth a look and Ikea is worth it as well. We had a van to move our stuff in September and we spend one day with the van visiting Ikea and getting bits we needed and loading it into the van.

Errata

Check out your local hospice or other charity warehouse. Hospice furniture warehouses often have very expensive furniture donated which they sell very cheaply.

ormus

a lot of the furniture on ebay is exactly the same as the big retailers sell.
they buy from the same importers.
similar items made in the same factories in china.

the big high st retailers mark up by 300% and more.

dander

With a bed, I'd say focus on getting a good, comfortable mattress, if you can get one at a factory outlet type store all the better. Then you can get pretty much any old cheap bed and you'll be nice and comfy.

For the rest it depends on you really. If you like older furniture, which will be much more solid, you can get great bargains on ebay, auction houses, that kind of thing. I've seen entire decent pine dining suites go for £20 in auctions. Things often go cheap on ebay because the buyer has to collect. If, however, you're someone who must have new, then you'll have to pay a lot, lot more.

wallbash

Dander has the right idea , go to an auction for tables and chairs, large wardrobes , even beds... although I would buy a brand new mattress.

83rachel

we have a charity close to us called furniture plus but they are fife only, theres one in lancashire i think its called open door, there is one in most areas, I did a quick search and can't see what the one in your area is called but i did find this site http://www.freeuseit.net/index/listings/page1147.htm it looks ok. hth

tiff

This is an example of what I have done:

Bought 2 solid pine pedestal tables from Ebay. The surface needed refinishing but I wanted to paint them black to use next to our bed, so I sanded and spray painted and they look fab. Bought the 2 tables for £2.20 on Ebay as only one other person bid for them.

Got a pine display shelf from the same seller for £1. HAvent refinished that yet but plan to paint it white and put in my daughters room.

Bought a solid pine (80's?) dresser from a charity furniture shop (Emmaus) for £85 and my step dad painted it cream, leaving the pine knobs and surface of the base as they were. Looks fabulous and everyone comments how lovely it is, not knowing where I bought it!

I bought a bevelled mirror with a chain from a charity shop for £5, and asked my MIL if I could have the 2 she had in her garage in Ireland and plan to display them together in my hallway when its finished being decorated. I also asked her for her gplan teak coffee table which looks fabulous in our living room.

I have wasted money on expensive things in the past but firmly believe in buying good quality second hand items, and they are everywhere. I do like vintage/retro stuff so that helps but after reading many blogs, all a piece of old furniture needs is a coat of paint to transform it.

Hope this helps.

Pitlanepiglet

Bristol Freecycle has loads on it, you'll have to move quickly on things though, it's really fast moving.

There is a charity furniture shop on the main street in Bedminster, I think it's a Heart Foundation shop, they have loads of furniture in there.

Otherwise as said, furniture on ebay is often really cheap. Unless you're buying this place and planning to stay there for ages, I'd get cheap and cheerful furniture for now so that it's not a huge issue when you need to move and you can't fit something in.