Old second hand furniture

ChilliBob

Hey guys, 

All the furniture we own is either new, or upcycled from owning from new. We're looking to get a bedside table for my daughter which I can upcycle, but I have no idea where to start looking for one! 

Ideally something old that's not flat pack and has decent construction.

Just looked at bhf on ebay, they had sort of the stuff I was after but not that much to choose from. Any ideas much appreciated. 

To be clear, this isn't to save money, as I appreciate the starting cost plus my time and materials will probably be more expensive than buying something, it's just to get a more unique, and hopefully nicer end product. 

kimwp

Gumtree and preloved are worth having a look at

ChilliBob

Quite funny, now I've started to look into it, my wife's having second thoughts, stating that it'll take ages lol. Well, yes, it's a project! Gah! I'm still keen on the idea though, cheers, I'll have a look

Brie

charity shops are a good place to look - the actual shops that specialise in furniture.  beyond that I'd say Freegle or the local gumtree or facebook marketplace.  I'd want to see what I was buying rather than depend on someone's photos. 

Oh and check to see if your council tip has an associated recycling centre.  Ours has a spot where the "too good to dump" items are set aside and taken to a shop to sell.  They used to have it right at the tip and the prices were always very good - basically one person's garbage is another's treasure.  Now they don't mind if you nab something as you're dropping something off particularly if it's something that can't be sold exactly as it is - perfect for upcycling.  

ChilliBob

Brie said:

charity shops are a good place to look - the actual shops that specialise in furniture.  beyond that I'd say Freegle or the local gumtree or facebook marketplace.  I'd want to see what I was buying rather than depend on someone's photos. 

Oh and check to see if your council tip has an associated recycling centre.  Ours has a spot where the "too good to dump" items are set aside and taken to a shop to sell.  They used to have it right at the tip and the prices were always very good - basically one person's garbage is another's treasure.  Now they don't mind if you nab something as you're dropping something off particularly if it's something that can't be sold exactly as it is - perfect for upcycling.  

Very interesting about the tip, I hadn't thought about that. Most of our charity shops are clothes and max bygraves and tack ha ha. 

WIAWSNB

Facebook Marketplace always surprises me - fab old furniture for next to now't.

ChilliBob

Cheers, I'll give that a look, although when I was looking for a few scraps of flooring it was useless. I guess it's a bit of a lottery depending on where you live really

twopenny

British heart Foundation do furniture, our local hospice shop too. 
We also have a local engage shop that sells cheaper if you are on credits and a little more if you're an ordinary customer. I've seen spotless furniture sold.
Some tips nearby do have shops though ours doesn't.

I've got a fair few bits that I picked up that are unique. They rarely turn up when you're looking for something particular but keep looking and they will.
My problem is not buying stuff because it's beautiful and I desire it but sticking to what I actually need 🙂

Misslayed

Stag minstrel is very good quality, well built, solid wood (I believe). Just very dark, so dated. Would upcycle beautifully. I have three pieces from my mother’s house, it’s on my ‘to do’ list to refurbish them! 

Green_hopeful

Facebook marketplace often has furniture for not much money and you can search by distance so it doesn’t give you stuff miles away. 

gwynlas

Your local auction house/saleroom might have what you are looking for, brown furniture is generally cheap