If you are like me, your investment in furniture has to last! 
It has to be durable, beautiful and a good buy for my money. You 
all know that a good buy doesn't necessarily mean cheap, but it 
does mean that the value in years of problem-free use. I want to 
know that the furniture will last at least as long as it took to 
make the money to buy it! (And in some furniture I have seen, it 
was a distinct possibility that it wouldn't survive the trip 
home!) 

There are two types of furniture, upholstered furniture and case 
goods. "Case goods" refer to furniture that is not upholstered, 
but has a basic box or case construction (with many elaborations 
and variations!). Case goods are usually used for storage or 
display. Upholstered furniture has fabric-covered cushions or 
padding and is usually used for seating.


When buying case goods: 

1. Make sure you know the difference between hardwoods and 
   softwoods. Hardwood comes from a broadleafed, or nonneedled 
   tree, like maple, cherry or mahogany. These woods have 
   strength or stability; but those qualities can make hardwoods 
   difficult to work with for intricate carving and detail work. 
   Softwoods come from needle-bearing trees such as pine or 
   cedar. They are easily carved or worked. Since their surfaces 
   are often soft, they are more susceptible to marks and dings, 
   which may result in a weathered or worn quality that is 
   appropriate or appealing in certain pieces.

2. Make sure you know what "solid wood" means. "Solid wood" 
   means that all exposed pieces of the piece are solid, but 
   those areas hidden from view may be something else.

3. Make sure you know why using plywood may be your best bet! 
   Solid wood has a tendency to expand and contract as the 
   humidity changes and does not offer the needed stability 
   when constructing the large flat panels (like table tops or 
   cabinet sides). Plywood or particle board (made of ground up 
   wood) is significantly more stable and less apt to warp or 
   split. These panels will often be framed in solid wood and 
   covered by veneers to recreate the look of one large piece 
   of wood.

4. Make sure you know what "veneering" is. Veneer is the use of 
   thin layers of highly decorative woods on top of plywood, 
   particle board or medium-density fiberboard (MDF). Veneering 
   makes it possible to match grain patterns or use inlays to 
   create designs that mother nature can't produce in solid 
   wood. But beware of cheaper furniture which reproduces wood 
   grain photographically. If it is photographic, the grain will 
   be perfect, with none of the flaws of nature, and the grain 
   will have no natural variations.

5. Make sure drawers are dovetailed and jointed securely, have 
   glides and stops, glide easily when, have dust panels and 
   are smooth and snag free inside.

6. Make sure doors swing open easily without squeaking or 
   rubbing and that long doors are attached with study hinges.

7. Make sure tables have a heavy balanced feeling when rocked, 
   that the leaves fit properly and that the leaves match grain 
   and finish of table.


When buying upholstered furniture:

1. Make sure that the piece has adequate padding with no harsh 
   underlying wood edges, especially on the arms. If the fabric 
   is directly touching the wood with no padding, the piece will 
   quickly wear at that point.

2. Make sure the patterns are matched at the seams, on front 
   edges and on back cushions. Matched patterns are usually a 
   sign of higher quality. 

3. Make sure the stitching is tight and that no areas are 
   separating (and no stuffing is hanging out!).

4. Make sure the frames are constructed of a kiln-dried hardwood 
   for durability.

5. Make sure the frame is joined using dowels as well as corner 
   blocked, glued and screwed together.

6. Make sure you check the type of springs. Eight-way hand-tied 
   springs are used in the base of better quality pieces. These 
   springs are three-dimensional coils attached to webbing on 
   the bottom of the upholstered piece and tied with twine at 
   the top to each of the eight adjacent coils to keep them from 
   shifting. The result is an even comfort level which never 
   "bottoms-out" even when your linebacker friends sit on it.  
   Sinuous springs are two-dimensional "S" shaped wires that 
   are fastened to the top of the front rail and run down the 
   back of the piece every few inches apart. The result is a 
   somewhat "mushier" seat and is less costly.

7. Make sure that you chose fabrics that will wear well if you 
   have a family. Keep in mind that, as a rule, tightly woven 
   fabrics wear best. For durability, chose a high thread count 
   fabric - meaning that the number of threads per square inch 
   is high. Another general rule is that fabrics which have 
   their pattern woven in wear better than printed fabrics.

8. Most important, make sure you sit in the piece. It may be 
   beautiful, but can you bear to sit in it for any period of 
   time?


Before buying furniture:

1. Make sure you know how it will be used and how long. You 
   don't want to spend a lot of money on a baby crib you will 
   use for only a short time, while budgeting just a little on 
   table that will be used for many years.

2. Make sure you know how much space you have. Don't chose 
   furniture that will overwhelm a small space or get lost 
   in a large one.

3. Make sure you decide what style you want. Casual (overstuffed 
   sofas, earthy colors, and softwoods, such as pine); 
   contemporary (bold colors, sharp lines, metal and glass); 
   country (soft cushions, floral prints, distressed and painted 
   wood); traditional (damask and chintz, cherry and mahogany 
   woods); or a combination of all?

4. Make sure you know how much you can spend. (This is always 
   where I trip up!)

5. And make sure you do some planning before you go shopping. 
   Decide what colors you like, what texture would work best for 
   your family and whether you want patterns, stripes, checks or 
   solids. Look at design websites such as 
   http://www.homeandgardenmakeover.com for tips on what 
   furniture would look best for your room size and lifestyle.


Buying furniture should be fun and creative! Just make certain 
that you know what you are buying and why! And another tip: Ask 
yourself if you will still like this piece ten years from now? 
If not, it will probably not be worth the investment today. Now, 
I'm off to follow my own advice! Hmmm...will I like that purple 
velvet plaid with the orange trim in 2014?