Anonymous wrote:I mostly have wooden furniture from the 50s. Over the years, I have purchased a few pieces that need assembly, which still seems strange to me.
We did get a good patio sofa on Wayfair, which is hit or miss. We have a media console and dining chairs from West Elm. The chairs are such good quality.
You can always try “contractor grade” at West Elm. Then you know the furniture is built to last many uses.
I will look for contractor grade. Good tip, thanks!! I agree in that I try to buy wood pieces and older furniture whenever I can. I have some refinished mid century pieces and a few even from earlier 1900s that look gorgeous. It’s amazing to think how old they are, and they still function perfectly. But certain furniture is hard to find older/vintage- like media consoles/credenzas and what I just bought from Wayfair- an entry way hall tree. So I search and search for older pieces that could fit, and end up buying new, and am always disappointed. I knew this piece wouldn’t be heirloom but I thought it might look halfway decent for a few years. Nope.
Fwiw I’ve spent more on Restoration hardware, west elm, crate and barrel and PB, and although things look slightly nicer at the beginning, each brand has not held up and have ended up in land fills after 10 years or less. I think some people think this is normal, but to me, furniture should be built to last.