Furniture Shopping Made Easy

How you can change your experience shopping for furniture, save time and money and most importantly have fun!

Gather the Family

Before you go shopping call a family meeting and discuss what you “vision” is for the space. Serve food and drinks and get together different Interior Design magazines. Ask family members to bring their favorite colors and materials to the meeting so you can have something to build off of. This is the time to weed out all the possibilities that family members don’t like or things that won’t work. Remember to have fun with your family and get a clear idea of what you want the finished space to look like. Don’t hold back your creativity as this is just he brainstorming phase.

Take pictures, take pictures, and take more pictures!

Make sure you take pictures of all the furniture in your space that you want to keep. Also, take pictures of each wall in the room and also the ceiling so you don’t forget about which way a door swings or maybe where a skylight is exactly placed. If you have time and are really enjoying this process, get paint chips, fabric swatches and even wood finish samples to match what you already have.

Measure Twice, Cut Once!

Measure every part of your room and I mean everything! Don’t just do a floor plan, make sure you measure walls with window/fireplace placement. Built ins and outlets are other examples of things that are easily overlooked. Measure the sizes of houseplants, accessories, and anything else that plays a role in allocation of furniture. If you need help with doing a floor plan, they are usually free of charge with most showrooms, and there are also tons of “how to” articles online.

Let’s talk money honey!

Before you go shopping and fall in love with something that is way out of your budget, jot down some notes on what pieces are most important and maybe even a range of what you think you might spend on each of them. This is a good time to talk about what pieces you might have for a long time considering this is an investment for your home. At this point it might even be a good idea to look at some products online to get a general idea of pricing.

Research Time!

Use furniture manufacturers websites to find out all you can about their company as a whole. Look at their products, philosophies, and their values. It’s more fun and empowering to educate yourself before you visit the showroom. The sales associate will appreciate it more as well, as it is more exciting to work with serious clients who are actively engaged.

Have a good time!

Wear comfortable shoes and clothes, as you will be walking around big showrooms for quite some time. Also remember to eat a healthy breakfast and get caffeinated so you aren’t sleepy. Looking at interior design details all day can be color overload for your brain, so you want to make sure to be alert.

Don’t ignore the sales consultant

Remember the sales consultant are the experts on the product and if they don’t seem to be move on somewhere else or ask to work with someone else. Good sales consultants have great creative ideas and are there to assist you with parameters that you set. They will help you so your space is not only functional but also bring it to life with personality.

Take notes and start a folder

Make sure you get all the delivery, financing, and customer service numbers in writing, as well as take the sales person’s card for the future. Take home pictures of all of the pieces, as well as fabric swatches or any other samples. If you buy any directional pieces, make sure your sales person supplies you with models or sketches displaying the correct orientation you purchased.

Did someone say delivery party?

Set a date once all your new pieces are delivered and installed and place everything with you and your family. It will be a great feeling to celebrate all of your hard work and sit back relaxed in your beautiful thought out space!

***Let us know what part of furniture shopping you find most difficult and how you would like it to be easier?