Purchasing Retro Furniture: A Guide for Success

Older furniture is beautiful, characterful stuff – however it can also suffer from the ravages of time and have all sorts of issues and problems. However, we’ve a number of tips that will make the whole thing easy and near fool proof.

1. Find a piece in good condition.

Clearly, you do not want to purchase furniture that has been mistreated or loved a little too much by its previous owners. When you are buying retro furniture, you will find that the quality varies greatly. Consignment shops are a great place to search, as they typically have items that are in better condition than other places.

Upholstered furniture is a little tricky to pick out because it does not last as long as items like chests, cabinets and dining room pieces. Still, if you need an upholstered item, look carefully for something that is in the condition that you want. It is important to keep in mind that refurbishing these items is expensive, and it is likely not a project that you want to undertake on your own.

2. Don’t get “stuck” on a certain brand.

Some brands are well-known for a reason. However, do not just limit your search to items from these companies. You never know what you will find, and you can occasionally get a great bargain if you are willing to go outside of your comfort zone.

3. Look for pieces that were well-made.

Sometimes, the exterior of a piece of retro furniture is less than impressive. However, if you take the time to examine the item, you may find that it was very well made and has a good frame. That might be an item worth purchasing, because you can always fix up the exterior. Still, remember that doing so could be quite a project, so make sure you are ready for it. Look at the quality of these pieces on retro furniture site Rove Concepts to get an idea of the sort of thing that’s well made.

4. Quality is important.

Many people erroneously believe that old furniture is of a superior quality to new furniture. While this is true of some pieces, it is not true of others. Look for items that are in good condition to avoid getting stuck with something that you do not want.

5. Scratches are not a big deal.

A small scratch in the surface of an item can be fixed and should not scare you away from an otherwise solid piece of furniture. There are a number of professionals that can get rid of the scratch, and there is always the option of having the item refinished if it is truly a “steal.”

6. Measure first.

You are making this purchase because you want to display the piece of retro furniture somewhere in your home. As a result, you need to know how much room you have in your house and how big the piece of furniture is that you are considering buying. Do not purchase without measuring; if you do, you could waste a lot of money and time.

7. Don’t be afraid to bargain.

If an item has a scratch or other defect, don’t immediately shy away from it. See if you can use those issues to drive the price down. Sometimes, a reduction in price will make the piece worth the purchase, even with some surface defects. However, before you get too excited, make sure you look over the item carefully and ensure that it can be fixed without too much difficulty. Even if you get the price down, the retro furniture purchase likely won’t be worth it if the repairs are too expensive.

8. Find items that look good together.

Buying a set of vintage furniture may be outside of your budget. If you need several items, search for pieces that look good as a set. You will often wind up with a display that looks even better than a set would have! Here are some good tips.