Furniture / Bed shopping
 

We move over to Summit, NJ in a few weeks and need to buy quite a bit of furniture - sofa, bedroom furniture, beds etc

Looking for any recommendations for where to shop - middle level pricing but happy to spend more on good quality.

In particular and bed/mattress shop recommendations? And do you need a box spring on all beds?!

Thanks

S

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

It seems that a lot of Brits love IKEA and there is a huge store in Elizabeth, NJ that you can shop in for everything for your home.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Ikea is god, just not in the tropics, where they sell insect food.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Ashley Furniture is ubiquitous US mid-level furniture store; the salesmen can be a bit pushy.

Mattresses are mostly sold by mattress specialists that have a wide range of brands and designs. .... Americans seem to like something called a "pillow top", which is like a mattress with a thin but dense quilt sewn on to one side. :blink: ..... It makes them curiously soft, and unpleasantly hot in summer as you sink into this padded layer.

Generally speaking, if you buy "a bed" from a furniture store, you're getting a headboard, legs and support for a box spring and mattress, and sometimes a footboard. You then buy a box spring and mattress to put on the bed frame. If you buy a box spring and mattress from a mattress store, as I described above, they usually give you a basic set of legs, so if you arrive without furniture, head over to a mattress store, which usually do same-day delivery, and get your mattress and box spring, then worry about a bed frame later, once you're settled. :)

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Thank you this is really helpful.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Remember US bed sizes are different to the UK :
Twin: 38” x 75”
Full: 53” x 75”
Queen: 60” x 80”
King: 76” x 80”

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

We recently bought a new sofa from Raymour & Flanigan and mattress and boxspring from Macy's Furniture Gallery. Bed (frame / headboard) came from Bob's Furniture. Would recommend all. Also Ashley Furniture is worth a look and for mattresses there are lots of branches of Sleepys all over. Also more design led places like West Elm and Crate & Barrel or if you're feeling really $$$ Restoration Hardware! You'll want somewhere like Macy's or Bed, Bath & Beyond for bedding / sheets etc. Hope that helps.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Most furniture I would also recommend IKEA. However, mattresses perhaps not. Look at https://www.tuftandneedle.com/mattress for those.

Overstock.com is a good place to look for accessories.

BedBathand Beyond is always worth a look for household stuff.

Costco for good quality sheets to fit your new size beds.

Don't forget Amazon.com with prime membership you'll get your shipping included. I'm about to buy a pool pump from there, it's just about the cheapest for the one I want and will be shipped quickly.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I found the local Vi-Spring dealer in MA then visited there. I wouldn't go to one of the major chains, but instead deal with a local run firm. You'll find far better quality (though prices may be higher, but hey you're in NJ!).

Avoid IKEA like the plague; they're cheap crap that won't last a year.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Good grief, what on earth does your family do to them?

I have a couple of beds, desks, chests of drawers and shelving units that are about 18 years old (22 yrs for the shelving ), that have been moved internationally 2 times and are still absolutely fine.

I bought a corner sofa unit when we moved here based on some comparisons with ?west elm or pottery barn equivalents and it looks great.

The only thing I would say is that some of the furniture is a bit small scale to fit into a large american home.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

For a main bed? They're terrible quality. I work on the assumption you spend 1/3 of your life in bed, so you might as well make it comfy!!

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

frames are ok but I don't like their mattresses. I only bought Ikea mattresses for the kids when they were little and have thrown them away now.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Exactly! So we agree!

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I agree, but there has to be a limit, financially, for most people, at least.

We bought a Stearns & Foster in 2002, which was, and remains, very comfortable despite "conventional wisdom" saying it is past due for replacement. We paid about $2,200 for it, IIRC.

We bought another mattress from a company that claims to make mattresses of quality "comparable to the national brands". They don't. :(

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Ikea do very good mattresses, i have a vi-spring myself and my daughters have high end ikea, still quite expensive, but 4k for a vi-spring and about 800 for the mattress and pad [both sprung, never saw a sprung pad before] from ikea and they are equally comfortable. However buy cheap ikea, get cheap ikea...

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Ikea has distinct price bands, the cheap stuff is definitely cheap and may only last a year but their more expensive stuff is often solid wood and good quality.

We have a Tempurpedic which we love but is getting old. When we got a new bed for our guest room we just got a middle of the range Ikea foam mattress. Everyone who sleeps on it raves about how comfy it is. Half tempted to swap them.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

The pure memory foam products seem to have a lifespan issue, i wouldnt have one because their life is apparently reduced in high temperatures, there are sime sad stories. Pure latex and natural material layers with pocket springs plus a topper which can have memory foam but is easily chucked seems a solution.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Most places say you should replace your mattress much more frequently than people actually do. At least every ten years, some places say even less.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I suspect that like the lube shops that still push changing oil every 3,000 miles, the idea of changing your mattress every 8-10 years is based more on marketing than sound logic. .... It might be different in a house without air conditioning in a warm and humid area.

Ours is wrapped in a moisture and dust resistant cover, so we don't believe that the argument about mattresses gaining weight from dead skin flakes and bug crap is anywhere near as true for our mattress as they would have us believe.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Latex is far superior to memory foam (which is a cheap alternative to latex).

FWIW I've had a Vi-Spring bed for 15+ years now which is still good as new.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

In our (limited) experience, mattresses rank third behind platinum and gold in terms of value.

We bought a King sized one a year ago for about $1000, pillow top one. The worst $1000 I've spent since I've been here.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Pier 1 Imports is nice :)

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Restoration Hardware is nicer! :eek:

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Blasphemy!

Maybe you just don't have enough X chromosomes to understand? :p

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

We went down the La-Z-Boy root for our sofa and armchair and Beautyrest for our Mattress.
I was debating whether we should have shipped a brand new Vi-spring that I was going to buy prior to moving but decided against it in the end.
We have a pillow top and Pulaski is right it does get hot especially when you put a protector on top for warranty purposes!

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Huh? :confused:

Mrs used to like Pier 1 Imports, now she says it is "studenty". Given an unlimited budget she would do most of her shopping for housewares, and a good bit of her furniture shopping at Restoration Hardware. :nod: Unfortunately our budget is less than "unlimited". :(

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I like crate and barrel.

It's kinda Ikea for grown-ups. Well, grown ups who don't have kids who drain the purse and still jump on the furniture. So, not this grown-up then..... sigh.

I did buy a few photo frames though, very simple and classic and I buy housewarming pressies there.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I practically live at Pier 1.

They used to have a UK presence (The Pier) but it went out of business a while back.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Well there you go then! :rolleyes:

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Thanks all.

So in terms of mattress, not pillow top? At moment we have a good airsprung with memory foam top. I really want to invest in another good one

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

It depends what you like and expect from a mattress. Personally I wouldn't, but then I don't have, and wouldn't buy, any sort of foam mattress either as I like to sleep on a firm mattress and not sink into it. Aside from the firmness I would consider anything that makes me warmer (pillow-top, or foam layer/construction) in bed to be a definite negative.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I would not recommend Bob's furniture as they are noted for the sale of furniture with bed bugs. Bed Bugs are in the headboards, unfortunately. Check out the BBB in your area to confirm this. Bedbugs are an epidemic here in the NY/NJ area, be sure to use full sealed casings for your top and bottom mattresses and your pillows.

Ashley is okay for furniture if you don't want to go the IKEA route. Also good is R&F which was suggested. Also noted for good furniture but can be pricey is Pier One Import. Since you are in New Jersey you have a large choice of furniture stores. I prefer Sleepy's for mattresses and bedsprings. Good quality and far cheaper than Macy's.

Much depends on what you want to spend. I find Bed, Bath and Beyond to be over priced for the merchandise they sell and most items can be purchased for outfitting a kitchen and bath in stores such as Kohl's. Great deals on pots and pans in places like Costco and/or Sam's Club (but you have to be a member). Also try Home Goods which is a great regional store which sells overstock merchandise. Great for bedding, decorative pillows, throw rugs, pictures, cookware, tableware, lamps and occasionally very nice furniture. Got my Queen Anne recliner for $199 and it is perfect.

I'm with Pulaski on pillow top mattresses. I like a firm mattress and if I wanted a more cushioned top on the mattress I would buy an appropriate mattress cover.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I guess they need to build in the margin for their endless 10-20% off coupons. Which reminds me I haven't seen any in the mail recently... Turns out they take expired ones too - I got finally clued into this!

More usefully the local BBBY has a World Market inside, which means I can get my licorice fix. :tounge_smile:

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

CORT clearance furniture Really good place that sells second hand rental furniture and its good quality... I bought our whole 3 bed apartment for $4500... Including decorative items!

They even set it all up for me, so I literally walked in to a furnished house!

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I like West Elm and Crate & Barrel (though they've become a bit of a "posh" IKEA lately). West Elm you can normally find a 15% coupon by signing up to their mailing list. Costco is good for furniture but its usually just massive sizes.

What we found in NY when moving is that movers really don't want to be responsible for IKEA furniture and will have you sign a waiver.

There's also a Crate & Barrel outlet in Cranbury, NJ which is good if you can transport.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Nebraska Furniture Mart. The US version of Ikea without the square edges. You won't have a shop locally but they deliver.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

We got our mattress from Jordans Furniture. We had fun trying on the different mattresses and ended up with a hybrid mattress (spring and memory foam).

Come to think of it, most of our furniture were also from them. Quality wise, they're acceptable and looks durable. What I also liked was their warranty. I accidentally spilled acetone on the dining table and the acid ate through the top lacquer. They sent a guy to respray the entire top layer.

Not sure if they deliver to NJ, though I think they deliver to Rhode Island and New Hampshire.

Crate and Barrel is overpriced, in my opinion.

I don't think IKEA is that bad. We bought two computer tables in IKEA in Australia and they lasted us for years without any problems.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

I recommend Ashley Furniture too.

No matter where on the date of delivery make sure you have nothing else planned that day. I've never had an on time furniture delivery.

Microfiber seems to be the thing with cheap comforters right now so if you have pets make sure what you are buying is not microfiber.

Buy rectangular sleeping bags or wool blend army blankets to keep in the trunk as it gets cold in NJ in the winter.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

Sam's Club has a good reputation for prices on mattresses too.

Re: Furniture / Bed shopping
 

:huh: Would you care to explain?