The Guide to Buying Living Room Furniture

A GUIDE TO CONVERTING PROSPECTS INOT CUSTOMERS

You’ve decided you are ready to purchase some new furniture, great! Here is a guide to help the buying process!

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction

2. Sofa Basics

3. Fibers & Materials

4. Doing your homework

5. Conclusion

Chapter 1: Introduction

Have you ever found that “almost perfect” piece of furniture? I say “almost perfect” because it’s not quite right, and while you like it well enough, you end up settling for something that isn’t what you really wanted. Well, we have a saying here at The Old Brick, “Customize Never Compromise” and it is something we strongly believe in. We want you to get the furniture you really want at prices that make your checkbook happy. This Customize option pertains to both upholstery and wood products! But before you go shopping, there are some things you should know. We have listed information on custom ordering upholstered items as well as dining and bedroom furniture. Please take a look and you will have more information before you make your purchase.

Chapter 2: Customizing Upholstery

Most stores can offer a few color choices but many want to only sell you the color you see. We offer the ability to not only change the color, but change the type of material at prices starting at $499. The type of material can vary. Take a look at the fabric make up to help determine durability. Polyester is a popular fabric today because of its strength and ability to maintain its color. Make sure to feel the weight of the fabric. Pull it, stretch it, try to simulate your pets’ nails scratching against it. Heavier fabrics are generally better. Cotton’s stretch and look relaxed but are not color fast (think of blue jeans). Check the backing of the fabric and see if there is additional support for the fabric.

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If you are considering leather, check to see if the dye runs thru the entire piece. Better leather will be dyed all the way thru. Also rub your nail against it to see if it is protected or a natural finish. The protected finishes tend to be more forgiving with families and everyday use. We offer both fabric and leather options with delivery in as little as 30 days. These companies will also offer not only color options, but also different body fabrics as well as contrasting toss pillow fabrics. Be aware though that items produced overseas can take much longer, sometime up to 5 months! In addition, many factories and shipping lines celebrate the Chinese New Year which will add delays during Late January-Early March. Most importantly, plan ahead with imported items. It may seem odd to think about Fall Holidays in July, but you will be happy you did!

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-Is there an additional charge for custom orders? -Is a deposit required?-Are there fabrics that are restricted, unable to be applied, or wouldn’t look appropriate? (stripes or plaids on a casual loose pillow style will never line up properly)-What is the order time frame?-What is the return policy if I don’t like it? (Make sure you understand that you are creating this look and that it is generally not able to be returned or canceled once the production has begun)-Is there another item displayed with that fabric, or similar?-Does the manufacturer offer an on-line “draping” program? (This allows you to get an idea of the finished look. Remember that this is a 2 dimensional picture and the color is only as good as your computer. It is seldom what the finished piece looks like)

We can answer these questions and more…did you know that we carry a custom option from Craftmaster that allows you to select from 4 different arm styles, 2 different back options, loose pillow or attached pillow, and even 3 different stitch styles? All in addition to hundreds of fabric choices that can be delivered to you in a little over 30 days!! Come see the F9 Series for yourself.

Chapter 3: Customizing Bedroom Furniture

While much of what you will see today is mass produced and offers little customization, we have selected 2 American companies from Ohio to help with our Customize never Compromise motto. When considering a custom bedroom, you will most likely be looking at solid woods. American companies will be using hardwoods such as Oak, Maple, Cherry, or Hickory. Hardwoods are trees that usually produce a fruit or a nut and lose their broad leaves every fall. Thanks to decades of excellent management by the US Forestry Department, and federal and state regulations that are among the strictest in the world, the amount of timberland in America has more than tripled since 1953. In fact, US hardwood forests are now growing twice as fast as they are being cut. It has never been easier to buy solid wood and buy American!

The most common hardwoods are:

-Maple: abundant in the Northeastern United States. There are many different varieties of maple used with the most common hard maple. It is also known as hard rock maple or sugar maple (sugar maple is the official state tree of New York.) Maple is known for its hard, consistent, make up. It is used in baseball bats and bowling alley floors.

-Oak: represents more than 50% of all hardwood trees in North America. It is commonly used in home construction because of its hard, strong grain at a modest price. It is known for its open, porous grain which creates distinctive dark veins when stained.

-Cherry: most desired wood in furniture. It is known for its beautiful variations in grain pattern. It has mineral streaks and deposits as well as knots and pits marks. These help make each piece unique and full of character. Boards with these variations are often called rustic cherry or character cherry.

-Quarter Sawn Oak: refers to a specific way of sawing oak logs length wise. The logs are then rotated and cut into quarters which are sliced perpendicular to the growth rings. This results in sturdy planks of wood with tight, parallel grain lines running length wise and showing character ray flakes. There is a higher cost due to the increased time and waste to create. Its ray flakes give it a unique look and is often associated with the Arts & Craft movement.

-Hickory: very hard, stiff, and dense. There are woods stronger and woods that are harder but the combination of strength, toughness, hardness, and stiffness found in Hickory is not found in any other commercial hardwood. It is often used in tool handles, bows, drumsticks, wheel spokes, floors, and was even used in golf club shafts at one point (sometimes they are still called hickory sticks). It has a very distinctive grain and can have wide color variations when stained in a natural or light color.

In addition to the wood choices, you are also able to select from a variety of hardware choices at no additional charge. Both companies offer different size pieces so that you are able to select pieces that will fit your particular space best. In addition, you can make slight changes to the pieces including lowering the headboard height, adding cedar drawer bottoms, and even eliminating a top drawer to add a finished compartment or DVD station.

The factories that we partner with, Daniels and Premier, use all of these hardwoods. The price for maple, oak, and character cherry are exactly the same! The quarter sawn oak and hickory are available at a slight upcharge. These factories will offer a painted finish to the maple as well if you are so inclined. You also have the opportunity to select from a range of stain colors within each wood type.

A new bedroom can be a wonderful investment. It is a room that seems to get minimal consideration as compared to the family or living room, but yet should be of more importance. It is often a sanctuary and a retreat from the day to day struggles. It deserves to have the same non compromised options that other rooms have.

Chapter 4: Customize Dining Room Furniture

Much like the custom bedroom selections, the dining sets have many of the same choices. The selection of hardwoods is the same, as well as the ability to select the finish color of the wood. We again offer 2 manufacturers in this category, Daniels and Trailway. Both are American made and Amish made in Ohio.

With Dining sets though, you will have to decide mainly on the table. Tables can be ordered with extensions, or leaves, which will make it longer as needed. The table is made of a solid boards banded together to create the overall length with the leafs being cut from the center. Therefore, it is important to consider the maximum length you would like to have when ordering your table. You cannot add after the fact, so please think about your needs long term.

Will your family grow? Will you change to a new home that may be larger? The Trailway Company offers a table that is 42” wide by 72” long without the leaves and then offers six 12” leaves to give an overall length of 144” !!! Not everyone needs, or can use, a table of that size but it is a very helpful option if one wants to sit a large family (and not use card tables!!). The Trailway Company also offers the ability to change the width and/or length, from the standard size, up to a total of 8 inches for a slight upcharge. The tables will also offer different leg styles as well as the angle or cut of the edge of the table top. That may not seem important, but a sharp corner of a table can pose a challenge to a toddler

There are also matching sideboards, buffets, and china tops that can be customized in wood type, wood stain, and the hardware on the doors and drawers. Custom dining companies can give you the ability to change the configuration of the compartments as well if needed.