When it comes to buying furniture for your home, you need quality items so that you don’t have to worry about replacing your furniture for at least a decade. But with so many furniture stores, interior decorator showrooms, and online options out there, finding the right place to shop has become as hard as finding the piece that you have been dreaming of.
At the Michael Anthony Furniture Gallery, we set the standard for exceptional customer service. Our knowledgeable design staff are well-versed in their field, and they are ready to assist you with all of your home furnishing needs. And since we carry such a huge collection of furniture, we have come to know which brands produce pieces that are of a good quality. We only carry quality products in our store so that our customers get access to the best furniture on the market at a fair price.
We know that you can’t always make it to our store to ask us questions. But you still deserve answers. We get asked what makes furniture good quality a lot, so today, we are breaking down what makes furniture good quality so you can shop with confidence.
Here is a quick guide that will help you access a good quality of furniture while you are shopping.
We have split the rest of this guide into sections to help you find the type of furniture you are looking for easily…
Wood is used in many ways in furniture design. It can be used for frames, and decoration or it can be used to create the entire piece. To make sure the furniture you are looking at is of a good quality, you need to know about the quality of the wood it is made from.
The type of wood a piece is made out of determines its quality. A piece may be made of solid wood, hardwood, plywood, or veneer. We have found that the best quality pieces are made using solid hardwood as the wood is a single piece less likely to be compromised internally. Furniture made using plywood is not recommended as plywood is made of layers of cut wood, meaning it is of a slightly lower density than solid wood and therefore more prone to breakage.
The best way to assess the quality of wood when you are trying to see if a piece is of good quality is to look at the exposed surface of the piece you are considering. If you want to buy furniture made of plywood, make sure it has at least 11 layers so that it is durable enough to last for at least 5 years.
If neither plywood nor hardwood sounds like a good fit for what you are looking for, opt for a piece that is made using veneer as it does not wear easily. Structurally veneer can be thick or thin. While you may think that thick veneers are superior since the word ‘thick’ implies that it will be strong, thick veneers have a higher risk of peeling or separating from the frame. So we recommend that you choose a piece with a thin veneer.
The species of wood a piece is made from also impacts the quality of a piece. When you are shopping, you will likely come across terms like hardwood or softwood. Hardwood comes from trees like Oak, Teak, Maple, Sandalwood, Mahogany, and Walnut, and it is generally more durable. Pine is a prime example of softwood as it cannot last for as long as a hardwood piece can. We suggest that you talk to a salesperson when you are shopping and ask for the type of wood used in the piece you are considering. A good quality piece will rarely be made using a softwood.
While many overlook the joints on a piece, we think that a quality piece is defined by its construction. We do not recommend that you purchase anything held together using staples or nails, as this is a sign of shoddy construction. While glue is a better option, avoid pieces that have been glued so poorly that you can see the glue on the piece.
Opt for a piece joined using dowels as these are as good, if not better, than screws. Dowels are wooden pegs that are slotted into two opposing holes. If you have the ability, find out what type of joints have been used on a piece. The best joints are dovetail joints, as the interlocking square ‘teeth’ secure the piece well. Mortise-and-tendon joints are also a good option. If you are shopping online and you cannot find this info out. Look for pictures of the bottom of the piece. Do not buy a piece that has a reinforcing block attached at an angle in each corner, as this is usually there to hide any imperfections.
A true sign of quality is the interior of the product. Since people don’t often look at the inside of a piece until it causes a problem, manufacturers of low-quality products often cut corners to increase their profit margins.
A quality dresser will have thin sheets of wood between drawers. These ‘dust panels’ are there to improve structural strength and protect the drawer’s contents from dust. All drawers should run smoothly on glides and have stoppers so that you don’t accidentally pull them all the way out when you are in a rush to find something.
Luxury products often have bottoms that ‘float’ in a groove. This design feature allows for the expansion and contraction caused by changes in humidity to make sure the piece can last for years even if used daily in a climate that changes daily.
Fabric is the easiest way for most people to figure out if a piece of furniture is well made. Natural fabrics like linen, wool, and leather outperform synthetic ones like acrylic or nylon on almost every level, so luxury brands always use them in their products while low-quality brands opt for the cheaper option.
Linen and cotton blend fabric resist soiling well, and they do not fade even if they are exposed to direct sunlight for months. Wool is always a good choice as it is sturdy and washable. Although leather is higher maintenance, it is also a tough material, so you won’t need to worry about having to replace the piece in only a few years.
Another sign of quality to look out for is removable cushions. When you visit a showroom, try to remove a cushion. If you cannot remove it, this is a sign of a low-quality piece. If you can remove the cushion, check the cleaning instructions. If you cannot find it, then this is a sign that the brand does not value its customers, so choose another piece.
Always squeeze the arms and back of an upholstered piece to check its construction quality after verifying that it is made using strong hardwood. You should not be able to feel the frame of a quality piece through the padding. If you can feel it, check to see if you can feel it if you sit on the arm of the chair. If you can, avoid the piece as this is a sign that there is not enough cushioning in the piece.
If you did our hack and found that you can remove the cushions of the piece you are looking at, then take a closer look at them. Are they reversible? If they are, then you will get twice the wear out of them. To check, simply flip them around and make sure the pattern matches up both ways.
The legs of a well-made quality piece should be made of heavy wood. If you can lift the piece easily, then this is a sign that the piece is of a low quality. Always avoid pieces with metal legs as they may spoil your floor or carpet.
Our last piece of advice applies to the longevity of a piece. A quality piece should last for a lifetime. And the brand you are buying from should be confident that their product will live up to your expectations. The majority of the furniture in our store comes with a warranty of one to five years to make sure that you are satisfied with the piece you receive.
We hope this guide has helped you understand what makes furniture good quality, so you have an easier time furnishing your home. If you still have questions about what we have detailed above, then visit our store today. One of our talented team members will be more than happy to walk you through quality checks and help you design your space using the furniture we have in our Union store, as an example in their explanations.
If you’ve had all your questions answered and are looking for furniture for your Union home, look no further than Michael Anthony Furniture Gallery. We carry a huge collection of furniture for the home in a variety of styles from a number of brands. Come and visit our furniture store today to see what we have to offer in person.
Serving Westfield, Summit, Cranford, Scotch Plains, and Union