Shopping resale and thrift stores more popular than ever
By Susan Condon Love
LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- Mary Grauel of Lakewood has long believed that buying new -- whether it's a car or a couch -- is foolish. Why buy something right off the showroom floor when you can, with a little research and gut instinct, get a less expensive product of equal or even more value by shopping antiques stores, classified ads, resale shops, garage sales and flea markets?
A case in point. Last year, before her first grandchild was born, Grauel -- a mother of six -- managed to snag a nearly new bouncy seat and a pristine portable crib for $12 at a garage sale.
"They were in perfect shape," said Grauel, who is mindful of cleanliness and safety when it comes to such purchases.
Something has happened in the last couple of years to Americans' shopping psyche. No longer is it considered cheap nor even a little icky to buy furniture or home accessories secondhand. Once only the domain of treasure-hunting antiques shoppers, the resale industry has opened its doors wider.
The resale industry has grown by about 7 percent in the last two years. There are now about 30,000 resale, consignment and thrift stores operating in the United States, according to the National Association of Resale Professionals, or NART. Resale is a multibillion-dollar-per-year industry. Don't believe it? Well, according to NART, Goodwill Industries alone generated $2.8 billion in retail sales from its 2,324 nonprofit thrift stores in 2009.
"Furniture and home decor is definitely a strong merchandise category in the resale industry," said Adele Meyer, NART executive director. "We get more and more new members who have or are opening furniture/decor stores all the time, and it's not unusual for some of our members who own clothing stores to open an additional location for furniture and decor." She added, "It's a trend I expect to continue and show growth."
If you are planning (or yearning!) to redo your home decor in the upcoming months, there are a few hurdles you should expect . . . and we aren't talking about what style of couch to buy.
It's likely that retail goods will rise in cost by 10 percent to 15 percent in early summer, according to a survey conducted by FurnitureToday.com . This rise in cost is going to particularly affect apparel and home furnishings. The website says the increase is related to the rising costs of cotton and shipping
These statistics were released, however, as economists say jobs are becoming more plentiful and unemployment is decreasing. That leaves consumers to wonder whether the shopping cart is half full or half empty.
Reupholstering A Chair - News
Reupholstering older furniture could be a way to "recycle and reuse," but only if the couch or chair is beloved (why save something you hate?) and if you consider that sometimes the cost of the materials and labor saves you money -- and sometimes it
"Reupholstering can be an expensive mistake, but when it comes to refinishing, in general it can always be stripped back," Henderson said. "I've totally done that. I had one chair where we tried it three different times before we got something we liked
Though it looks impressive and sounds intimidating, reupholstering a side chair is one of the easiest projects you can do. Really. All you really have to do is re-wrap the cushion with foam and then smooth over with the fabric of your choice,
A set of decorative pillows is a quick and easy way to give old furniture new life, without having to spend a lot of time and money on replacing or reupholstering. Find a decorative throw that you can place over an old sofa or chair to hide any stains,
You can also reupholster a chair cushion using ties to create a patchwork pattern for a really upscale look. A coffee sleeve is by far the easiest tie project. Cut the tie in half, wrap the bottom portion with pointed edge around a coffee mug and
5 Reupholstered IKEA Pieces | Apartment Therapy Chicago
IKEA can be a great place to pick up something basic on the cheap and then semi-customize it to turn it into something special. You don't have much money on the line so there aren't high stakes if the customization doesn't turn out perfectly. And some of their pieces have good "bones" that are just waiting for some individuality. Check out these examples:
The first link goes to the last picture, not the Danny Seo project...
@ngnerd: I have that sofa model in the first picture. The build quality is fine, but the fabric is awful (wears quickly, holds lint and cat hair). But I bought it because it's a sofabed, and I needed one for guests - and that model is less than half the price of any other sofabed I've seen. So when I get my act together I absolutely will find it worthwhile to recover.
Sadly the antique sofabed market is limited. :)
Two days ago, I finished a new cover for my sister's "Harry" chairs from Ikea. I really love how it turned out; her chairs were blah with spots, now they are crazy (think very bright red, pink, and greens). I didn't spent more than 10 euros on fabric for each chair, and it'll probably last no more than 8 years, but I'm so happy to see how much she loves it !
So, I'm totally onboard, if you can't get any vintage to fit your needs.
Had a good morning reupholstering a chair, it's now so plump & lovely keeping having to look at it. Legs aching from bending so much tho!
Reupholstering a chair tomorrow? Maybe.
My plan of sending off for free fabric samples and reupholstering a chair has backfired. SAE included in pack for return of said samples
refinishing and reupholstering a chair. by myself. ive never done this. lord help me.
Picked up a chair worthy of reupholstering. Pictures to come later :)Reupholstering A Chair - Bookshelf
Mechanix illustrated
There's a way to keep ourselves comfy and the wife happy: Reupholster the chair. Reupholstering is more than putting a new cover over the torn one. ...The repair and reupholstering of old furniture
Upholstering Small Chair Seats Small chair seats are relatively easy to upholster. There are no springs and the padding is supported on jute webbing. ...United States Congressional serial set
Reupholstering in leather 5 chair seats Reupholstering in Ieather9 chair backs Cleaningatui varnishing 1 table Cleaning and varnishing 1 sofa Cleaniugaud ...Home repairs, 52 easy weekend projects
Reupholster a Chair Maybe you have a favorite chair that's quite comfortable but doesn't look too good anymore. You're not sure you want to pay to have it ...Reupholstering at home, a do-it-yourself manual for turning old furniture into new showpieces
Casual Report Directory
How to Reupholster a Dining Chair Seat - wikiHow
wikiHow article about How to Reupholster a Dining Chair Seat. ... A high-impact way to improve or change the look of any chair with a removable seat is to recover the seat ...
Crafty Chic: Reupholster a Wingback Chair
Reupholstering furniture can bring new life to old chairs, couches and ottomans. ... As a professional in the business once said, "reupholstering is not about ...
Reupholster Chairs | eHow.com
Find info and videos including: How to Reupholster a Club Chair, How to Reupholster a Parson's Chair, How to Reupholster Chairs From the '40s and much more. ...
Reupholstering Chairs - Do It Yourself Guide
Reupholstering chairs is a simple way to give a new look to your furniture, test your creativity and also save a lot of money. ...
How To Upholster A Chair, How To Reupholster A Couch, Sofa Or ...
Reupholster a couch, sofa or chair, how to upholster furniture