Tips for the First-Time Furniture Buyer

Furniture is usually a big investment and one that you want to last for years. This is why it's good to take your time to shop and think about more than just the overall appearance of furniture pieces you see in a magazine or in a store. You want the pieces to fit your home and to be comfortable, especially when you start grouping furniture and putting it together in a room. Note a few important tips for first-time furniture buyers that you'll want to consider when shopping.

Size of sofa

You may want a large sofa for your family and entertaining, but remember that you need space in your living room for foot traffic, your entertainment center, tables, and the like. It's good to actually measure your living room area against measurements you see of pieces online. This can give you an idea of the right size of sofa for the space, including its overall width and depth. You can then narrow down your choices to those sizes of pieces. As for quality, look for legs that screw into the sofa and not those that are simply glued on, as the glue will eventually break down and the legs may very well fall off in time. A solid wood frame will also usually be stronger than plastic or pieces that simply assemble together, with the back sliding into the seat and arms sliding into the back.

Coffee table

Choose a coffee table that's a bit more than half the width of your sofa so it will be in easy reach of everyone sitting there. You also want it to be just slightly shorter in height than the sofa, so it doesn't get in the way of knees when someone sits down. As with the sofa, measure the area of your living room so you know how deep of a coffee table you need; for a shorter living space, you may need a plank-style coffee table that isn't very deep and which won't get in the way of foot traffic.

Bedroom set

If you have more than one person in a bed, it's good to opt for the largest mattress you can afford and which can comfortably fit your bedroom; this will give you both space when sleeping. If you cannot afford a mattress and box spring set, choose a good mattress as you need this for quality sleep; you can then often find a very affordable platform bed that is cheaper than a box spring set. This can also allow you storage space under the bed, something that's important for smaller bedrooms.

Check out your options online at a site like http://www.furniturenmore.com.au.