When purchasing furniture it’s important to consider the quality of the materials and fabrics in the piece. Here are some guidelines to inform your choice.
Shopping for living room furniture for your home should be fun, but often it can be a minefield. With so many styles to choose from, it can be difficult to settle on the right pieces to suit your aesthetic. But with big-ticket items like these, it’s important to look beyond the style and think about the structural design and material components of a piece to understand how long it will hold up over time. When you’re buying furniture online and don’t have the option to consult a store representative it’s critical that you know your stuff to avoid making a purchase you could regret down the track.
Living room furniture should be comfortable, durable and aesthetically pleasing. Here are some important things to remember when furniture shopping to help you get it right.
Types of wood used in furniture
Wooden furniture is a popular choice globally due to its natural appearance, durability and when sourced sustainably its eco-friendly properties. Understanding different wood types for furniture is important as it allows you to judge whether you are getting good value for money. But if you don’t know plywood from solid wood or softwood from hardwood, you’re not alone.
Furniture designer Elaine Ellis advises to look for solid wood pieces, which tend to be more durable but also more expensive, while plywood is layers of wood pressed together with glue. She advises checking the weight and stability to get an idea of the quality.
“If your chosen piece of furniture is lightweight this can be a tell-tale sign that it isn’t 100% real wood, or an indicator of poor quality wood,” Elaine told Better Homes & Gardens. “A high-quality piece of wood furniture will be heavier than a similar piece that is made from poor quality wood, such as pine.”
The best fabrics to suit your lounge
When selecting the most appropriate upholstery for a lounge in your home, it’s important to consider what options will work best for your family and your lifestyle. If you’ve got small kids running around with paints and markers, an easy-clean leather lounge might be your safest option. Leather is a tough material that can be wiped down, gently vacuumed and maintained with leather-specific conditioner.
There are plenty of natural and synthetic options available when it comes to furniture upholstery. Natural options include cotton, leather, linen, silk and wool, while synthetic items include acetate, polyester and acrylic.
Wool is a sturdy and durable fabric that is less likely to fade, wrinkle and soil. Linen is best suited for formal living rooms or adult areas because it soils and wrinkles easily, similarly, silk can be quite high maintenance as it must be professionally cleaned.
If you’re looking for quality reliable furniture for your living room, humm has a retail partner to suit every budget. Matt Blatt, IKEA and Temple & Webster are just some of the great options to choose from. By choosing humm, you can make those quality additions to your home now and pay it off later, with zero interest.
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