Reimagine home furnishings
Has our desire for low-cost one of those life paradoxes that have come back to bite us? Watching several long-established, skill-based Ontario furniture companies, who skilfully produced quality furniture built to serve with longevity, finally give way recently to the mass influx of offshore products that are produced without the same regard for workplace environ- mental compliance and end-user value in quality, is disheartening on many fronts, but particularly be- cause I believe we’ve come to accept a false economy — particularly when it comes to bigger ticket home furnishing items.
Obsession with the latest trends,looks and price has superseded product knowledge and our ability to discern value, which is having far more wide-reaching consequences than might be realized, especially for families whose purchasing pri- orities when it comes to home fur- nishings are challenged because their purse strings don’t always stretch far enough.
Sacrificing quality, however, isn’t always less costly in the end. Shorter life spans for these products means more frequent replacement and more waste — more impact on already overburdened landfills. Typically disposing of furniture, particularly upholstered items, is onerous. While resale and char- ity donations may work for furniture in relatively good condition, many outlets aren’t interested in items that need more than a little TLC. So, disposal becomes a cost issue not only for home- owners, but to the environment. All too often I see large uphol- stered pieces left at the end of driveways hoping they will be someone else’s problem, but exposed to the elements they soon become less desirable for reuse, and left in open fields in rural areas they become an eye sore. To pay to have these large items removed — cartage costs and dump fees — seems counterpro- ductive, especially when shortened lifespans mean you’ll be repeating the process more often.
Perhaps we should rethink our purchasing power in new ways, and when we do, we may just discover great options hiding in plain sight. But it may take looking at things through a different lens, one that includes the measurement of real value in performance over time.
Here are some suggestions for renewing and reusing:
1. Start with what you have — amazing results can come from re- imagining, refinishing, reupholster- ing, and repurposing existing pieces. It just takes a little imagination and materials know-how. Cabinetry, solid furniture pieces and upholstery can be given new life to be proud of.
2. Once you have explored the home front, I recommend you consider consignment (resale) store options. Today, with so many people trading down in value, there’s an abundance of very high quality furniture for re- sale in the marketplace at exception- ally great pricing. While trendy styles will come and go, classic good qual- ity pieces will continue to survive. Cosmetic changes are easy to achieve, but quality is built-in. Today awesome dining room furniture, cabinets and occasional tables and chairs offer amazing value.
3. Rather than comparing only on lowest price, make value with per- formance over time a key consider- ation. For instance, you may have a sofa worth reupholstering but hesitate because you can “buy cheaper.” But it’s not“apples to apples.” Skilled reupholstery with good quality fabric, new cushion fill and new finishing turns your piece into a custom piece and it won’t be going to the dump.
Sustainability in design and materials is the“mantra”of the design industry today. Reduce, recycle and reuse is a part of our universal pledge yet despite our commitment to this ideal, when it comes to home furnishings, our marketplace is disproportion- ately focused on selling more, not selling for the long run. I think we can do better.
