The furniture in your home can fulfill many functions, providing comfortable places to work and relax while creating a visual feel for your interior space. Ideally, the furniture you select should reflect both your needs and your sense of style. When you buy furniture, it is an investment of time and money that you should handle very carefully. Fortunately, you can shop furniture online and get the information you need before you actually visit a furniture retailer.
Planning Your Purchase
Before you take the plunge, there are a few things you should sort out even before you search for home furniture online. Knowing what you want and need before you begin shopping will help ensure that you will be happy with your purchase. Before you visit a furniture retail store or website you should:
Figure out what you need.
Are you furnishing an entire room, or just looking for a new comfy recliner chair for the living room? How long do you intend to keep your new furniture? If you’re shopping for a dining room set that will be used regularly for years, you need durable, quality furniture that will stand the test of time. If you’re shopping for a dorm room or first apartment, you may end up replacing or discarding your furniture sooner so you can sacrifice durability for cheaper price.
Anticipate how your new furniture will be used.
If you have children or pets, you should plan your furniture purchase accordingly. Select furniture made of materials and fabrics that will withstand greater wear and tear. If you plan to entertain guests frequently, your new living room set may need stain resistant fabrics and plenty of spaces to sit. Single people or elderly couples whose furniture is not subject to extreme use may select styles and materials based more on appearance.
Measure the space you have to accommodate your new furniture.
Carefully measure your room and, if possible, create a schematic that you can use to plan the layout. You should also measure doors and hallways to ensure that your furniture will be easily placed within your home. Keep these measurements handy so you can refer to them when shopping for furniture online or at a furniture store.
Set your budget.
Your budget should reflect your needs, available space and expected usage. If you’re shopping for a queen sleigh bed for your home, quality and durability are very important and you will need to spend more. When buying furniture for short-term use, you may decide that cheaper is better. If you have your heart set on a certain style, material or fabric, your budget should realistically reflect this as well.
With these essentials defined clearly in your mind, you are better prepared to buy contemporary furniture online or in a furniture retail store.
Furniture Types
Case goods are furniture that is not upholstered, such as a china cabinet, dining room table or shelving. Upholstered furniture is furniture that is covered with cushions and fabric, such as a living room chair or ottoman. Case goods and upholstered furniture are constructed of either softwood or hardwood, and there are a variety of woods to choose from.
Woods
Hardwoods include walnut, pecan, birch, cherry, oak, mahogany, maple and teak. Softwood is more easily damaged and as such is usually less expensive than hardwood. Pine, redwood, and cedar fall into this category of woods that are easier to scratch and dent than hardwoods.
“Veneered” wood furniture uses thin layers of woods bonded on the top and bottom of ply construction. Using this technique, manufacturers can achieve attractive designs that use combinations of woods to create a unique appearance. Strong ply construction makes veneered wood furniture more resistant to warping.
Wood “bonding” is a technique that involves creating large pieces of wood using smaller pieces. The manufacturer may glue smaller wood blocks together to create a single piece that can be molded to the desired shape, or they may bond layers of particleboard or solid wood to create strong plywood panels.
Wood Engraving
Some manufacturers imprint surfaces with patterned wood grain to give the effect of natural wood. These engravings can help create a more attractive surface in areas where it is needed.
Finishes
Finishes can protect furniture surfaces, highlight wood grain, and even change the color of wood. Products like paint, lacquer, oil and wax can be used to create the desired effect and enhance the appearance of wood surfaces.
All Wood Furniture
Furniture can be called all-wood provided that it uses only wood materials in its construction, but be aware that “all-wood” furniture includes bonded, veneered and solid wood.
Furniture Construction
Furniture Frame
The materials and quality of the frame are a major factor in the cost of upholstered furniture. Because the frame is concealed by fabric and cushioning, two leather loveseats that look similar may differ greatly in price according to the materials used in construction. The frame also has an effect on the strength and durability of the furniture: frames made of kiln-dried hardwood resist warping. Steel, plastic or laminated boards are also used in frame construction. You should inquire as to the construction of the frame of any piece of furniture you intend to purchase so that you can determine if it meets your requirements.
Supports
Upholstered furniture may use springs, fabric webbing, wood slats or straps to provide firmness and support. Coil springs, double cone coil springs, and zigzag springs are connected with wire, clips or twine for stability. Sectional living room furniture is often made this way.
Cushions are made of material like urethane foam, down, cotton or polyester batting, and springs. The most widely used cushioning material in upholstered furniture is durable, lightweight urethane foam. High-density foams with a high percentage of urethane make the highest quality cushioning.
Fabrics
There are many different materials used to create the fabrics on furniture, each with their own properties and care requirements. Be sure to ask your salesperson what sort of fabric your furniture is made with and how it should be maintained.
Fortunately there are a variety of products that can be used to treat fabrics, protecting them from dirt, stains and spills. You should select your fabric according to your budget and the expected uses of a particular piece of furniture. The most expensive fabrics are not necessarily the most durable or the highest quality, so ask questions and choose the fabric that makes the most sense for you.
Inspecting Upholstered Furniture
Apply pressure with your hands to the arms of chairs and sofas. If you can feel the frame within, the cushioning may not hold up to repeated and extended wear. Look carefully at the seams and patterns in fabrics to ensure that seams are strongly stitched and the fabric patterns match up correctly.
Inspecting Case Goods
Inspect the points where wood is joined; avoid glued or nailed joints. Look for strong joints like dowel, tenon, dovetail or mortise. Finish is an important quality indicator in case goods: the better quality pieces are finished on all sides, not just the front and top. Watch out for furniture with cracks or bubbles in the finish.
Tables and chairs should not wobble when sat or leaned on, and drawers and doors should fit snugly and open and close easily. Glass tops on tables should lie flat and firm within grooves or ledges, and they should be thick enough to prevent easy cracking.
Delivery
Remember that delivery of your furniture could take anywhere from four to sixteen weeks if your showroom does not have your furniture on-hand. If you need to get delivery by a certain date or for a special occasion, purchase furniture several months in advance.
Huffman Koos has a huge selection of the latest designs of Quality Furniture at surprisingly affordable prices for every room of your home including living room sets, both in leather and fabric, bedroom furniture, contemporary dining room sets, bedroom furniture for kids, dinette furniture, mattresses and a whole lot more! Whether your taste is Contemporary or Traditional, Huffman Koos Furniture Gallery is the place that all shoppers in N.Y. and N.J. are raving about. Come see why we are #1.
"Customer service was quick to respond to my needs and I would have no hesitation in shopping with Huffman Koos in the future." - Eileen, Middletown NY
"The delivery guys were on time, considerate and quick. It's really appreciated when someone does a job (particularly a job that isn't exactly glamorous) well." - Joe in NY, NY
"My furniture shipment was delayed in transit, but when I called customer service they were able to find me a dresser and it was delivered the following Saturday. They were wonderful and rectified the problem to my satisfaction." - Kathy, Bronx NY
The furniture in your home can fulfill many functions, providing comfortable places to work and relax while creating a visual feel for your interior space. Ideally, the furniture you select should reflect both your needs and your sense of style. When you 
