So, yesterday after work I decided to do a little thrifting to raise my spirits. I went to one store, had no real luck and then, on my way home I decided to go to another store, a little out of the way and lo and behold, look what I found
Excuse the blurry instragram but desperate times...yada yada yada.
But it's totally a buffet you guys!
A pretty nice looking one, too.
But was it $121.46 nice? I couldn't decide so I had Conan join me and I asked my fellow 'gramers and twitterers. We deliberated for a long time
We ended up leaving empty handed which I'm kind of bummed about but I just did not feel okay about spending that much money. I am cheap to my core and something about seeing the two guys writing the prices on stuff in the back...well, let's just say they ain't exactly Leigh and Leslie Keno,
it made me feel even more unsure of the price.
But what do you guys think?
Would it look okay in our all but bare dining room? Is it too fancy? Would it look weird with our dining table (it is kind of country with the turned legs and all) or could we make it work? Maybe make the dining table more modern as a result? I really liked that eggplant color suggestion from New Life Old House.
Reassure me, dear readers.
I made the right choice.
Right?
It's a nice buffet and I consider furniture under $200 pretty cheap (but then again, "thrifting" in NYC is not the same as most other places). But you could probably find something else even better for a lower price, right? If it wasn't love, it wasn't meant to be.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's not THAT bad but that all depends on where you're thrifting. And you're totally right. I kept saying, "If you don't love it, and the price, let it go." This all sounds so dramatic for a piece of furniture but it's hard!
DeleteI like it, and I think it would look nice in your dining room, but I agree on the price. $120 at a thrift store for that is too much. I paid $60 for a similar piece at my local Goodwill and even that stung a bit.
ReplyDeleteI think it would definitely help me to move in a direction in the dining room decorating wise but yeah, it's just too much. This particular thrift store is notorious in town for marking stuff WAY up. And just for a little "what the what?" comparison, they had a wicker end table next to it that they wanted $80 dollars for so...
DeleteOh, don't even get me started...there's a thrift store near me that had a $600 hutch for sale. You read that right: six-HUNDRED dollars. I mean, it was solid wood and a nice piece of furniture, but nobody in their right mind is going to pay that around here.
DeletePersonally, I think that second-hand buffets come around often enough that you should wait it out for something you can describe more enthusiastically than "pretty nice looking", especially if this one costs more than you'd normally spend.
ReplyDeleteThat's so funny! I didn't even notice I'd described it that way. Guess it was my real feelings slipping out. Now, if they mark it down to 50 bucks tomorrow it will be the most beautiful piece of furniture I've ever seen : )
DeleteYeah, it looks nice and all but, really? that's a lot of money for a thrift store. Are you sure it wasn't "Ye Olde Thrifte Store"?
ReplyDeleteLol! I know right? The sad part is this was a Disabled American Veterans thrift store and as I mentioned earlier, they are notorious for marking stuff way up. There was an owl cookie jar there once that was marked $150!!!
DeleteHMMM...Pricey or not
ReplyDelete(Which I don't think it is--$120 for a sideboard! Unless it's trashed. But then again I don't look at much furniture in thrift sores & am always amazed at what you pay for stuff; maybe it's your area ;-)
I don't think it "goes" w/your house, at least not the existing dining room. too 1920/30s Deco. Sorry
Yeah, we normally have unusually good deals at thrift stores around these parts but this one store is the exception. I do agree with you though, about it being kind of art deco for our house so no biggie. Thanks for the reassurance, though!
DeleteNope, good call. I don't think I'd like it even if it was $20. Though it may be the coloring from the photo.
ReplyDeleteDid you see IKEA's coming to KC??? I am FREAKING OUT!!!
Can I tell you a secret? The coloring in the photo actually made it look BETTER. Guess I dodged a bullet there. And yes, I was awoken the other day to a facebook feed full of people saying "Ikea's coming! Ikea's coming!" Lord help me, I have been waiting for a giant, white Ribba frame for years! Now I only have to wait for a year and change and it will finally be mine!!!! Also, relating to the sideboard/buffet, I actually thought about doing a "fauxdenza" a la door16 and the brick house and now maybe I will.
DeleteI haVe just finished reading your blog all the way from the beginning. Wow. Love it. We too tiled our own bathroom and have removed asbestos tile from the kitchen floor. I think you can do better than that particular sideboard. And I vote for painting the table black, using upholstered chairs for the table ends, and definitely a rug. We raised two children ( with many friends) and two dogs with an oriental rug we got out of the Boeing employees newsletter classifieds for $50, a 10x12. It not only held up well, our younger daughter has it in her family room now. With cool modern chairs & painted table, th rug looks quite fresh. I am loving your blog!
ReplyDeleteYou could stain the wood table instead of painting it; much easier to go back or experiment later. Ebonizing, etc. is nice. Also, they have crazy stain colors these days (egg plant and all). Just a thought. I think it's nice to still see the grain enough to know it's wood under there (but I actually like the brown mixed wood tones--in minority as all would like you to paint it seems). Beautiful work, as usual! If I loved the buffet, I would have paid >$100. Here in Portland you can't get anything (even junk furniture)for under $100. :(
ReplyDeleteYeah, the buffet wound up being a nay; although, I think they might still have it. We found another on craigslist for $100, but it went all the way to the floor so it would have blocked our return air vent, so it was sort of a no-go also.
DeleteI think Katherine had settled on stain for the table, but it's been too cold to work outside, and stain's too stinky to use inside when we can't open the windows and doors up for ventilation, so not much has been done to it. We did cover it with butcher's paper for a stinky cheese and bread party a month or so ago, which allowed us to write on it and part of me said, "maybe black chalkboard paint could be fun," but I don't know that we want to be THOSE people.