Custom or Off the Rack..........

[jeep]

I had custom furniture made for my house and my issue with that was when they came in wrong it was such along wait to have them corrected and then came back wrong a second time. What the problem was one of the back cushions had a huge flaw in it and they went ahead and made it and sent it with the flaw. Before the delivery guys left I contacted the company and they took back the flawed piece. I had to wait 6 more weeks for the piece to come back the wrong thickness so finally I had to send the matching piece with it and go without 2 custhions for another 6 weeks and the third thime it is ok but not perfect I got tired of waiting for a perfect cushion. The price was good but the service wasn't so good so having said this sometimes I think I would have been just as happy with throw away pieces that last only a few years becasue I feel I have to keep this one for years.

[Dustbunnydiva]

Although it's been mentioned earlier in this thread, I think a lot of people just don't know. It's all down to marketing and the box stores market above all else (most of us know they sure don't concentrate on quality or customer service). If you ask anyone anywhere to name the box stores (whether they shop there or not) they can rattle the list off. If you ask them who makes custom furniture or who carries good quality Canadian made, they'd be lucky to name 3. There is also the perception (from TV and magazines) that the type of places that do custom work are pretty much trade only type places and hiring a decorator/designer is just plain expensive (given the impression many are left with from watching TV shows) and over kill if you just want a new sofa. Sometimes the smaller store are just not visible enough (they don't market nearly as widely) and they are often either out of the way or in areas where it's hard to park, downtown, hassle, hassle, hassle. It's kind of hit and miss whether you even know they are there in most large cities. Once the awareness is that the cost of the decorator/designer is often offset by the discount they get on the furniture, people are often more than eager. Once they know there's a smaller, family run, been around forever, store carrying the Canadian makers they go there.

So someone between the design industry and custom/smaller furniture manufacturers/stores needs to get the word out in an effective way that reaches the average buyers who end up thinking they only have a limited choice.

[teucer]

Sorry you had such a disappointing experience Jeep! That's what's great about dealing with local manufacturers...they can fix mistakes right away. Usually within a weeks time. I think sometimes retailers forget how much of an investment it is buying furniture. It's not something that most do every couple of years so they want it done properly...the first time.
You're absolutely right DBD. The word does need to get out about the accessibility. I'd guess that if more people knew what was available to them they'd be all over it. I'd rather pay for something made for what I need and by a fellow Canadian company rahter than settling for something that sort of works that comes from overseas.

[NancyJ]

how does one go about finding a custom furniture maker in their area? I would be interested in investigating this route.

[lacombe]

We had some custom pieces done. I wanted a custom king size headboard done, I found one in Calgary, they really helped me out ,when it came to picking out the fabric, there was soo much to choose from. I had the height and the width that I wanted also the design that I wanted, they did a great job. He even delivered it to us,and we're an hour away from Calgary.
The other furniture was a kitchen set that I saw which is also made in Canada, I got to pick out the leg style that I wanted,the top of the table in a different style,also the color that I wanted and the material for the seats .I got a spare leaf for the table and 6 chairs.
The pictures that I'm putting in of the table and chairs, 2 pictures are from the store, and the 1 picture is the set without the leaf in, in our kitchen. You can tell the difference in the sets.
Also a picture of our headboard to.

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I'm going to post these pictures again. The other pictures when I clicked onto them didn't want to get a bigger size.

[sweetie]

I'm sorry too jeep, to hear of the trouble you had with your custom sofa. There's always one bad apple and they're so easy to find aren't they? It's a shame that one or two vendors can put a damper on an entire industry.
lacombe, great to hear and see that your experience was positive.

Nancy, generally speaking, a designer or decorator can help you source and choose your custom pieces. They will work closely with you and deal directly with the manufacturer, there is no 'middle man' to slow things down. The fee structure for this varies, but I can guarantee you that you can purchase custom furniture for the same or even less than at a big box store. Depending on where you are located, HOMEundone can help you with your research. You can reach us through the CONTACT icon at the top of the screen, email or private message. We'd be happy to help.

[sweetie]

House of Bryan..............

Has anyone watched this show on HGTV? I caught a short glimpse today since they’re hosting some sort of marathon with the show.
I’m A LOT surprised and a bit miffed with ‘Rebecca’, the designer. I actually watched her take Bryan’s wife into Pier One Imports and tell her that buying ready made pillows (and there of all places) would save her 3 TIMES the cost of having custom ones made to go WITH her CUSTOM sofa and chairs.........WHAT? First of all that doesn’t make any sense, there is always extra fabric ordered for cushions. Second, a yard of almost any fabric is less that a store bought pillow. The insert can be had from IKEA for $6.00, (feather included) and sewing a square is not rocket science. I can’t believe a professional in the industry is giving out that kind of information and suggestions to a client because she is over budget. A complete and utter disservice to this and any potential customers. Ok, rant over.......

[lessismore]

Oh boy....gotta agree with you on that one. I was actually just at Ikea today and looking at their pillow cases. I ended up buying some material at 4.99 a metre to make another pillow for a large down cushion we have in the basement (from Ikea). I will be making a large square cushion cover with that material and had I bought it at Ikea (cheap prices) I would have paid at least twice that amount. Of course, I did buy the material because I did not see a pillow case that worked for our black and white TV space for the teens. I ended up buying a red polka dot material.. kinda fun to break up the black and white and provide a hit of colour.
We are having an estimation on custom made kitchen cabinets and the designer is telling me that I will be surprised at the cost when compared to other cabinets, if bought elsewhere. Our kitchen has bizarre measurements right now so custom may be the only way.
I keep meaning to catch an episode of Bryan's house.....maybe this weekend.

[sweetie]

Most custom cabinet makers/artisans are almost always the same or below places like HD. I think IKEA is in a category all on their own. I have heard good things about their kitchens but have never used them myself.

Looking forward to seeing your kitchen plans!

[lessismore]

Well, I was reading on-line about somebody that put in an Ikea kitchen and they ended up paying a lot more for it than they initially expected. I guess the little this's and thats added up quickly. I think it was still a lot less than many other but not what you see advertised in the magazine necessarily.
Apparently Brian Gluckstein has an Ikea kitchen in his basement and that is where all the real cooking goes on!
Anyway, our house is wonky enough that the measurements for the Ikea units don't look easy to insert without having lots of gaps in certain places. I have another designer that is coming to give me their plan and I am hoping that it is more in line with my thinking. The other plan is not sitting well with me. He argues that I am not giving myself enough counter and cupboard but I disagree. Anyway, we will see. Budget, budget, budget is what I have to keep in mind though.
Stairs to basement will be in within 3 weeks. The stair treads are going to be the costly part but other than that this is going to save us a lot of money going with this group. I am going to have the same guy change the direction of the stairs on the main floor so the flow down from the stairs heads in the opposite direction. (through the diningroom)
That is something I have wanted to do for some time since it always makes my livingroom furniture arrangement challenging. I will get a larger living room out of that change.

Anyway, changes are slowly starting to happen.