If you're not interested in furnishing your home with matching pre-made furniture sets, you're not alone. According to the experts, people are looking to spruce up their homes with unique, eye-catching pieces.
What kinds of unique pieces are worth investing in for the long term? Custom wood furniture is a great choice in terms of quality, value, and overall satisfaction.
With the help of an excellent carpenter, you can bring your vision to life. Whether you're looking to create rustic wood furniture or bespoke coffee tables, the right carpenter can help. If you're on the fence about custom wood furniture over pre-made furniture, you're in the right place. Read on seven reasons why custom wood furniture is the more valuable choice.
1. Functionality
One of the biggest reasons why people opt for custom-made furniture is that it's often more functional than pre-made furniture. The room you are furnishing may have unusual dimensions or nooks and crannies you want to utilize. You may decide that you want a piece of furniture that is suitable for both indoor and outdoor use, a trend that is on the rise as people embrace indoor-outdoor living.
Nothing is more frustrating than being confined to the dimensions and intended uses of pre-made furniture. Oftentimes, you end up making sacrifices in both function and aesthetic as a result, spending money on something that doesn't really suit your needs. When you choose custom wood furniture, you can decide on everything from the type of furniture you're purchasing to its specific dimensions.
Rather than having to design a room around the furniture you have, you get to design the furniture around the room it's going in. This will maximize functionality and ensure that your new furniture meets the specific goals you have in mind, from fitting nicely next to your favorite armchair to providing the space for your family to gather around in comfort.
2. Personalization
Whether you're a homeowner or a renter, your goal is to make your house into a home. That means creating a living space that feels comfortable, aligns with your aesthetic, and makes you feel both relaxed and energized. Sure, you may find some pieces of pre-made furniture that check these boxes, but sprinkling in pieces that you had a hand in designing can really up the ante.
Believe it or not, studies have shown that your interior design can impact your attitude and sense of well-being. It stands to reason that if you feel dissatisfied with your interior design or disconnected from it, you won't get that boost of happiness you deserve when you walk into your home. On the other hand, participating in the design process of the furniture you buy will give you a sense of satisfaction and guarantee that it's personalized to your liking.
The value of furniture isn't purely monetary. There is an inherent value in the joy it brings you and the way it improves your home. Custom wood furniture is personalized to your liking in a way that pre-made furniture can't match.
3. Durability
Why custom wood furniture over, say, custom metal or upholstered furniture? Carpenters specialize in wood working in no small part because wood is a durable material, particularly when you select the highest-quality types of wood for your project. The oldest furniture that exists in the world is made of wood, which tells you a thing or two about the longevity of the medium.
Why is wood so durable? Consider its source: trees. Trees, particularly hardwood trees like maple, walnut, and oak, can stand for hundreds of years in harsh, ever-changing conditions. Wood furniture is capable of sustaining regular wear and tear, which means that you can often pass down custom wood pieces from one family member to another and so on. Plus, wood furniture doesn't often require the same level of maintenance as other mediums when the goal is long-term preservation.
4. Quality Materials
When you're shopping for furniture, you may notice quickly that solid wood furniture tends to come at a higher cost. While, this may seem off-putting at first, that higher cost reflects a higher value. As we've mentioned already, quality materials lead to durable pieces of furniture, but they also lead to a higher resale value if you ever choose to sell your furniture.
When you work with a carpenter that makes custom-designed furniture, you can learn more about the quality of the materials used before placing your order. Ideally, you want to work with someone who is sourcing materials domestically and using native hardwoods. An experienced carpenter will also use high-quality hardware that won't start to rust, loosen, or strip in a matter of months.
The furniture finish will also impact the quality of your furniture. A great carpenter will use finishes that suit the style you're envisioning without subduing the natural tones and qualities of the wood itself.
5. Quality Craftsmanship
Pre-made furniture companies tend to offer a wide, ever-changing variety of furniture at a low price point. This can seem like a plus at first glance, but it tends to indicate something that isn't so positive: poor craftsmanship. If you've ever ordered something online that looked entirely different (and not as pleasing) in person, you know what we're talking about.
Low-quality furniture is often unstable no matter how often you tighten the hardware. Because the pieces were cut carelessly, they don't have a flush fit, leaving the furniture wobbly and less attractive. If you're tired of buying furniture that looks like it could fall apart at any moment, it's time to work with an experienced carpenter.
A carpenter is going to take time and effort to measure, cut, and assemble the pieces that create your beautiful furniture. The end result is a piece that looks and functions exactly the way you anticipated. Fine craftsmanship is one of the biggest factors that sets experienced carpenters apart from companies that are trying to create new furniture trends that will drive sales.
6. Sustainability
Let's talk a little bit more about those companies that are turning a profit selling trendy, poorly crafted furniture. There's a term for this kind of turnover, and that term is "fast furniture."
Fast furniture is a problem for a variety of reasons, including an unsustainable approach to sourcing materials and shipping furniture across the country (and, in some cases, the globe). That poor craftsmanship doesn't just lead to unsatisfied customers—it also serves a function, which is to get customers to seek replacement furniture sooner rather than later. In turn, Americans threw away 12 million tons of furniture in a single year.
How can you divest of fast furniture and embrace more sustainable furniture choices? By working with a carpenter in your region who creates furniture that is beautiful and durable enough to remain in your home for years to come. Your custom-made live edge tables and bookshelves will have a smaller footprint and won't end up in a landfill.
7. Exclusivity
Consider the world of art or fashion. When something is mass-produced or even duplicated, it isn't considered valuable to collectors or connoisseurs. A unique and well-designed piece is almost always more valuable when it's one of a kind.
The same goes for furniture. Even if you pull inspiration from designs you've seen online or in magazines, your custom rustic farmhouse furniture is still unique in that it has never been replicated. It's not part of a line that anyone can pick up and buy for their own home.
Exclusivity increases both intrinsic and perceived value. Once again, this is worth considering for both your personal enjoyment of a piece of furniture and the potential desire to sell it in the future. Plus, nothing beats the feeling of knowing that the gorgeous furniture in your home came from your own creative impulses.
LGB Carpentry Can Bring Your Custom Wood Furniture to Fruition
Many homeowners are moving away from the mundane and embracing the unique. When you do so, it's important to consider the value of what you're buying. How long will it last, how will it suit your home, and how will you feel about the overall look?
When you invest in custom wood furniture, you invest in something that is high in value. As you can see, there are plenty of benefits to buying custom wood furniture. Now, the question is, what kinds of pieces did you have in mind?
To get started with LGB Carpentry, contact us today. We look forward to talking to you about your project and providing a free estimate.
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