Furnishing or refurnishing a room? Unfinished furniture deserves a good

Furnishing or refurnishing a room? Unfinished furniture deserves a good look!

When we decide it's time for a change in our home furnishings, we know the price tag that comes with the purchase won't be cheap. However, most of us plan to keep that furniture for many years, so we consider it to be an investment. It's always a good idea to buy the best you can afford the furniture will last longer and is naturally more attractive. Once you've visited a few furniture stores and priced pieces you like, your enthusiasm may be waning as your wallet cringes at the thought! If this sounds like your own experience, you ought to consider the unfinished furniture market, one way to have your proverbial cake and eat it too.

There are several advantages to buying unfinished furniture. One obvious advantage is that you'll spend substantially less! Let's take a look at some of the other, not so obvious advantages.

Let's say you want Mission style, cherry wood furniture, in the traditional dark red stain. When you shopped the furniture stores, you found the perfect Mission style bedroom set except that it was stained in an oak finish. Stores which specialize in unfinished furniture may carry the exact set you fell in love with unfinished. Finishing furniture is not difficult and you can choose the precise shade of stain you desire. While finishing the bedroom set involves some time and work, it's actually a fun project that becomes a labor of love. Any paint store or DIY home improvement center will have all the materials you need, including different samples of various woods stained with a particular shade, so you can see just how your project will turn out. Even if you never worked with unfinished furniture, there are brochures, booklets and books to guide you through the process, step by step.

Perhaps your kids are getting out of the crib and into 'big kids' furniture. You may not want to risk spending a fortune on new furniture that will surely be subjected to crayons, gouges and all of the other normal and imaginative uses kids can find for furniture. Unfinished furniture can be the perfect answer. Simply styled, sturdy furniture is what's called for in this situation. Paint it or stain it. Let the kids choose the finish! This option also allows you to keep the nursery dresser, coordinating a matched look without the extra expense of a new dresser. If you already have a nice, rattan rocking chair, keep it. To give it a fresh look, just take it outside and spray paint it to match your new theme.

By the time the kids are in their teens, they may be ready for a more adult look of their choosing. Once again, look to unfinished furniture which can be custom finished to suit their taste.

There's really no room in your house that can't benefit from using this strategy. By the time you've finished several pieces, you'll be an expert. Besides, when people comment on your lovely furnishings, you can tell them you finished the pieces yourself. Or, you can simply say, Thank you!