Extreme Clutter, do you really need all this stuff?

Storage always seems to be something we need in the UK. The recent rise of storage companies where people will pay to have someone else store their things, is indicative of a junk epidemic. The UK is a relatively small island, parking spaces are small, roads are small, cars are on the whole small, meaning an american car stands out a mile.. OK yes its big, it’s loud, it’s not as frugal in terms of fuel costs, yet it does show that deep down we all secretly desire more space.

First time buyers crave space apparently and will over stretch their budgets to buy bigger. Bigger isn’t always better though. The solution to some problems is to have less “stuff” as a rule of thumb if you haven’t used it for 6 months you should consider if you really need it.

When you have reorganised, recycled and gone to the local council tip with the clutter you no longer need. Then you have a blank canvass to consider what your storage needs really are.

Hidden and Compact white painted modern office

Space is finite in most modern homes, so unless you are planning on moving or building an extension, then its time scale back and be smart about how much storage space you truly need.

Why buy furniture to store junk? maybe if you de-cluttered, you could even make a little extra money to buy some brand new furniture!!

More and more people are buying beds, and furniture in general to store their stuff. Should it really be this way? Shouldn’t you buy furniture because you really want it?

The following bed is NOT for sale on the furniture market website but I think it highlights just how much this storage problem is now governing purchase decisions when people are out shopping for furniture.

Taken to the extreme.. is it a bed? is it a chest of drawers???

Wouldn’t it be better to de-clutter, re-organise and buy furniture we all liked rather than because it has a million drawers, nooks, and cranny’s to store extra “stuff”.

If this blog post does nothing else it should make you question are you buying furniture because it can store more of your “stuff” or because you really like the look of it, or can imagine how comfy it will feel to sleep on?

Just a thought…

A close up of the Celebrity Big Brother Bedside Table

The furniture market supplied stylish noir French bedroom furniture to this year’s show. Adrian and Bianca Latham were then invited along by Endomol the creators of Big Brother to a swanky pre-show party at the Elstree studios in London to view their designs in person.

Celebrity birg Brother 2012 features bedroom furniture supplied by The Furniture Market. The Stylish French noir table, complete with crystal handles and priced at £279 each, but thanks to a special deal are currently on sale at £131 can clearly be seen on each episode of Celebrity Big Brother next to the likes of former X-Factor bad Boy Frankie Cocozza and the winner of this year’s Big Brother Denise Welch.

A pair of Celebrity Big Brother Bedside Tables

Bianca, 31, who designs the store‘s furniture with Adrian, also 31, said it was ‘It’s exciting to get a call from a TV show that is on every night and one you grew up watching. The chance to design some furniture for the show is a real honour,” she said

“We do get regular requests from production companies involved with shows like This morning and 60 Minute make over, but with big brother this really gave us a chance to show case our furniture designs in a high profile way.”

“We didn’t expect to be invited along to the actual house to see the furniture in person, so it was very exciting to see something you have designed and had made in the house with your own eyes.”

“It was very surreal to go down there having watched the house on TV so many times before, It is a lot smaller than it appears on TV.” said Bianca.

The Furniture Market, was originally Founded by Adrian Latham to help fund him through University. Upon graduation it soon became clear to Adrian that he should devote his attention full time to the business which has grown to have over 25 employees and looking to take on more staff in 2012 to cope with unprecedented demand.

Like everyone one of you i had the same light bulb idea that i have every year around the end of October time that I’m going to get all of my Christmas shopping done before the end of November leaving December as a full on party month, like many of you this never happens- until this year! Yes this year i get to join the smug half of the population for the first time ever and be one of those holier-than-thou people that love nothing more than reviling in conversations about Christmas and the organisation involved whilst annoyingly tuting and shaking their head at the people i used to be.

As i am now part of this crowd i have badgered our website team to get going with some Christmas injection on our site. I have ‘helpfully’ put together a portfolio of unique inspired gifts geared towards men, women and teenage girls  this being an integral role of a ‘Christmas Smug’-to annoyingly provide Christmas Humbug’s with help and advice on their ‘very late’ preparation for the festive season.

Here are a few things i came up with:

Imagine his face when he see's this!

What better gift to surprise your man with than a Charles Eames Chair and Footstool to relax in after a hard day at the office, he would never expect it and if he’s anything like my other half he will love it to bits and won’t sit anywhere else, freeing up a whole sofa for me and the cat.

For the lady in your life I’m pretty sure i can speak for many of them in that we all dream of a place to park ourselves to prune and titivate with a designated spot for all our makeup, nail polish and hair accessories. Nothing comes more ladylike than the Venetian Etched Dressing Table Set which is suitably compact to fit in many a bedroom with the ability to lend itself to a multitude of decors. I can quite honestly say that if your other half was to open this beauty on Christmas day you would be thanked every morning she woke up and saw it at the foot of the bed. (Wink)

A gift to put a twinkle in her eye!

One thing i have noticed since working at the Furniture Market is the increasing demand by daughters for their parents to provide them with a bedroom that is a little more inventive than the slightly ripped posters of Kylie Minogue or Jason Donovan and that guy from 90210 with the quiffed hair that everyone loved, (this is a generalisation and by no means based on my own room as a kid), so with this in mind i have also come up with a few unique gifts that will transform your little girls bedroom into a funky boudoir or a chamber fit for a princess. For the funky chica it doesn’t come anymore contemporary than our Zebra print furniture with the Lounge Lizard Console Table being an essential addition to any growing teenage lifestyle. For the more girlie girl it doesn’t come anymore princess ‘esk’ than the Silver Pumpkin Stool which will instantly transport her into a Cinderella fairytale as well as being a unique occasional chair for her room that will have her friends green with envy.

It doesn't get anymore Princess than this!

So there you have it my smug guide to early Christmas shopping, whether you choose to become one or not remember that the earlier you purchase the more chance you have of a getting pre-Christmas delivery. As much as we (sorry you) like to tell yourself when some of your gifts turn up in the New Year; it’s nice for the individual as they get to enjoy a second wind of presents in January, it’s really not true, that month is completely reserved for miserable faces and grumpy attitudes so get cracking why don’t you?

I think most people who are willing to buy online do their research., for example you could have 2 rustic oak 3 draw bedsides.  one is priced £125 Delivered the other is prices £110 + £15 Delivery.

You pay the same money for the same kind of product right? wrong… so wrong… you are buying into a companies way of doing business.

I think everyone has had a bad experience shopping on line. I know I have.. sometimes your intuition just says, this website doesn’t fill me with confidence.. Its a feeling. Sometimes we ignore our instincts and hand over our hard earned cash anyway or just put it on plastic because we feel we are protected in someway.

Trust is the corner stone of doing business long term.

But how do you trust a website will deliver what you are seeing? I work on the principal of how anything is, is how everything is.

Say you see a website who has a really old copyright date of 2009. Something this simple would say to me that these people do not update their website regularly. SO then I think to myself do these people actually have the products in stock that I am about to pay for. Then I think I will just give them a call..so I call.

I am answered by someone who to put it bluntly sounds like I am an inconvenience to them. They don’t seem to know what is going on or they are just completely defensive for no reason.

To me these are all little signs I should walk away from any potential deal. I could go on and on..

Would you buy furniture from someone who really doesn't care how its presented

Pages on their site don’t work, products are missing, or have no description, or.. fill in the blank..

The overall impression I get is they really do not care about what they are doing. So are they going to care about my order?

That’s why I introduced Trust pilot to The Furniture Market. We have been trading on eBay for a long time and proudly have a positive feedback score of 99.4%, but that is eBay we need something for our site.

Who do you trust?

Trust pilot is an independent review website where scores are out of 5 stars. We have selected to only display genuine orders and feedback for better or worse. so when you look you see this:

You can see that all these reviews are legitimate. Written by real customers who bought furniture from us. Not many people on Trust pilot use this which would leave me to question if their reviews are fake or not. That’s for you to decide.

The main point I am trying to make is here, ask yourself who do you trust with your money? Who will care about your order the most? Who wants to make you happy so that you recommend us to your friends? The answer to all of those questions is The Furniture Market. We care about your order and want to make you happy, and we always will.

Note the Verified Buyer logo - a actual customer wrote this.

Gainsborough chairs or Art?

The Reclaimed Oak collection is the latest addition to our extensive oak family. What makes this range different to others on offer is its combination of elegant French style with the chunkiness of solid oak. Hand crafted from reclaimed oak you naturally get a very raw look to the wood that is beautifully rustic and oozes character, it features wood rings, grain patter nation, knots and groves reminiscent of the oak tree that really makes you feel like you own a slice of nature.

Reclaimed French Oak Dining Table

The style of this collection is nothing if not pure elegance. The cabriolet style legs have been taken straight out of Regency French design and the serpentine like curve featured on many of the chests, also referred to as ‘bombe’ style is a classic style of 18^th century France. The beauty of this range is the way it takes the traditional designs of centuries past and applies them to suit a 21^st century audience, pieces such as the Oak Wide screen TV Unit would of course not of been a piece featured in traditional 18^th century France but is an essential addition to the modern day home and it’s great that you can now apply this charming style to your living room. Another piece that should be commended for its handsome appearance is the Reclaimed Oak 8 Seater Dining Table, although quite simplistic in design, the cabriolet style legs are what truly make this piece as it is rare that this feature is over-emphasised on a dining table but the result is graceful elegance that would be the centre piece to any dining room.

French Reclaimed Oak TV Unit

One of the pieces within this range that we are really excited about is the Reclaimed Oak Gainsborough Dining Chair, this is an incredibly popular design and was once featured on our site in a beech wood which in itself was extremely popular so now to have it handcrafted in oak is something that we are very excited about. This design has featured heavily in interior design shows and exhibitions and is a recognisable style to the trained eye, the cross back provides both comfort and style and the rattan seat pad gives it a real rustic edge, a truly beautiful dining chair.

Here at the furniture market ™ we are constantly on the look out for new ideas and designs to add to our already extensive range. Oak furniture in particular is where our passion lies and it is refreshing to see the development that has been made in this area of furniture throughout recent years. Furniture, furnishings and interior design is a very exciting industry to be a part of at this moment in time due to its accelerating pace and continually changing and developing styles. Interior design now tends to follow the trends set within the fashion industry whether this be colour, style or design which is a very exciting development and generates a greater interest in this re-invented industry.

white Nouguchi table actual picture taken here at the Furniture Market

Another job I completed was to list the price at the top of the description next to where it says ‘on sale’. I did this for Rustic Oak category and practically all of the items on sale.  One of the more tedious jobs that I did which needed doing was the filing!! Putting all of the customer invoices into separate piles and filing them away. Although it wasn’t the best task I have had to do it gave me an idea of how the business works and even the jobs that people sometimes put off doing all do need doing.

On my fourth day here, as well as continuing with some website work, I was asked if I wouldn’t mind giving the showroom a clean through. It seemed like a challenge at first but really it was enjoyable – I got to meet some customers that came to have a look around the showroom and it also gave me the satisfaction that the showroom is now cleaner that it was (although it was pretty clean anyway to be honest).

Furthermore I have edited some of the pictures on the Oak Furniture Range to make them larger so they are easier and clearer for you to see when looking through our products. On some of these photos I have added a ‘+Click for More Images’ to allow people to know there are more pictures available for some of the products to give them a better idea of what it looks like from different angles. The time I have spent here I have learn loads of very interesting and useful things to do with business and how it works and the tasks that need doing to make it successful. As well as this I have learned that a website is much more than what it appears and how to edit a website to improve it and to provide a better service for the customer.

Oxford oak Triple Wardrobe

Overall the two weeks I have had here have been great!! I would happily want to come back – I’ve had the chance to meet loads of new people and have learned a range of very useful invaluable skills!!

A typical Chateau bed room display

This range of French furniture is for the discerning customer who knows style and wants to achieve a subtle classic feel to a room that demonstrates an aura of chic sophistication.  One of the most substantial ranges in our French furniture collections you are bound to find something in the stunning Chateau range to tantalise your taste buds. The beauty with this collection of French furniture is its ability to lend itself to pretty much any style decor, whether you want to go down the pretty chintzy road with delicate floral detail or prefer a more modern twist with bright vibrant colours to contrast the pale colour of the furniture and really make your decor pop.

French Noir Black

Powerful and imposing French Noir Bed.

The noir black range of French furniture is for the more daring customer who really wants to make a statement with their interior and create a dramatic show stopping decor. The bold characteristics of this awesome collection of French furniture give it a real dramatic edge and can be interpreted either with combining it with bold vibrant colours to add to the drama of the decor or toned down to give it a romantic vibe by using pale creams and whites which give focus to the stunning pieces within the range.

French Gold

French Gold Leaf Snail Chaise

This gorgeous collection of gold leaf and gold painted range of furniture is definitely designed for the more ostentatious customer who is not afraid to be bold and brass with their decor. The stunning carved detail displayed on many of the pieces combined with its classic style make this range a welcomed addition to the French collection and enables us ‘jo public’ to really delve into the extravagant world of interior design usually reserved for the likes of boutique hotels and bars.

French Silver

French Silver Leaf Occasional Chair

The French silver leaf and silver painted range of furniture is a perfect choice for those wanting to add a touch of glamour to their decor. An eclectic mix of both heavily carved detail and a more subtle simplistic style give you the pick of the bunch in this collection. This range of French furniture is great for bringing light into a room and looks truly awesome when teamed with a bold vibrant colour such as fuchsia pink or electric blue.

If you would like to see any additional images of furniture you can contact us via email info@thefurnituremarket.co.uk or call us on 01829 759259 lines are open between 9am and 6pm and we will try to answer any questions you might have.

We take our own images

Since I started working here at The Furniture Market.co.uk™ back in late 2010 I started asking myself on a daily basis, “how can I make the website better for visitors?.”  I didn’t really know a lot about furniture before I started.. I knew about IKEA and how it seems that Tesco direct and Asda living were springing up on every retail park. The more I looked at the furniture in the show room room the more I came to realise that we were selling some quality furniture here, so how could I best display this on the site? I thought to myself. One of the great things here at the furniture market ™ is that we have our studio to take pictures of furniture. This means we have the ability to take multiple pictures of furniture and present them in the best way so that you get a feel of the look and style of the piece and how its made. We are in the process of up scaling our images so that you get to see bigger thumbnail images. Our main images are also usually on the large side so you get to see the quality of the workmanship. I have personal experience of how workmanship is important.

Before I started working at the furniture market ™ I bought a bed from a well know high-street retailer, I noticed when putting the bed together the bed slats were a little odd. one was shaped in a way that I can only describe as a banana, I screwed the slats together eagerly in anticipation of a good nights sleep. It was becoming more and more obvious that the bed I had bought from this retailer.. (that rhymes with Bargos) the slats were coming up short almost an inch in some cases.. I was having to bodge the screws into the supports. and generally I thought there’s something not quite right here.

Skip forward a couple of months and I am left a little unhappy to say the least. I don’t make a habit of complaining but the more I come to learn about furniture and how its made the more I realise I did not get what I paid for from this well known catalogue company. Or maybe I did?  The picture to the left happened when I simply sat on the side of the bed. When you take a closer look at what has happened here, you can see that the actually wooden slats themselves have sheered…

So its off to B&Q for some more wood to fix the problem. This has now happened on 2 wooden slats on the same bed. I’m not impressed… what this did do however was make me take a closer look at just how a piece of furniture is finished. The slats on my bed were composed of what seemed like off cuts of wood in a kind of zig-zag formation.. The grain of the wood differed greatly.. It kind of reminded me about how they make some meats in factory’s from “reformed” cut’s.. It’s not appropriate to talk about this process on a furniture blog needless to say if you do a little research you will see what I am on about.

I was walking through the showroom one day and I noticed this bed being assembled and I took a closer look. I was genuinely impressed you could see the quality of the wooden support slats. The main support beam had chunky dovetail joints and screws holding it securely in place. Each slat is flush with the frame of the bed, and were noticeably thicker than the slats on my bed at home. What really struck me however was the price.

Now although the French beds we sell are not to my taste, I could have bought one of these bed’s with the intricate carving for the same price as the bed I have got from ‘that’ catalogue shop. I will know in future what to look out for when I am next buying a bed. I will only ever buy a solid oak bed in the future. But there is a problem when you buy from a catalogue or furniture website, but where there is a problem there is also a solution to I believe. To continue to make buying furniture better, I needed to roll out a program of putting better images on the site, more images. Images of things only people who have been let down in the past look for.

You can get away with compromising on quality on some items and not with others. Items like beds are not an area where you can compromise on quality and get a way with it. That is why I am sold on the beds we sell here at the furniture market ™ . The quality of these beds, the workmanship and how they are put together are very impressive when you consider the price you are paying.

Every day I am here at the furniture market ™ I will strive to make it better for you and for people like me who have been let down by buying furniture before based on what they thought was a companies reputation. As we take most of the images of actual furniture here in the studio, it is usually easy for us to take some extra images for you if you would like to see them. In the mean time I will keep working on ways to present the true quality of the furniture we sell here in the best way possible.

If you would like to see any additional images of furniture you can contact us via email info@thefurnituremarket.co.uk or call us on 01829 759259 lines are open between 9am and 6pm and we will try to answer any questions you might have.