The Real Cost Of Custom Furniture
It’s so easy to grab the latest copy of 425 Magazine, Architectural Digest or even Luxe Magazine and start daydreaming about our homes + what they could look like. And it goes without saying that there’s no short supply in terms of beautiful homes brimming with eye candy along with a ton of design inspiration to be discovered around almost every corner.
Whether you’re scrolling through Pinterest or double tapping your faves on Instagram until your thumb feels like it could quite literally fall off, as a top Seattle + Bellevue, Washington based interior designer one of the biggest head scratchers people have when it comes to designing a home is –– what do things actually cost? And in most cases, good design is quite an investment.
Not only in the professional expertise it requires to design, coordinate + bring to life the space you envision but let's not forget the actual cost of everything you see in the room. From the floors, the millwork + doors, to the lighting, the furniture, the art + the accessories all have a cost.
Not to mention, that when it comes to custom furniture, nailing down exact costs can often feel a bit tricky because the simple nature of each project is unique + extraordinarily different, hence the word custom.
But let’s be real boo, what you love is the art of home, the hard work + the true craftsmanship that great design exudes. You know the benefits + you value the knowledge that someone who devotes their life to creating beautiful homes has.
So as we dive into wrapping our beautiful minds around the real costs of custom furniture keep those values present + front of mind. For starters, lets differentiate some of this furniture terminology stuff + how it may be misleading when buying furniture :)
Furniture Terminology
Custom Made Furniture
This is what we’re talking about today, furniture made custom for you. In other words, custom made furniture refers to a craftsman building something specifically designed for you, your family + a very particular area of your home.
The Benefits are you get to decide everything about this piece of furniture. From the overall aesthetic of the design in terms of shape, structure, and form to the specific materials being used that help create the color + finish.
One could argue that many retailers (online or in-person) offer a lot of these customizations: like customizing color, fabric choice, leg choice, or even cushion fill. And there lies the problem.
What is Custom Made and what is Made With Customization?
Are they the same or different? While many retailers will try to pass off customizable furniture as custom made, they are entirely different + a great way to distinguish custom made furniture is to ask yourself this one simple question...
Is it one of a kind?
If the answer is yes, then it is obviously custom made.
If the answer is no, but you played a role in selecting color or material then technically it is customizable furniture.
Made With Customization + Customizable Furniture
I want to be clear about one thing, while I am drawing a clear line in the sand between ‘custom made furniture’ + ‘customizable furniture’ it’s only because retailers are blurring the lines between the two. Almost never will you hear the terms “made with customization” or “customizable furniture” as retailers will simply categorize these things as “custom made.”
But that just gives credence to the confusion around the differences that I’ve pointed out. And yet, in the same way, I love custom made furniture, I also appreciate customizable furniture for what it is. Why?
The benefit of furniture made with customization is those furniture pieces are still being mass-produced all over the world and it affords the retailer the opportunity to offer those furniture items to you + to us at Elegant Simplicity with the ability to tweak + adjust the piece at a fair price.
And there, lies the problem with customizable furniture pieces.
What we deem to be a fair price, is relative to what other options are available in the marketplace (a la other retailers) not what materials the furniture is actually made with.
In other words, because it has a handful of customizable elements as the consumer we write whatever the retailer prices it as off as “fair priced” even if a local craftsman could have made the same piece of furniture with far superior materials at a similar price point.
And that boo, is what I like to call the “illusion of choice.”
What is the Illusion Of Choice
The illusion of choice says that simply because we have even the slightest role in deciding what the furniture looks like we justify the price but I hope you’ll be inquisitive in asking not does the piece of furniture look good and whether you can afford it but to ask yourself w-h-y these materials are right materials for you.
And the value of working with Elegant Simplicity is not to find a local craftsman only to ask if they can make a piece cheaper but to ask h-o-w a local craftsman can make it better.
How can they make it better for you, your family + for the environment?
But what if they can’t? Then you know more about what you’re buying + why it is right for you.
The Quality Difference Between Custom Furniture + Furniture Bought At A Retailer
One would assume that the quality of custom furniture is superior to that of store-bought furniture + while this may often be true it should not be an overwhelming assumption.
With our teams’ vast experience in the interior design industry, we love to design custom furniture for clients but it’s also important for you to understand that just as not all retailers are created equal, not all craftsmen are either.
Friend, don’t misinterpret that for me saying some craftsmen aren’t good at what they do. I would never do my compadres like that *wink*
I’m merely bringing to light that both skill + accessibility to durable long-lasting materials go hand-in-hand which is why you want to be sure you get it right. After all, it is custom made for you :)
And yet the benefits of custom furniture are that with the right craftsman who has knowledge, experience, and the resources to create what you want you to get total control when it comes to quality whereas with store-bought furniture the same can’t be said.
You don’t know where it is made, with what materials or by whom.
The Cost Difference Between Custom Furniture + Furniture Bought At A Retailer
At this point, you know that not all things are created equal.
Likewise, many people simply make the assumption that custom furniture will be outrageously priced + therefore they never head down the road less traveled. My friend, the reality is that when it comes to custom furniture, you’re in control + quite often what is a reasonable budget for a new sofa, chair, bed, or some other piece of furniture bought at a retailer –– a craftsman can usually find a way to work within that budget.
My point here is that cost is + always should be relative to the value of what you’re getting in return. And whether or not that cost is in line with your budget you’ll be able to express why.
Maybe it was the materials it was made with that you felt were of higher quality, local or more personalized to you...therefore you valued it more.
Perhaps it was what the custom furniture piece did for the overall design of the room or its ability to adapt + fit an awkward space that you placed such value on.
Maybe it was the artist, the hands of the craftsman who made it that caused you to value it so much.
In the end, boo, the real cost of custom furniture is relative to how much we value it.
Designing a home that you + your family will not only live in but a home you truly never want to leave is an investment. An investment in time. An investment in energy. And a financial investment. It isn’t a destination you merely just arrive at easily.
Our homes should represent us. They should embody what we value and what we believe. But our values and beliefs evolve. So how could designing a home that feels like a guilty pleasure be a one-time thing?
What you want is not the cheapest furniture or you can find but furniture you value. What you want isn’t the cheapest design for your home that works, you want a home that hugs your people by being exactly what they need before they even realize they need it.
And this is just a small part of the complex world of interior design. I hope the next piece of furniture or design you look at you’ll consider what the real cost of what you’re paying for is.
How was the furniture in your home built, where was it constructed, with what materials was it made from and by whom?
To create a home that feels like the most comfortable part of your day, an interior designer has to do this for every aspect of how you live and for every piece of furniture, material, or product they bring into your home.
Sound exhausting or overwhelming? Well, it’s a lifetime of knowledge that we’ve accumulated from first-hand experiences. But lucky for you, we do the hard work.
Don’t be shy, If you’re planning your next project, lets chat.