Furnishings 101

American Upholstery: The Companies to Know

American Upholstery: The Companies to Know | The Stated Home

Upholstered furniture is anything that has cushions or padding and is covered in fabric (think sofas, chairs, ottomans, beds, that sort of thing). And there are still a fair number of manufacturers who make these kinds of items here in America. For this list, we didn’t include the larger retail stores that manufacture in America. That information is pretty easy to figure out (see our post here comparing sofas from the major retail stores), so we wanted to instead highlight smaller manufacturers that you can find at your local furniture store. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but it should give you plenty of options to start with. (more…)

Furnishings 101

American Furniture Companies: How to Spot Them

American Furniture Companies: Why To Shop With Them | The Stated HomeIt may seem like every furniture store is full of imported pieces, but there are still many companies that manufacture in America. The problem is, it’s tough to find American-made furniture among all those imported items. Frustration with this shopping experience is what led us to create The Stated Home in the first place! Every single piece we sell is made domestically, making it easier than ever to find American-made furniture. That said, we want you to prioritize purchasing American-made furniture, even if you don’t shop with us. And the following pointers will help you do just that. (more…)

Furnishings 101

Good Wood Furniture: Shopping Tips

Good Wood Furniture: Shopping Tips | The Stated HomeTrying to separate out quality wood furniture from cheaply made junk is as close to finding a needle in a haystack as you’ll get. Two pieces can look practically the same, but one will last a decade while the other will get wobbly within months. You can make it easy on yourself by shopping at a retailer like The Stated Home, which only sells well-made furniture made from real wood. But if you’re shopping somewhere else, here are the things to look for that will ensure you get something that will last: (more…)

Furnishings 101

Sagging Sofa Cushions: How to Avoid Them

Sagging Sofa Cushions: How to Avoid Them | The Stated HomeChances are, you don’t think much about your sofa cushions until they start to disappoint you. One day you glance over at your sofa and see that the seat cushions look like pancakes or your back cushions are full of lumps. The sad news: This can happen to even the highest quality cushions. That’s because most are made with a supportive core wrapped in a softer filling. These fillings compress and shift over time if you don’t take care of them. Now for the good part: You can keep yours looking like new with a little routine maintenance. (more…)

Furnishings 101

Types of Wood for Furniture

Types of Wood for Furniture | The Stated HomeIf you’ve spent any time on this blog or our online shop, you know that we think how a piece of furniture is made is just as important as how it looks. We’ve already covered the best way for a piece to be constructed with our blogs on wood materials, joinery, veneers, and finishes, but we haven’t talked a lot about the different species of wood. We’re going to fix that with this blog. The type of wood doesn’t just play a big role in how something will look or what it costs, but also how well it performs as a piece of furniture: how hard or soft it is, whether it changes color, and how long it will last.

Before we go into the common types of wood, we want to do a quick “Everything You Need to Know About Wood” lesson. That way you’ll understand what we’re talking about. (more…)