what are the most important furniture pieces to have first?

Question

i just shifted to a new house which has a decent kitchen cabinet, shower with heater and that's about it. i only brought my clothings n various electrical appliances. i would like to furnish the house eventually but i could only afford to get a piece at a time. could somebody suggest what are 5 most important items to get first? there's no need to list any type of electrical appliances. thanks.

Answer 1

kitchen table (can be used as a temporary desk & hopefully with at least one chair), bed or futon that can be used as a bed & couch, dresser(s), couch (or the futon), wooden trunk/storage furniture (which can also be used as a coffee table). everything else you can make do until you can afford to purchase more. it also depends if you plan on buying cheaper temporary furniture first or quality items (you'd have to think about that if you opted for the futon suggestion above).

i hope one of the various electrical appliances is a refrigerator. just remember to get the necessities first.

Answer 2

Figure out how you function daily and decide from there.

Place to sleep (maybe a sleeper sofa will be double duty)
Large table & chairs for dining and sitting guest around or using for office space/study area too
Large dresser for clothing or an armoire for clothes and blankets
Task lighting like a floor lamp and a couple of smaller types for different areas needed.

I would start out with some cheaper pieces that you can assemble from Wal Mart like shelving units, PC desk, standing tall cabinets with doors to hold extra household cleaning products, tissue paper, canned goods, etc.

Put extra towels & small appliances not used very often.
As you grow and accumualte more things replace with something more stylish and still use that piece for utilities.

I found that for small out of the way stashing units for personal items, I have used the plastic 3-4 drawer units that roll on wheels from Wal-Mart. Great for storing items for holidays, crafting, tools, etc.

I like the flea market and thrift store finds of inexpensive furniture with good bones! I refinish the pieces and add new handles, glass tops, or whatever to make it look like a new piece with paints, stains, decoupage. Eclectic furnishings is key and functional to any household, and the good thing is.....no rules to follow. Make it YOU!

Common sense is your best answer for your life style and budget together. Hope the advice helps out.

Answer 3

Here's some thoughts to get started with. Get theses items to settle in with and then save money to begin acquiring some good pieces. These can all be used in other places in your new home once you start replacing them.

Trundle bed that can turn into a king sized bed (Replace this first and move to guest room)

Inexpensive stacking shelves for bedroom with doors (to hide clutter) and hold linens and clothes (Target and Home Depot) Replace these and move to the guest room.

Second hand sofa that you can get washable cover for (they come in assorted colors) Replace this second if you think you will be using your living room a lot.

Round folding card table with 4 chairs--Walmart (this can double as a TV table) Replace this third.

Inexpensive wicker chest to be used as a coffee table as well as storage. (Replace when you get new sofa)

Since you said no electrical appliances, I am assuming you have a stove, fridge, microwave, TV and lamps

We did a lot of this when we moved into our first place. We got used items, painted them all white for the bedroom, changed the knobs, and used our quilts and pillows for color in there. And decided to keep it that way--shabby chic is what it's called now. We painted the wicker chest white and put a plexiglass top on it and some brass looking handles--and still have it!! Recently, we got a home theater and 54 in. screen. We moved the 36 inch TV into the bedroom which is quite large and put it on a glass TV table that we got for $149.00. We got to high quality white laminate 72 in. tall cupboards with great looking doors and put them on each side. We got a precut and finished Rubbermaid 48 in. shelf and laid it across the top of the cupboards for a plant shelf--and voila!! we had an entertainment center for under $300.00. Our speakers fit great on top of the cupboards, too.

I'm telling you this so that you know that some things don't have to be brand new or expensive to work for you over a long period of time. Then you can afford the best in other things. A bed with a great mattress should be your top priority, tho.

Answer 4

Obviously you need a bed and dressers so you have somewhere to sleep and store clothes. Mount reading lamps on the wall next to your bed and add a shelf on either side for alarm clocks etc. If your place is small, then a nice dining table and chairs to seat at least six, a sofa and chair and ottoman would be good for the living room. The ottoman can be used as extra seating if you need. You can use just about anything for a cocktail table but flat ottomans are functional for serving and sitting. Something to house your T.V.s in all rooms unless you are mounting flat screens to the wall but you wil still need something to put and hide your stereo and DVD players etc. in. So to that end, bed, dresser, table and chairs, sofa, chair and ottoman, entertainment center. You can add to that as needed.

Answer 5

Start with a quality mattress and bed. Get the largest bed that can fit in the room space, and you'll never regret it. I have a 14 inch pillow top bed and its heaven. Then get the quality pillows to go with it.

With good rest and sleep, you'll have the energy to move on to your next projects.

The head board can wait since it is decorative.

The next is a sofa. If you do not have a guest room, or if you think you may have quests or family over to help you while you are renovating, get a sleep sofa.

Answer 6

My first pieces of furniture for my apartment was a discount house bedroom suite. My parents gave me a beautiful dining room table and chairs, and my aunt gave me a television, then, the next piece of furniture was a couch and chair, then lamps, wall accessories to make it a home. When we had someone to come over, we sat on the floor! Truth! Or, in a dining room chair.

Answer 7

Something to sleep on, something to sit on and something to work or eat at. If you have guests you might want to get 2 things to sit on! Then storage things, nothing more depressing than having to see all your stuff lying about. A big wardrobe, or a chest of drawers would be a good investment. Check out sites like freecycle, you'll be amazed at the things you can get.

Answer 8

1. bed
2. sofa
3. table
4. chair (for table)

After that--in no particular order would be tv stands, bookshelves, bedside tables, etc. And the order I listed the stuff is the order I'd get stuff too--first thing would be a bed--hands down. You spend 1/3 of your time sleeping--you can sit on lawn chairs or bean bag chairs, but you'll be miserable if you don't sleep well.

Answer 9

A sofabed. Absolutely. Then a coffee table or some other kind of table to work or eat at.

Answer 10

1 sofa or love seat
2 bed
3 fridge
4 stove
5 computer desk if you have a computer
6 TV