How much to spend for bedroom furniture?

[Kashmani]

I would appreciate some advice on how much one should pay for a bedroom set. We currently have two extremes:

1) My children are sleeping in my (long deceased) grandparents' wedding bed, which is made of solid walnut wood and was built in the late 1930s or early 1940s. In any case, it predates WWII, which I know because a matching wardrobe has a spot where a shrapnel hole had to be replaced when you Americans started to bomb us to smithereens in 1944. Clearly that bed is built for the ages.

2) On the other hand, my wife and I are sleeping on an 11-year old $700 bonded leather bed frame with a badly sagging 14-year old mattress. It looks like sh**, is at the end of its natural life, and I am lusting after a king-side bedroom set, with ample room to spread out an accommodate kids and cats that decide to crawl in at night.

A year-long Kijiji search has not turned up any promising leads. The king-sized sets that are being sold are either atrociously ugly (rhinestones on a headboard - really?!), cheaply made (espresso laminate never ages well), or both. Most chain furniture stores also sell very badly made stuff, so the big box store does not seem like a solution.

The bedroom set I really want is made by a Quebec company with part solid teak and part veneer. It is a mid-century modern style, which I find has survived the ages very well. I inspected the construction and, aside from being part veneer, it is well made. However, it is also $7,000 excluding the mattress. As such, while it will likely last 30 years, it realistically won't last 100 like my kids' beds. My grandmother's veneer living room "schrank", which was purchased in 1973 and still graces my own living room, is starting to delaminate at the corners and showing its age. So I figure a 30-year life span is a good guesstimate. By that time I will be 70, when it might be time to think about an electric bed anyway.

Has anyone here recently bought a bedroom set? How much did you spend, and why?

[lbmustache]

I have to say $7k is quite a bit. Especially for something part veneer (!!!)... if it's going to be nearly 5 figures this thing needs to be solid wood throughout and handmade by the Amish or something.

I do think the mattress needs to go, and probably needed to go a few years ago ;) Sleep is important!

I have had good luck with IKEA's solid wood lines. I know people hate it blahblah but it can last assuming you're not trashing it.

Ok, but serious suggestions. I like West Elm. They have some solid wood stuff and the majority of their stuff is mid-century modern. I currently have a solid wood bed by them and it's held up well for a few years. I have no doubt that it can last forever.

Does the set "need" to be matching? Can the bed frame be from 1 place, dresser from another, etc.?

[ketchup]

I had to Google search "Bedroom Set"; I think it just means a bed, nightstand, and a dresser?  Our bed frame was $70 from Amazon, the mattress was $150 used, super fancy mattress pad was free from a friend who was moving out of state, and our dresser was $40 I think from a thrift store (solid wood).  Nightstand was a curb find a few years back (90% sure it's IKEA).

[former player]

Do your children not each have their own beds, but share a double?  That seems odd to me.  Sharing a bedroom is fine unless they are different sexes over the age of 10, but I would have put giving each child their own bed as a priority, even if it has to be bunk beds.

As for you and your wife, forget "bedroom set" which means usually means overpriced and lacking in personal style.  Start looking just for the bed, which should be easier to find.   I agree solid wood rather than veneer is the way to go if you want it to last.  You and your wife should visit a specialist furniture shop to test out different mattresses: I'd definitely buy one new, but there may be New Year sales coming up.

If you are not having any luck finding second hand furniture on line, you could try the real life options: auctions, estate sales, second hand shops, charity shops and antique shops.

[PoutineLover]

I have a dresser free from Kijiji, a nightstand free from the side of the road, a wood frame from Ikea that I think was 150 or so, and a mattress that was a gift from my mom 8 years ago and I think it cost 1000 (half price). Nothing matches, but does it really matter? The mattress is the most important part, but everything else can be gotten cheap. Real wood is durable and looks nice. You can always stain or paint it to match.

[lexde]

Solid wood set, $800. Check estate sales. That was a bedframe, nightstand, dresser+mirror combo in dark wood. Beautiful set, probably several thousand dollars originally. I got it from an estate sale I was browsing. Also paid $40 for a truck rental + moving pads. Incidentally, that's what I paid new for a "Hemnes" Ikea set a few years ago (it served me well, but did not hold up to the multiple moves I put it through between law school and SO buying a home).

[Roots&Wings]

Just bought this wood platform bed set on Amazon for $150. Solid wood, surprisingly good quality for the price, great reviews, very happy so far. Total with the new memory foam mattress came to $365. Side tables and dresser can easily be found used at antique stores.

[ysette9]

I agree with a poster up thread about ikea solid wood furniture. We have had several such items for a number of years and they do well.

I got our wood bed set at Cost Plus new for something like $500. It is very simple, not the highest quality, but seems to be holding up over time. “Set” in this case means queen bed and two night stands.

[Teachstache]

After 5 years of using spouse's queen bed and my hand me down child sized furniture, we agreed to purchase new to us, appropriately sized furniture that will last for a significant amount of time. We bought our solid oak platform bedframe on Craigslist for $50, our nightstands for $20 at an estate sale, our solid cherry wood dresser for $300 from an estate sale, a small dresser for $30 from an estate sale. We did purchase a new California king memory foam mattress for $800. 5 years in, our bedroom furniture is going strong for a total amount of $1,200.

[marshmallowaddict]

I agree with other posters - it is always going to be cheaper if you can buy pre-owned.

If you'd like to buy new - I have had good experience with Room and Board. The pieces don't go on promotion, so you always know you are getting the best price. Solid wood, most pieces are made in America. They have a reasonable flat rate shipping as well.

[soccerluvof4]

7K for a bedroom set? thats insane. Furniture while not built as good as the good ole days is still sturday and spend money on a good mattress. Frames ,dressers etc.. you can get cheap. I think all out you can do very well for under 2k and have it last 30 years.

[Goldielocks]

After 20 years of marriage, I finally bought bedroom furniture for $800 for a king bed and two end tables from Ashley furniture.  It is not top of the line solid wood, but also not laminate or veneers.   In addition, we had previously paid $1000 for a king mattress set and $100 for the metal frame to raise it off the floor.

You don't need much (quantity or money) for hard bedroom furnishings.  Lots of second hand, free, or make you own is available and served us and now our teen kids very well indeed.

ETA: darn typos foil me again!

[Metalcat]

$7000 is insane.

There are countless dressers and tables out there, many solid wood, for next to nothing. Why on earth would you need a matching set of furniture for $7000???

I also HATE matching furniture sets, so there's that...but yeah, $7000 is ridiculous.

[AlotToLearn]

I spent 2400 for my bedroom set, mattress included (that was 1K) 3 years ago, and while I enjoy the wonderful sleep I get every night, would not spend that much on the furniture again. The mattress is worth every penny.

[mountain mustache]

I think I bought a complete set when I moved to CO at 21, it was $100 from craigslist...for bed frame, headboard, 2 dressers, 2 nightstands, a desk and a mirror. I don't have it anymore, because it was too much to haul when I moved to a new town 3 years ago. I have a bed frame now...I think it was 20 dollars.
$7k is so much for a bedroom set! All you do is sleep in there...anything can hold a bed up, and even a used solid wood bed frame should be well under $500.

[roomtempmayo]

$7k for veneer is crazy.  That'll buy you any bed from Thomas Moser made in solid walnut or cherry.  And that would be something that would be handed down like your grandparents' bed.

When I bought a new bed a couple years ago, I ended up with one of the solid wood Ikea frames for maybe $200 and a Purple mattress.  It's the best bed I've ever slept on.

When it comes to furniture, I don't see the middle ground being a good value.  Either go all out and buy something that's heirloom quality, or go with Ikea.  Expensive veneer furniture seems like the worst of all worlds.

[Parizade]

Have you looked at Amish furniture stores? If you are willing to spend $7000 you can get a very high quality solid wood set from an Amish woodworker. They might even build to order to match the look of the veneer set you like. But if you have time start cruising thrift stores and garage sales, and watch for estate sales as well. Often children who are clearing out their parent's home just want to get rid of things, that's when you can get amazing deals on heirloom furniture.