I moved into a new place, and I am in need of some new furniture.
I’ve been google-fuing some things up to get some ideas of what kind of look I want. My daughter’s headboard/footboard and bedside table we painted a long time ago with a pink with a gold resist underlay.
(We spray painted it gold, then smeared Vaseline on it in random streaks, then spray painted it pink and wiped away the pink that was over the Vaseline to reveal to the gold. Great technique, FYI. We’ve gotten a lot of compliments on it. I figured it’d outdate as she got older but it seems very current feeling still.)
I liked how it looks in her room and like the idea of gold or silver sparkle as a main theme for the furniture. I don’t want to go so overboard with it, but I’ve liked the idea of it a lot. Seems glamorous and fits with modern feeling of my apartment, while also being timeless enough to use in a new place.
So, as I’m noodling around, I see a gold metal bed on Amazon, and someone in the comments mentions that this is the bed being sold direct by the manufacturer and it is being sold online by various resellers.
At first, I’m like, no, this can’t be, as I am seeing this same bed at all kinds of price ranges. But then I see these mirrored pieces of furniture that I know sell at Pier 1 under the Hayworth line at Hooker furniture. If you are not familiar with Hooker, they are serious high dollar stuff - usually very heavy, substantial pieces, which, I admit, I have a thing for really huge furniture.
I do know from when I lived in NC and talked to a buyer while on a plane trip home that all the furniture is made in China now (with the exception of Ashley - they actually even turn the wood in their factory - I heard this from one of our sales people who works directly with them and has been on their factory floor.)
So, let’s compare some pics.
Sold by Evans Transitional here for $504.
Here it is under the Hooker name for $1069. It’s the exact same photo - maybe slightly different legs?
I’m thinking, no, this can’t be that they are the same piece of furniture exactly. Perhaps they are all being made at the same factory, but being manufactured for different companies - this is how it is done at the Estee Lauder factory which makes for a wide range of brands. I’ve been there and sampled lots of similar products sold under their various brands and they are definitely not the same formulation even if they look a lot alike.
But then I found this review of one of the mirrored nightstands (not the exact same one above, but one I suspect is by the same manufacturer on the official Hooker site.
Received the Montage side tables and they were broken upon delivery. The middle of the leg that broke off looked like it was made of cardboard, very cheap. Surprise and extremely disappointed.
Anyway, if it is true that it is all the same stuff, I’ll order either through Amazon or whatever is the least expensive reputable company that I can find for whatever furniture I want to buy.
Curious if anyone has an inside scoop on the furniture industry?