Buffet help

Hello

I'm interested in purchasing a buffet or sideboard style cabinet for our front entry. My budget is around $1500 and just curious where I should be looking. Of course places like Pottery Barn fit on both price and style, but from what I've read here I'm concerned about what I will end up with. Not looking for heirloom quality here but hoping for more than veneer and mdf! Here's an example of what we want:

http://www.potterybarn.com/products/...-NoFacet-_--_-

Just a little unsure which direction to go....major furniture companies like Thomasville? Broyhill? Or is the Potterybarnish furniture ok? Obviously my budget does not allow for high end or custom work, and I know you get what you pay for so I guess bottom line is can you find a decent wood piece around $1500?

Pottery Barn is some of the most poorly made pieces you can buy. Here's a link to an article in 2006 by Smart Money Magazine where they took it apart:

http://www.iconceptsllc.com/potterybarnUNSTUFFED.html

No, you can't buy a new piece like that for $ 1,500 and expect good quality. But you can spend double that and get one that will last you a lifetime. Which is the better value? The half price one that lasts 5 years or the one that costs 2x as much and goes for several generations of use? Now, if you are patient and don't mind pre-owned, you will eventually find the bargain. I've seen $ 10,000 sideboards in great condition sell for $ 500 on Craigslist. They're out there.

Thanks Duane! As I suspected.....so if I do double my budget, what companies do I look to?

It's not so much the company or brand you want to buy, its the construction of the piece. Best way is to learn what makes a good piece (there is plenty of that info here on the forum) and then armed with that knowledge go forth and shop! Its nearly impossible to list all the various makers that do products correctly and by the same token the ones that make them poorly. They would number in the hundreds on each side. For the style you are looking at - this is my favorite company for quality/price, USA-made in Ohio:

www.jltreharn.com