Hekman Question

[Leslie]

I am looking for a credenza/dresser/buffet type piece of furniture to go in my bedroom upon which will sit the 40" flatscreen television that we cannot seem to live without

Prior to the flatscreen we had a 1980s armoire type entertainment center which held not only our boxy old tv in the tv compartment but also my husband's socks and other items of clothing and stuff in the drawers beneath. With the coming of the flatscreen necessitating a new piece of furniture upon which to put it came his only request--drawers for socks and stuff.

Now I am 54 years old and until stumbling upon this forum have been terribly "furniture stupid." I am now kicking myself for some of my more recent purchases--having bought 2 Flexsteel sofas and a Hooker kitchen table and chairs this past summer. I will say that the sofas are extremely comfortable and my 3 year old grandson thinks they are great to jump on, and the Hooker kitchen table and chairs look great and get rave reviews from everyone who walks in my house, even though I am scared to death now that it is going to fall in at any moment. The good news is that now that I have really learned about furniture I realize that in the scheme of things it didn't cost very much and at least it is in the kitchen and I am not married to it. The thing I AM married to is an accountant and his...shall we say....."thriftiness" is why I have some of the stuff I have. BUT, bless his heart, after a recent disaster with cheap furniture (that thankfully went back to the store with a full refund) he and I are both interested in high quality MADE IN AMERICA furniture and are in the market for several pieces, but most importantly something to put the 40" flatscreen tv on because watching a TV that is sitting on the floor is more than a little bit disconcerting.

SO, today, the only day he has off between now and April 15th, we went furniture shopping together. The first time in 30 years. Anyhow, we visited a "higher end" store in a neighboring town and the saleslady showed us a Hekman entertainment console. The the I liked was the ipod docking station....anyhow, not what I was really looking for, I was thinking more of a dresser/credenza/buffet type look, but it was OK and the price was great. This is a snitzy store so I'm thinking that everything they sell must be pretty good. The saleslady assured us that this piece was made in the USA, and almost all solid wood except for a little bit of engineered wood for strength. We looked at several other pieces that I will post about elsewhere, and then decided to travel 30 miles to another nearby town where this same store has another, larger showroom. The saleslady at store #2 told us that saleslady #1 was just wrong and that all Hekman is imported from China and is not well made. Even though they sell it.....

Store #2 has a beautiful made-in-NC-by-small-company (I can't remember the name, it was not one I was familiar with) dresser with lots of drawers for socks that was absolutely beautiful. Cherry, dovetailed joinery, beautiful finish, dust thingies in the drawers, etc.... for around $1400. Opposed to $ 1350 for the Hekman. Both supposedly 1/2 price, or so they say.

DH, CPA is not convinced. He wanted me to ask Duane what he thought about Hekman in general. Bless the man, he spent most of his time in both stores watching football on tv in leather stressless recliners. I am just proud that he didn't have a stroke or a screaming fit at the prices, which believe could have happened. But we have both learned the hard way that sometimes what seems like a bargain is most definitely NOT!

So, Duane (and anybody else with an opinion), is Hekman good stuff or not? Is it just me or does "entertainment" furniture seem less furniture-like than "non-entertainment" furniture? (does that even make sense?)


Leslie

[drcollie]

Hi Leslie,

Good story! Let me start by saying that its laughable that anyone would say they used 'plywood' (engineered hardwoods) for strength. There are only two reasons to ever use laminate woods in a piece like that: 1) Costs Less 2) Better than solids only if using veneer (less seasonal movement). You cannot beat solid wood furniture using traditional joinery. There is nothing better, or stronger, or better looking. But the problem them becomes the thrifty husbands <g>, because pieces like that are lumber-eaters. And it takes time to make all those solid joints. The wood alone if using Mahogany or Cherry or Tiger Maple for example would well exceed $ 1,000 for material costs from the lumberyard - and that's before the first piece ever was run through the planer. So - the question becomes do you want USA-made and well built, and handsome OR do you want to buy at a price point. You can't have it both ways, I'm afraid, except maybe in used goods.

Here's an example of what I think you are talking about:

http://jltreharn.com/proddetail.php?prod=SBEC316-BO

This is hand-crafted in Ohio and very nicely made of solids with traditional joinery. Price is $ 1,918 before we get into shipping (this company does not box any of their product, all has to be picked up bare). That's very reasonable considering there is no plywood in the piece, its aniline-dyed, and has solid panel doors correctly made and pinned at the corners. Even the backboards are solid wood, not plywood.

Get into one of these, which is my choice for a bedroom piece and you're looking at $ 3,610 plus shipping.

http://www.jltreharn.com/proddetail.php?prod=09DWMD

Hekman is owned by Howard Miller Clock Company. All their residential wood furniture is imported, and they do contract builds (targeting nursing and assisted living facilities) in their Michigan facility. The upholstery end of their business is made in North Carolina. Its just one more line of plywood-made Indonesian/Phillipine/China/Vietnamese furniture that all looks the same and is built to a price point. But you know, that's not a high stress piece like chairs or a bed, or even a piece with daily use drawers. Most the time a piece like that has a TV on it and that's about it. So if you're happy with the style, look and price - no reason to not buy it. It's not likely to fall apart anytime soon. But its not to be confused with good quality 'real' furniture in my book. Good luck!

[Leslie]

Ahh,, but remember the whole sock drawer issue......there will be daily drawer pulling on at least one drawer.....WAIT! DH just explained to me that he only gets a new pair of white socks out of said drawer once a week....good grief! He works out every single day and changes socks once a week???? So I guess that means that the opening and closing of a drawer is not an issue.

I read him your post and he is thinking the Hekman sounds better and better. Sigh. I wanted furniture. However if I have to choose I would rather have my better quality furniture in the foyer and family room than in the bedroom where nobody goes but us.

Thanks Duane!
Leslie

[drcollie]

Marriage is the Art of Negotiation.....

LOL