Hello ...

I will try to make this as brief & coherent as possible. My stomach is in knots right now.

Back in August I purchased 3 pieces of solid wood bedroom furniture (made by the Amish) from a local furniture store ... a dresser, nightstand, & chest. I purchased this furniture directly off their showroom floor. I inspected it for damage prior to my purchase & it seemed fine. When the furniture was delivered, I discovered that the dresser was too small for my clothes. I also found that the side panels were quite rough on all three pieces, as if they had not been sanded properly. I hadn't bothered to run my hands over the side panels in the store. However, since this roughness was on all 3 pieces, I assumed this was normal for this furniture. I contacted the store owner regarding the issue with the dresser & she agreed to let me exchange it for a larger size. I had to wait 10 weeks for this larger dresser to be built.

When the larger dresser was delivered, the top three drawers did not open & shut smoothly. They dragged across the openings in the body of the dresser when opened & banged against the body when I tried to shut them. I also noticed that the silver metal drawer glides were visible when looking at the dresser head on. I also noticed that the side panels of this dresser were as smooth as a baby's bottom ... not at all rough like on the nightstand & chest. The dresser also had some nicks & gouges in the wood. As I took a closer look at the nightstand & chest, I saw that some of the metal drawer glides were also visible when looking at them head on! After some frustrating conversations with the store owner, she finally agreed to take back the furniture & return it to the manufacturer for repair or replacement.

The furniture was picked up from my home on November 24th. My repaired or replaced furniture was received in the store on February 3rd. The store owner left a message on my answering machine that the repaired furniture had been received, that she had inspected it, & she asked me to call to schedule delivery. Since I wanted my conversations with this woman to be in writing, I emailed her saying that with all the problems I found with the furniture & how long the manufacturer had it that I was surprised it had only been repaired, not replaced. I asked for verification that the furniture was without the problems I had originally found with it ... that there was no roughness or other damage to the wood, that the metal drawer glides were not visible, & that all drawers opened & shut smoothly. I told her that if the furniture was delivered to me & I found any of these problems, I would refuse delivery & expect a full refund. I told her I was not going to play back & forth games with the manufacturer. Her response was that I could not receive a refund ... the furniture was no longer "new" as it had been in my home, she had inspected it, & I needed to schedule a time for delivery. I responded by telling her that I would schedule delivery only with the understanding that I would examine the furniture when it arrived in my home & that if I found any of the problems I noted, or any other problems, I would refuse delivery & she would need to once again return it to the manufacturer. I told her I understood that she was the middleman in this transaction & not responsible for the furniture's construction, but that I had spent a great deal of money for this furniture & that I had the right to expect it to be constructed properly. I noted that the Amish are known for high standards of craftsmanship & that these standards were not evident in the furniture I had received. I once again stated that if the furniture was not constructed properly, I would return it & expect a refund or for her to once again return it to the manufacturer to make it right.

In all our correspondence about this furniture, she has never addressed my concerns. She has only stated that she has inspected the furniture & that she finds no fault with it, but she apparently found no fault with the previous furniture either! She won't say to me "don't worry, there are no drawer glides visible, there is no roughness," etc. She has been pushing for me to schedule delivery. I told her we can schedule delivery for sometime late next week but once again added that if any of these problems I've noted are evident in the furniture, I will refuse delivery & she will need to either refund my money or contact the manufacturer to have them addressed. This is the response I just received from her:

"Your furniture has been inspected; I find no fault with it. The furniture is not new and not returnable to me. You got the original furniture in 8/15. If you do not take the furniture back, it will be abandoned furniture 30 days from today and disposed of."

Do I have any recourse here? I realize that the furniture may indeed be free of any problems, which would be great. However, if it does have any problems, I feel as if I am being forced to accept delivery as if I don't, the furniture will be considered "abandoned" & disposed of.

The manufacturer, if it matters, is a company called Simply Amish. They supposedly stand behind their merchandise. My understanding is that they hire Amish builders to construct their furniture. I have, however, never been able to find reviews online of either the furniture or the company, & they don't appear to be a member of the BBB.

Please help. I am sick about this.