SeaBabe here...this is my first post. I've been searching through all the threads/topics and can't quite seem to find the answers I am looking for....
I'm on the hunt for a new sofa and love seat. Today, I was looking at some Flexsteel furniture. I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on it.
I noticed that Hancock and Moore seems very recommended on these boards. There are two dealers near my home that carry furniture from that manufacturer, as well as Taylor King.
I don't need something that lasts 20 years (been there, done that. I am still waiting for this one recliner to die. It's 27 years old and needless to say I am sick of it but my husband can't part with the darm thing...At least it now is NOT in the family room.) but I would like something that is well made and will last me at least 10 years though.
What makes H&M or TK so special..and are there other brand names I should be looking at as well??
Thanks in advance
Ooops. Forgot to mention that I am looking at fabric, not leather
Last edited by SeaBabe; 08-03-2010 at 10:35 PM.
51 views and not one response?????
SeaBabe...
Welcome to the forum. Sorry about the limited response, but you might try giving a little more information to elicit responses. What style, size, price range, etc. are you most interested in. We have a few vendors on the forum who might be able to help you in your search. Our resident H&M and TK expert is on a cruise with his family and will not be back on the forum for about another week. I'm sure he can supply you with information about H&M,TK and a host of other manufacturers. In the meantime your can avail yourself of the hundreds of posts already on this forum and I would recommend you use the site search function to do a little research on your own.
Again welcome,
Larry
I had a Flexsteel sofa I purchased several years ago. It was a decent sofa, but I don't think I would purchase Flexsteel again. Also, my understanding is that some of their furniture is manufactured in China these days. Other good brands: Mitchell Gold and also Lee Industries.
The person who owns this forum, Duane, is the H&M expert (really the best quality sofa you can buy, in my opinion), but as Larry said, he's out of town for another week. Probably
I just wanted to know what makes the furniture recommended here so special? Is it just because it is made in the US? Is it built better? Have you had pieces that have survived beautifully through the years??
I wanted to hear others experiences....
The next response was what I am looking for.
I'd like to hear the good and bad about the furniture brands people have owned...this might help me make a decision on a sofa/loveseat.
That was helpful, thank you
Last edited by SeaBabe; 08-06-2010 at 07:58 AM.
I don't know FlexSteel. I have H&M and ordering more. In my amateur opinion:
- SO SOLID. Forget about if 10 years or 50 years, your first sitting you feel solid and stable more than most others.
- Leather - I love the leather choices
- Styling - personal preference, but it is very classic styling that in 10 years will still be in style and you can sell it to someone else. I have 2 Wing Back Chairs that are 15 years old, and they could pass for brand new. I am selling them because of house size change, but still fantastic.
Jim
Duane, the owner of the forum, offered this brief opinion on Flexsteel:
If you search the forum you'll find a lot of threads discussing Flexsteel products and their construction techniques.
H&M uses traditional methods of construction, such as eight-way hand-tying, kiln-dried hardwood frames, etc., that make for a comfortable, long-lasting piece. When you buy imports from China you risk getting a product that initially looks nice on the outside, but is poorly constructed and uses lower grades of leather that make it less likely to last. As Duane noted, Flexsteel is in the middle - not as well-constructed or as comfortable as H&M, but likely to be durable.
A brand that has been mentioned in the forum as a higher quality alternative to Flexsteel is Bradington Young.
Also--about stuff made in China--who knows what kinds of potentially dangerous chemicals go into the production process?
Information about what people have owned in the past can be tricky unless it's a report of problems with a fairly new purchase. More and more companies are sending their manufacturing off-shore, so their pre-offshore quality and current quality may be very different. Off-shore construction isn't always bad, nor is US construction always good. I do have the same concerns as organic_smallhome about what kind of chemicals may be lurking in products.
I have a Stickley wooden rocker that's about 3 years old that I still like. It was manufactured in southeast Asia. I'm satisfied with the construction, but it's the kind of piece where I could see the structure before I bought it. The leather seat has not held up well, but I could tell that it wasn't great leather when I bought it. It will be easy to recover, so it's not a problem. I would not buy a fully upholstered piece from the modern incarnation of Stickley.
I have a Henredon sofa that has held up beautifully for 20 years, but I haven't been at all pleased with the quality of the Henredon sofas I've sat on in the same store in the last year. The replacement will probably be a Hancock & Moore.
I gave my husband a Hancock and Moore glider last month. We're both delighted. He's very hard on gliders, so he gets a new chair almost annually. I'm curious to see if this one can survive him!
I appreciate all the feedback, thank you very much