I ask because I am interested in furnishing a home office. The desks from bombay look very nice-it is a traditional look that I like. Yet, the furniture appears to be veneer over some kind of pressboard?Has anybody bough a lot of Bombay co, furniture-does is hold up well or does it fall apart?
The only “furniture” I bought at Bombay Co. was a very nice plant stand for a wedding gift. The recipients still use it to this day. I don’t much care for the larger items, as they do not seem as well made. You may be better off scouring the antique stores but I guess that depends on your willingness to spend gobs of money.
Personally, I recommend something else. At least out here on the west coast, Bombay Company is a mall furniture store and their prices generally reflect it, being on the high side. Your post doesn’t say what area you’re in, but while I know plenty of people who have small decorative items from there (and their stuff is very nice), the larger pieces do in fact appear to be pressboard from what I have seen which isn’t what I would look for in a desk, chair, bookcase, or anything else that will have to hold a lot of weight over time. But that’s me…
Go to your local furniture outlet or scour the consignment stores…
I wouldn’t go there, but then as a hobby wood worker and refinisher I tend to look for solid construction, better quality material, and the best (low) prices.
Try the lower grade (not in the fachionable district) antique stores, antique actions (that’s where the people selling out of stores often get their stuff), second-hand/consignment shops, the antique reproduction shops, and the unfinished furniture shops.
What part of the country are you in?
We have some Bombay Co stuff. Definitely cheap stuff. The finish chips easily. If it will never be used or touched (like maybe a plant stand in a guest bedroom) then it is perfect. If you have kids, pets, or put any of it in a place where it is likely to be touched or bumped then stay away. We bought several things at one time and learned this lesson the hard way. We have a plant stand, magazine rack, and a few other things. They are about 3 years old and don’t look to good.
We have two pieces from Bombay. One has exactly the quality of construction that goes with the price, i.e. you don’t get what you don’t pay for. The other piece is beautifully and solidly built. We were definitely surprised at the apparent high quality of the second piece.
In general, I wouldn’t consider Bombay stuff for anything but mostly decorative pieces - and not for a home office.
Since this will be a matter of opinion, I’ll move this thread to IMHO.
A guy I dated worked for them. Their schtick: take cheap wood, slap an extremely thin veneer of expensive wood over it, then lacquer it to kingdom come. Looks fabulous for about a minute and a half.
The problem’s biggest with the darker woods, like “mahogany” or “walnut,” since the contrast with the core wood is so visible.
I’d second the not-too-pretentious antiques store or flea market concept. Even here in NYC I found some extremely solid, restored furniture for reasonable prices when I was first starting out. Much cheaper than new, and even cheaper than those “naked-furniture” places (the kind where you finish it yourself). Oh, and a lot better than Ikea.
What would be the places in the Washington, D.C., area to find cheap, solid furniture – bookshelves, desks, end tables, dining tables, etc. I don’t even care if it’s not very good looking, so long as they look like they’ll last forever.
It’s very cheap stuff. It does look nice - I bought a tsotchke box there that lost it’s hinges in 6 months.
Let’s see, I’ve got a round end table by the couch and a side table thing up against the wall in the living room. Oh, and two of those brassy looking hurricane-glass things (sconce, they called it?). And a mirror.
No complaints so far, quality-wise. Of course, its not like the wall items will wear out (and they look nice). Neither table gets much use. My wife has placed “arrangements” on them for show. And they look nice.
BTW, never pay “full price” for a Bombay item. Most of the time, a majority of the items have a red 25% off tag. Actually, the 25% off price should be considered the “regular retail.” I know they just jack the price up in order to create the illusion of savings, but whatever. Just don’t overpay. If the item you want doesn’t have the red tag, just ask the manager for the 25%. Worked for us. Or wait a couple of weeks.
We have purchased 2 items from Bombay
-
a curio… looks nice, works well, no problems… but as others have said it’s decorative and it’a not like i’m leaning on it all day long.
-
A bed… looked great… after about 2 years hough it stared getting squeaky and rickety… just cheaply made.
Another vote here for purchasing decorative or none weight bearing items from them. If it’s a piece used to bear any weight go for something else.