Furniture

Furniture

There are a variety of organisations who want furniture, depending on it’s condition. Outlets offering furniture for sale, in particular, have to be careful about soft-furnishings (not meeting modern safety standards). However, if furniture is being exchanged between individuals through community organisations such as Gumtree, Freegle and Freecycle then newer standards do not have to be met.

Categories

Antique Furniture – This can be sold through auction houses. It may be possible that it can be sold even if in need of restoration (although obviously the price will be less)

Reproduction Furniture – Some auction houses may also be interested in this, if it is in good condition.

Notable Branded Furniture (not necessarily antique) – Can and will sell on Ebay. It may be helpful to use an intermediary (such as Stuff U Sell) to handle the sale (because they can arrange transportation).

Everyday Furniture In Good Condition – there are some second-hand shops, some charity shops, and some charities who may be interested (but in the case of soft-furnishings) only if it conforms to modern safety standards

Furniture That Still Has Life In It – Even if furniture is assessed by the experts (such as surveyors) as having no value (and only worth braking up), if it is in reasonable (or in some cases good condition) or at any rate still has a fair amount of life in it (for example good solidly made furniture from the 1950s to the 1970s) then it is often possible to find homes for it via community organisations such as Freegle, Freecycle and Gumtree. However, the taker has to arrange collection, and this can sometimes be problematic, owing to transportation difficulties. (It may be worth noting that some mini-cab firms may have a man-with-a-van able to make a journey).

Furniture In Need Of Repair – If an item of furniture is currently of not much use, but is at least in a repairable condition, for example a much battered antique bookcase, or a glass-topped coffee-table minus it’s glass, then it may be worth trying to find a home for it via a furniture scheme, or via a community organisation such as Gumtree, Freegle, or, Freecycle; since either the item may be of interest to someone who can repair it, or wants to get it repaired. Or someone embarking on learning furniture restoration may want a suitable item to practice on. In which case they might then try to find a proper home for it once they have finished repairing it.

Furniture In Very Poor Condition - If furniture is really in extremely poor condition, such that a home for it cannot be found, then it is worth seeing (if made of wood, and especially if made of a hard to obtain wood) if it can be disposed of as wood.