Dear Joe,
I ordered a sideboard for my dining room. About a week after it was delivered, I noticed a couple of scratches and a severe nick in the piece that I had not seen at the time of delivery. The furniture store claims no responsibility since it has been sitting here. Any suggestions? Can I have this piece repaired?
Nicked
Dear Nicked,
I'm very sorry to hear about your misadventure!
This brings up the point to always thoroughly inspect all decorating items delivered to your home, and to do it before the delivery men leave. If they refuse to uncrate the item, you may be better off to refuse it. I was recently at a friend's home when a mirrored chest she had ordered arrived. The delivery man refused to uncrate it and would not wait for us to do it. We called the freight company, but they would not authorize the uncrating. Since the crate looked damaged, she refused the delivery.
That said, your situation is not hopeless. I can't advise legally on the responsibility of the furniture company, but you may want to consider having the sideboard repaired.
In fact, usually the wood furniture can be repaired quite well.
Some time back, I had the experience of watching an excellent craftsman repair a damaged sofa table. I watched with fascination as he filled in several scratches, repaired a gouge in the leg and polished out a flaw in the finish. I never thought this would have been possible considering the severity of damage. The techniques that he used were completely new to me and I learned quite a bit about how a piece of furniture can be rescued. After he finished, you couldn't tell that there had ever been any damage to the piece.
This specialized skill doesn't come cheap, but if done right, the results can be amazing!
Dear Joe,
I've started looking for new living room furniture. A designer at a furniture store showed me some pieces that she says will fit perfectly in the space. I've held off buying because I'm worried about the scale of the pieces she's suggested. It's hard to visualize and I can't bring in the pieces to test them. What's your suggestion?
Bill
Dear Bill,
You are right to be concerned about the size of the furniture.
I recently went to a new client's condo. They had already purchased 'a few upholstered pieces' for the living room. The furniture was so large that I had to squeeze between the pieces and there was no room left for tables!
There is a current trend in the furniture stores for overscaled furniture. Where these retailers think this stuff is going to fit is a mystery, especially with living spaces getting smaller. The consumers end up buying these pieces and wondering why their rooms seem so crowded!
Your first step is to measure the room completely ( including all walls, doors, windows, etc. ) . Taking these measurements, draw a floor plan of the room to scale.
Next, measure all the pieces of furniture that you are considering to buy and any of your own that you may be using. Make cutouts of these pieces to the same scale of the room and try arranging them on your floor plan. If this doesn't answer your questions and you still can't visualize it, make cutouts to actual scale out of brown wrapping paper. Arrange these just like you plan on arranging the furniture.
The designer in the furniture showroom should draw a floor plan for you. She should then sit down with you and go over it in great detail, taking into account the function of the room and your daily living habits. If she did not do this, she is no designer and is just trying to sell furniture that may not be right for you.
All of this prep work may seem like a lot of trouble, but it can save a lot of time and money. You will be able to see how the furniture fits in the room. You will also be able to determine the amount of space that you will have to move about in the room. This is one of the most important factors in creating an interior. The most eye-catching and beautiful furniture is worthless if it does not help to create a space in which you can live comfortably.
E-mail your questions to jos.riceinterios@att.net . In the subject box, fill in 'WCT Design.'
Joseph Rice is an interior decorator. With 24 years of experience, he specializes in window treatments for 'hard-to-treat' windows. You can reach him at the above e-mail address, at 773-271-2361 or his Web site at www.josephriceinteriors.com .
