Source: ezinearticles.com
Listed below are three ideas on where you can find furniture and accessories at a fraction of the cost you'll find in Retail stores. If you put your creative mind to work or enlist the help of a interior designer you can turn these low cost finds into "one of a kind" works of art for you home.
Flea Markets & Swap Meets: These are wonderful places to find some one of a kind accessory items and inexpensive wall art. Most Flea Markets will have local artists who are showcasing their work and it can range from paintings to candle stick holders or decorative plates. Swap Meets will have wide variety of collectable items and unique treasures you can use as accessories. The Flea Market and Swap Meet prices are normally pretty good but don't be afraid to ask for their best price, the vendors here normally expect it and have marked up their items accordingly. If you're not sure of how to find a Flea Market or Swap Meet in your area, contact your local Chamber and they should be able to provide this information, or you can do an internet search by typing in "Flea Market (your State here)".
Good Will/ Thrift Store or Salvation Army: As a business we get credits for furniture we donate to our local Good Will or Salvation Army. We've donated thousands and thousands of dollars worth of furniture to our local Salvation Army alone, some of it scratch anddent whileothers were simply manufacturer errors or discontinued items we were required to give if we wanted to be reimbursed by our supplier. Thrift stores will sell a 1000.00 item for pennies on the dollar and why not, it's all profit for them.
Auction Houses: While eBay and online auctions are a good place to find furniture, it seems lately they have been swamped with businesses posting a "buy now price" that's pretty close to retail or they'll have a high reserve where if your winning bid doesn't meet the reserve you won't get the item you've bid on. Google or use your favorite search engine to find Auction Houses in your area, they consistently have absolute auctions where the highest bidder wins. They range from Estate sells to Mom and Pop's furniture stores retiring. Normally they have websites where you can look at a pictures of what's being auctioned, find some basic information on who's selling and when its happening and directions or a map to the location so you'll have a good idea of what to expect and how far it is if you decide to make the trip. With a lot of Mom and Popfurniture stores retiring or going out of business right now the Auction Houses have been a good resource to unload the remaining inventory they have left so it should be easy to find one near you or at leastwith in a few hours drive.
Liston Gainey
President Furnituregeek
http://www.furnituregeek.com
We specialize in offering Name Brand Furniture at extreme discounted prices. We have 60 yrs in the furniture business and 10 yrs on the web. Visit us today for savings on Broyhill, Hooker Furniture, Action Lane, Bernhardt, Stanley Young America, Lea Kids, American Drew, Kincaid and many more
Check our what our customers say about us here http://www.furnituregeek.com/testimonials.php