18 Frugal Furniture Shopping Secrets (page 2 of 6)

Auction Patter

Like flea markets, auctions -- if you know how to work them -- can yield marvels.

• Arrive early. Look over pieces that you're interested in during the presale period. Ask the attendant or auctioneer what the piece is likely to bring -- that will usually give you a good estimate of the item's true worth.
  
  
• Avoid bidding wars. Decide in advance what your top bid for an item will be and stick to that price. Otherwise, you may go home with a really overpriced piece.
  
  
• Stay late. Some of the best bargains can be snagged after most of the bidders have gone home.
  
  

Other Auction Options
Moving and storage auctions often provide fabulous deals on furniture. Movers periodically auction off unclaimed goods out of their warehouses. Check newspaper classified ads or contact local movers for dates.

Business bankruptcies can yield bargains. For example, when a restaurant closes, it may auction off additional items, such as a car or a computer. Most bidders will be there for the tables, chairs, kitchen appliances, and supplies, so you may get the other stuff for pennies.

Antique Advice
If you decide to invest in an antique, make sure that you know what you are paying for. Consult collectors' guidebooks listing the prices of similar items sold at auction within the last year. (Most public libraries have such books.) Also check prices at other antique stores. If the item is very costly, consult an appraiser.

If the piece has had alterations or repairs, you can often get the dealer to reduce the price. Check for such clues as legs made of a different wood, new screws, or machine-cut braces. Then bargain.

Make Your Own Milk Paint
A staple of the 19th century, milk paint produces a soft, flat finish that can add a patina of age even to new furniture. Lime, whiting (finely powdered calcium carbonate), and paint pigment are sold at paint stores and some home centers; litmus paper can be found at pharmacies. Make milk paint for immediate use. If you must store it for a day or two, refrigerate it. If you need to strip off milk paint, use household ammonia. On most furniture, put a coat of shellac on top to increase the milk paint's longevity.

You Will Need
3 tablespoons white vinegar
4 cups milk
1 ounce slaked lime
2 to 2-1/2 lbs. dried pigment
Litmus paper
Whiting as desired


What to Do
1. Combine the vinegar and milk in an old pan and heat gently until the mixture curdles. Stir in the lime until well mixed.

2. Test the mixture with litmus paper: If the paper turns red, it is too acid -- add more lime; if it turns dark blue, it is too alkaline -- add more sour milk. Keep testing until the pH is balanced.

3. Stir in the whiting until you reach a paint-like consistency. Then slowly sprinkle in the pigment, stirring constantly, until the color is as desired. Makes 1 quart.

Faux Antiques
If you love the look of antiques but tremble at the price tags, buy a new or relatively new piece at a garage sale or thrift store and distress it yourself. The goal is not a perfect finish -- quite the opposite! You're trying to create the illusion of use over the years, not a pristine patina.

Create a random pattern of dents on wooden furniture by banging the surfaces using a piece of wood studded with nails, a ring of keys, a chain, stones, or other blunt or jagged objects. Sand away any splinters or rough spots.

Smooth sharp edges with sandpaper. Make sure all the corners and edges are slightly rounded so that the furniture gives the appearance of years of loving use.

Be colorful! For authenticity, select colors that were commonly used in a particular historical period or architectural style. Experiment on pieces of scrap wood until you've pinpointed the color that you like the best.

Use old-fashioned paints for an old-fashioned finish. Milk paint, used for centuries, has made a huge comeback in furniture and decorating styles. Made of milk protein, pigments, and lime, milk paint is sold in home centers, paint stores, and some hardware stores. For a more authentic look and a lot less money, make your own and paint an unfinished piece in a classic style.

• • Decorating
• • Shopping Guides
• • Wood Furniture
• • Frugal Shopping

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• Preparing Surfaces for Stenciling
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“ Boot shopping? When sizing, allow room for an extra pair of socks. If boots are too tight, feet can become colder. ”

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Each new patient at the clinic where I work must fill out a questionnaire asking basic health and personal-history questions. One query that inevitably gets a "No" answer is, "Do you now use or have you ever used recreational drugs?" We were unprepared for the response of a young newlywed who wrote: "Yes—birth-control pills."   

-- Frances Bowen