I’ve been thrifting furniture for decades now from antique stores, Craiglist, Facebook Marketplace, yard sales, salvage shops, etc, etc. It’s a great way to bring unique, well-made pieces into your home without spending a fortune. Plus it’s better for the environment than buying new. A win-win. Of course not everything on Facebook Marketplace is a winner, so I wanted to share 8 things I look for in second-hand furniture…

First, I should mention that I buy all sorts of items second-hand - tables, art, rugs, side chairs, dressers, beds, couches, the list goes on and on. And because I get asked often, no I don’t worry too much about upholstered furniture and bed bugs, at least not beyond my control. Let me explain…

are you worried about bed bugs?

When I buy upholstered furniture, I look for bugs in the seams and crevices of a piece (a flash light can help illuminate dark spaces) and I’ve even been known to leave chairs outside on our porch for a week in freezing temps to be extra sure. But otherwise I have faith that people won’t knowingly sell items that are infested to others. I also rationalize that I risk bed bugs every time we go to a hotel, Airbnb, or friends house, and those places never worry me, so I try not to catastrophize with upholstered furniture. That’s just me. But I’m guessing anyone that’s had to deal with bed bugs in their home will have a drastically different stance on second-hand furniture and clothes than me, and I 100% appreciate that.

Buying second-hand furniture takes extra time and energy. There’s the hours (and hours and hours) spent hunting for it, the back-and-forth with the seller, and the picking up and moving of the piece. So the furniture we buy better be worth all that.

Here’s what I look for in second-hand furniture…

solid wood

I have a ‘no particle-board’ policy when it comes to second-hand furniture. Solid wood will last longer, hold up better, and generally be worth the effort thrifting furniture takes. This often means older pieces of furniture, but it can also be well-made newer pieces as well.

Brand Names

Searching Facebook Marketplace for brand names is a great way to navigate it. Ethan Allen and Pottery Barn are two frequent search terms in my queue, because those brands usually use solid wood and the pieces hold up well. On the flip side, I almost always skip anything with a Target, IKEA, Walmart tag on it. We’re looking for unique, well-made pieces that’ll last, not inexpensive ones we can find at the store right now.

Details, details, details

The charm of a piece is usually in the details. Turned spindle legs on Jenny Lind beds. Spoon carvings on cabinets. The buttery patina of vintage leather. Those little knobs on the side rails of rope beds. We’re looking for quality pieces with that extra something, that je ne sais quoi that makes them feel oh so special.

upholstery

I’m all about thrifting couches, chairs, and other upholstered items as long as the fabric is in good shape. I don’t buy upholstered furniture looking to reupholster them usually (that’s an expensive headache I’d rather avoid) so I look for quality, natural fabric in cool prints or colors that I like now and think I’ll continue to like. I also make sure there are no stains or anything on the piece that some baking soda and a solid vacuum can’t handle.

no Smells & pests

If a piece of furniture smells or comes from a smoking home, it’s a hard pass. It’s really difficult to remove smells from furniture no matter how much baking soda you sprinkle on it. And of course if there’s any obvious signs of bugs, it’s a “NO” again.

Make sure I LOVE it

It takes a lot of time and energy to look for second-hand furniture, schedule with the seller, and then pick it up and move it. And that’s all before it ever makes it into your home. So I try and make sure every piece I buy is something I really love and feel is worthy of my (and Garrett’s) time and energy.

How clean is the house?

When picking up a piece from someone’s home, I like to take a little peek around and see how clean and cared-for their home is. The rationale being that if someone lovingly cares for their home, they likely also lovingly care for their furniture, too.

Have a spot for it

Okay, I don’t always follow this rule, but I try to only buy furniture I actually have a spot for. That means I shouldn’t be searching for Jenny Lind beds when we don’t have a room makeover planned. Of course sometimes I do just that. But so often when I buy something we don’t actually have a spot for, it just ends up taking space in our basement and doesn’t get to be appreciated.

A note on Facebook Marketplace

Lately I’ve found the best items and best deals on second-hand furniture on Facebook Marketplace. I bought a 4-poster spindle bed for $100. A darling chaise lounge for $90. A leather Pottery Barn chair and couch for $30. It’s the place most people are selling their stuff, at least in our neck of the woods (Washington State). So here are a few tips to maximizing your success rate on that platform…

Search often (like 2x/day). The good stuff goes fast!
Only click on and save things you’re currently looking for. Facebook has an algorithm and once you click on some random adventure van you have no intention of actually buying (just me?) it’ll add similar items to your feed and you’ll miss the things you are actually interested in.
Be pleasant when you start a conversation with the seller, offer to pick up the item right away, and throw in a “thanks!” whenever you can. They likely have gotten a lot of messages, so make your’s stand out.
You have to be present to win. A lot of sellers have a first-come policy, so being ready to pick up the item asap is helpful. And for the sellers that are willing to hold the item for you, I find a day or two in the future is all they’ll usually wait. We live 100 miles from Seattle so when I know we’re going over, I’ll start looking for furniture one or two days before our trip. Then we schedule a bunch of pick-ups for the next day and pray the items don’t get sold to someone else first (which happens allllll the time :(.
Big cities are less expensive than small towns - this might just be our area, but I’ve found that the second-hand furniture prices in Seattle are a LOT less than they are in our small town 100 miles away. I suspect that it’s because there’s more selection in the city, but either way, it’s worth looking at nearby areas if you’re in a small town.
The best prices are on big, heavy wood furniture that’s hard to move (wardrobes and armoires are often under $100) and long upholstered couches. Wardrobes and armoires are frequently under $100 if not free, and couches have to be in near-perfect condition to sell at all, and you can find a really nice one for $200. It always makes me second-guess buying new furniture.

And just for fun, here are the 6 search terms I use most on FBMP right now: “writing desk” “Jenny Lind” “Pottery Barn” “Ethan Allen” “Pine” "dining table” “dresser”.