Did you know that Crate and Barrel is kicking it "Ikea Style" with their Ready to Assemble line of furniture?
They must have figured out that the "flat-pack" shipping allows the cost to come down, and the pieces look pretty Crate and Barrel-y...
This Winslow Dining Table with extension at $449 is still not cheap, but it's at least half of what these tables usually cost, so it might be worth checking things out.
Crate and Barrel has carried an "assemble by you" line of furniture in their accessory stores for years. I think this is just a new add campaign to compete with Ikea.
Most of the houseware's furniture (the assemble it yourself lines) are pretty much what you pay for. you pay $350 for a buffet, its not going to last forever, but treat it well and it will get the job done and look pretty at the same time. i still have some and if i get a scratch, i just pull out my cover-up wood sticks. there is a reason why it doesn't cost the same as the amazing furniture store lines.
as a former employee of the barrel, i can honestly say that the winslow table had the most problems of any other piece in that store. unfortunately, it is worth the cost for them to deal with all of the problems because people love the style so much, crate has had it for years. there is simply a light varnish (if any) on the top, so one drop of grape juice or red wine and the white table needs repainting. if you have kids- they are very tough on furniture and this table simply can not take the beating. there have also been basic construction issues, but they may have dealt with this in the past few years.
just be weary. if you find an employee who's been there for a while, they will be more knowledgeable and ask the right questions to make sure that you know what you are getting.
Liddy,
As one past C&B employee to another - I totally agree. I do believe that for the price it is a good value. Some of their pieces are more prone to problems than others, since they do not all come from the same vendor. From my experience working there they stand behind their product and really do try to make the customer happy. As you said the key is to find an employee that has worked there a while. I recommend going to the store during the day Mon. thru Fri.. This is usually when their full-time employees are working, who typically are better versed on the products.
i agree completely
I was considering the Gallery Dining Table from C&B. Does anyone know if this has a history of problems. It looks good in the photos.
RJS,
That table is new to C&B and is after my time working there. As I stated before - go to the store on a weekday as see what a they have to say. If you are worried about putting it together and are able to get it home assembled - C&B does offer a service to put it together for you (don't know the cost for that piece). If you do that you would be able to inspect the whole table before you brought it home.
Liddy,
I have the Windsor table (for 2 years now) and my kids have BEAT the top up. I did find that soft scrub gets just about any stain out of the white (but freaked out before I figured that out!) You mentioned repainting.... Where would I go to have that done? Thanks for any insight! :)
Joanne