apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Not at all pleased with the quality -- you get what you pay for I guess. Everything I ordered was *smaller* than I had expected. Like, mini furniture. And clearly of pressboard with a thin veneer.

But dirt cheap. Quality=Ikea because Price = Ikea. Students will love it because you can furnish a place on the cheap and then drunk frat dudes can come over and split the furniture in half with a couple karate chops.

I have to second the quality comment. I bought a wood table that looked like it had a chunky 2 inch thick solid wood top, but it turned out the top was hollow, like an interior door. They definitely don't mention that in the catalog copy.

I went to the Dumbo store and was very let down. Poor quality, everything looks the same. All the fabric is either oily purple or rusty green. Sequins sprinkled all over. Only the lamps seemed cool.

There are some awesome new inclusions in the Fall catalog. Can't vouch for the quality, but some great new stuff, in a catalog that looks better than ever.

Does anybody know why EQ3 closed uptown? The quality is about the same as West Elm but the design is much more modern and sleek.

I've ordered extensively from West Elm, mainly because of their affordable prices. But take note, the prices are good because the quality is NOT!! Add to that, customer service is poor - reps. are distant and inept. Quality is at times lesser than IKEA. It's okay, but check out www.cb2.com. - It's crate & Barrel's version of West Elm.

EQ3 didn't necessarily close. The man who owned Straight from the Crate turned it into an EQ3 store (EQ3 is a franchise) but the franchise was taken away from him because he wasn't properly representing the brand.

Do you offer a catalog?

Wow, I wish I found this site before I spent nearly a grand on West Elm furniture. It's worst than Ikea and way over priced for the quality of furniture. It's true that it's affordable for starter NY apartments, but everything thing is flimsy made and can break, scratch and fall apart with one touch. Take it from my first hand experience and avoid spending a dime on the furniture. You will be highly disappointed and upset as I am.

Actually, I just bought a cofee table, futon frame, futon matress, and futon cover from westelm.com and I am 100% satisfied. They deliver very fast. I'm even planning to buy more-a side table and a lamp. I don't understand why you guys think that the quality is bad. No, the quality is really good. But I agree that they are expensive. So, I also don't understand you who think they are cheap. How much do you guys make? $100K/year? My advice is buy westelm if you can afford it and like the style-their style is really special, like nothing else. Otherwise, don't. I am a real customer, live in Tampa, FL. I wonder if some of the people above work for other furniture stores?

Thanks for the info about the quality, kept me from making a purchase. Does anyone have any suggestions for a place that sells furniture of a similar style of West Elm, but isn't that crappy particle board with veneer stuff (I'm amazed at the euphemisms catalogs use for particle board these days - now it's 'engineered wood'). I'm looking for bookshelves similar to the West Elm style, but with solid wood.

Lies, Lies, Lies, WEST ELM Furniture is the poorest I’ve seen. Some of these people must work for the company. Solid wood my ass!!! Imagine those cheap old hollow wood doors, this furniture is even worse that that. I had the please of visiting the NY store and the veneer, if you can even call it that, chips off with a fingernail scratch, and exposes the hollow, not even solid, particle board underneath.

This is a great example of how a good photographer, nice website, and good marketing can sell total crap to the public.


A great alternative is www.holdeverything.com

I have bought from them and thier wood is SOLID.

I love your site.
It´s really a pleasure to read through all this interesting stuff and it home.

Thanks thanks! you kept me from making a big mistake...

I thought that the furniture was crap, I did however like the style and prices of the dinnerware, glasses and pillows. The customer service is terrible. Stay away unless you are looking for some decorative ideas and items.

Wow - lots of west elm bashing - but thanks for the references to cb2 and holdeverything - i still like west elm's design better - i didn't see much (if any) difference in cb2 than ikea - i like ikea and all but their design tends to be a bit immature - maybe it's a tampa thing because i live in tampa too and i like west elm and the prices aren't really aren't all that cheap to me either - ($2K-$3K before shipping) isn't exactly walmart :>

I love West Elm's design for the price. Some of their pieces do look like laminate, however, I think it really depends on the color and the piece itself. I ordered a bench and it looks just as great as real wood - it's not hollow either. Based on the catalog and website, Hold Everything pieces look like laminate. CB2 prices are just as high at Crate & Barrel with a modern twist. My 2 cents.

This is absolutely the WORST store I've ever been to. We ordered a couch & chair, then when they didn't the couch when they were supposed to I called. They had sold it to someone else. So, they were going to stick me with a chair and no couch!

I had to argue to get my money back and to get them to take the stupid chair back.

When I looked at the company's profile on the BBB, they have complaints. I think it's just a crappy company. Don't buy from them, and don't believe a word they say!

I think you guys are being too harsh. The stuff is not heirloom quality, no doubt, but I don't think it is as crappy as some of you guys say. I bought a couple of the big 4x 3 rolling storage units. They look great, for the same price as those crappy shelving units at Office Depot, and at least the shelves don't warp under the weight of my books. I also bought a platform bed from them (NOT the collapsing one you can read about elsewhere) and I'm satisfied with it. Don't hate on West Elm!

I had a good experience ordering a daybed and shelving unit from westelm.com. I have had no issues with quality and have gotten plenty of compliments.

they just opened a store in san diego...service is GREAT...honestly, maybe an SD thing

really love their chunky wood look, which is unlike anything else but was scared away by this website. shopped around a ton and decided to take a chance... true, everything seems fragile but i dont' have drunk guys coming over to do karate chops so i just have to take good care of them.

bought a dining table, sideboard, coffee table, and still going back to the store every other week... a little expensive for the quality but their sales are great, especially on furniture.

I ordered quite a few pieces of west elm furniture before I realized just how poor the quality of things is. It's clearly pressed wood with a veneer finish and it warps easily under water or heavy objects. I wouldn't recommend this store at all, despite the attractive look of the furntiture. It's not worth it.

I just bought a ton of things from west elm-- from their sectional couch to platform bed to their simple desk and have absolutely no problems with either the quality of their furniture nor their customer service. I've seen a lot of crappy furniture for the same price range and am very happy with everything that I bought. I agree though that Ikea, for the most part, does suck. Except for their metal locker-style cabinets which I find to be the best steal around.

Uh, I think it's funny that people are recommending holdeverything, because it's owned by the same parent company as west elm (Williams-Sonoma, which also owns Pottery Barn.)

I happen to like it.

Here's the thing...yes, West Elm furniture pretty much sucks. But! I bought a silver Christmas tree from them a year ago and I keep it up year round, and just keep re-decorating for each season. It is now covered in fabulous hearts, and soon will be bathed in green flood lights and empty heineken "kegs" for, you got it, St. Patrick's Day. Dig it.

Never bought anything from West Elm, but their stuff looks derivative of IKEA and way overpriced. Not sure why anyone would want to buy anything from West Elm or CB2 when IKEA is available. As far as IKEA quality, we have several chairs from IKEA that are 10+ years old and are holding up well.

West Elms product is the worst. The bi-level coffe table requires assembly which is a complete nuisance. The screws dont fit into the holes provided, neither does teh locking mechanism work. Ikea is by far batter in terms of quality, and assembly is a breeze. Customer service is a complete pain in the ass.

I wonder if the people who are touting the Hold Everything brand as being better than West Elm realize it is the same thing. IE - both Williams-Sonoma brands, and the same merchandise just a diff. color. BTW - if you can't put their furniture together in less than 30 min., you probably need a handicap sticker on your forehead. *Most* of their furniture is very good quality, even if it isn't all solid wood. My vehicle isn't solid steel, but it is better because of it.

I wonder if anyone can actually tell me how good the bed frames are. From what I read on the webside, they are supposed to be solid wood, although it is cheap then and it makes me suspicious. A friend told me that they got a bed frame from West Elm a few years ago and it is perfectly good.

So, among those who mentioned that wood warps and the furniture sucks, any of you guys are talking about bed frames or other items?

Lina

Lina,
You are correct. It pays to do the research. The furniture is low quality including the bed frames. Some people might be OK with it, but they are not concerned it lasting very much. Do not buy if you are a heavy sleeper or a heavy set person. Good luck.

Mike

The bedframe i have is great. it's inexpensive and hasn't caused me any problems - plus it was less that 250!!! the stuff doesn't last "forever" but if it lasts me more than 5 years, i know i got what i paid for.

- french

Here's a good idea. Although some or most items from the stores mentioned above are of "lesser quality (ie: they suck), they seem to carry some items that may be worth a purchase. Someone said the West Elm metal locksers were nice... and the Ikea chairs seem to hold up.

Perhaps everyone can work together to compile a list of stuff that holds up... stuff you would actually recommend b/c u have purchased and used it. It would nice to mention specific items.. even model numbers...

Just a thought.
I'm going to take a stroll through the West Elm in Santa Monica. I really need a nice futon but don't know where to get one... I don't want anything thats gunna break (like the one I have now).

Are most of the people here in the higher tax brackets? I have a decent salary but I cannot fathom spending the sort of money on home items that many of these stores list. I like the design of many of the boutiques and shops but if I paid a bunch of money for plates, I'd have no money for food to put on those plates. Unfortunately, stores like West Elm and Ikea offer the prices that I can afford - especially since I don't even own a home. Am I missing something here?

I am in the process of returning a dining table that I recevied last fall. It is a simple small chocolate table, which looks great but has functionally been poor. Breathing on it seems to scratch the top and a few encounters with water has warped the wood. It is not functional as a place to eat.

DID ANY OF YOU EVER CONSIDER THAT PEOPLE WHO PURCHASED FURNITURE FROM WEST ELM AND ARE HAPPY WITH IT, WOULD MOST LIKELY SPEND THEIR TIME SITTING ON THEIR BRAND NEW WEST ELM SOFA INSTED OF WASTING THEIR TIME POSTING MESSAGES ON THE INTERENT?

I recently bought a lot of stuff from West Elm. I am ok with the quality - you know that you aren't exactly paying top dollar when you buy West Elm - and their design are nice. But we had so many problems with the order that really pointed to the fact that this is a cheap, shody chain. A large sticker on the top face of a TV unit that left a large glue patch, lamp shades with black smudges. The list is endless which points to the fact that they want to position themselves as the cheap and don't care about quality.

I agree with IQ. All you posters bitchin' about your purchase, get a life. You got what you paid for and be happy with it. Don't blame your miserable existence on the best thing you've bought in a long time. You didn't pay a couple grand for your furniture. You paid only a few hundred bucks tops. Channel your negative energy into something constructive like makin your own furniture so we don't have to hear you bitch, Bitch!

Uh yeah, dude, spending your time on furniture forums calling people bitches, that must be quite a life.

If you can't afford quality stuff, I recommend going to Salvation army and buying some cheap used furniture, at least it'll be real wood. West Elm makes nothing worth buying at those prices.

Thanks for opening my eyes to the poor quality of West ELM products. I had heard of it from a friend and decided to research and to my surprise I guess he was right.
Thanks again I won't be wasting my money with West ELM.
Marcy

I have a West Elm dining room table and headboard+frame. Both are excellent quality and incredibly sturdy. I AVOID any furniture on their site that requires assembly. That's the IKEA route I'm trying to avoid.

I visited the store in Portland and all the furniture that was "whole" was solid and strong. Anything requiring assembly was not.

Stay away from anything requiring assembly and you should be okay.

For example the "sideboard with cubby" is assembly required, while the "farmhouse buffett" (in chocolate) does not. You can see the difference in quality in the pictures. Look at how the wood on the sideboard looks like a laminate.

One other thing...their Limed Blond natural wood is a bit distracting - more so than the pictures indicate. Unfortunately, that leaves you with chocolate for most of their stuff, unless it's stocked in their new Acorn finish.

I agree with the bad quality comments, I purchased several pieces of furniture about a year ago and all have begun to fall apart. I live alone and don't have much company over, so it's not because of "normal evry day usage". Nothing is made of solid wood, the top of my dresser started to warp and crack within months and the bed frame support broke almost instantly. After reading other reviews about the bed frame, I found I wasn't the only one with this problem, apparently all of them do this. What I find alarming is that West Elm continues to sell these items and does nothing about upgrading the quality. Like many have said, you get what you pay for, next time I'll save a little more and go to a real furniture store.

Uhhh...I was just curious after reading all that about West Elm's pillow covers. I was about to purchase around $70 worth of pillow covers b/c we just bought a new couch and chair (from Norwalk--highly recommend their lower end models--much more for your money in terms of quality and warranty!) and are draping our 1970s brown sectional with muslin fabric (saw the idea in a decorating book) for our basement family room. I wanted some new pillow covers to update the look. Should I save my money?

Style is good, quality is mediocre and service is just plain bad. Went to their DC store today. The barstools were not in stock at the store or their regional distribution center and a salesperson said he was "not allowed" (his words) to come to my assistance anywhere besides the register area. Went to the website to order the barstools -- shipping costs were expected, but an additional $30 to "compensate our company for processing your order"...that is just insulting. Their response to my email complaint on the processing charge was pathetic. I just ordered similar barstools on cb2 for $70 less (including shipping costs).

I bought a cal king bed frame and low headboard. It is solid wood. Assembly was fairly easy and quick (although attaching the headboard was challenging with the position of the bottom screw). The stuff is dirt cheap and looks great. I did the rest of the room with Ikea brown-black bedroom furniture and the two brands mesh perfectly. The people that work there are totally nice and helpful (San Diego). Been sleeping on the bed for two weeks now and no issues.

EAT you posted about your purchase at West Elm cal king bed frame and low headboard. Do you have the name of the bed? I would like to take a look at their beside for a photo.

I want to like West Elm, I really do but they keep letting me down. I just ordered what I thought was the upolstered slipcover headboard only to have a private delivery truck hand deliver the slipcover only! The website listed this as "upolstered headboard includes one slipcover." So be warned you may not always get what you think you are ordering with them.
I agree furniture quality is on par with Ikea. If you want better quality go to Crate and Barrel.

I also live in Tampa and have found a company called Davani's. They have two locations. A new one opened in South Tampa (Kennedy Blvd) Good quality as well as price. They carry EQ3 and Lifestyle Solutions.

Just a message to all you immature people posting mean messages. You say we have nothing better to do with our time but post messages, well what are YOU doing? I think this is a great site for people who want to know what they are getting into. I'm glad I found it, it prevented me from making a mistake and spending hard earned cash on this poor-quality furniture. There's no room for rude people like you. Get a life.

I will start off with the fact that I work for West Elm, (but, I am also a design student at a well-known school). In my opinion, which is just that: my opinion--some of the furniture is good, some of the furniture is bad. Essentially, you get what you pay for. (Do a little research before you purchase). The decorative accessories and other odds-and-ends are reasonably-priced and a good way to decorate.

West Elm furniture is very low quality. I bought a metal frame bed on which the support bar broke off after 1 time of 'bed use'. And this was not out of the ordinary 'bed use'. I was too embarrassed to call the company until a year later since the homemade part I constructed was just not right either. And then they sent it to the wrong address, my old apartment thousands of miles away. Poor customer service along with poor quality furniture. You get what you pay for.

I bought the ready to assemble "Storage Bench" and managed to break the screwheads off of two cams and crack the back piece while assembling. Very brittle "wood" and the hardware is of poor quality also. Stay away for the ready to assemble "wood" furniture. Returning it tomorrow...lets see how their customer service is.

West Elm Miami horrible customer service, they charged me the cost of a bed who was oversold, they sold same bed to 3 more customers. When I went to shipping to pick it up, upsss sorry there it's not bed in here. How do you that?
Their response to phone calls on the processing charge was pathetic, they never call back.
Good prices does not mean bad service !!!
This is the WORST furniture store I have been.

Well - I have a Pottery Barn question if anyone can help me. Bought a chair in 2004 -wingback with linen slipcover -for our bedroom. Not by a window, not under lighting, rarely used. Just for show. About 8 months after purchase, noticed that just the slipcover on the chair cushion was bleaching out on all sides. Rest of the slipcover on the chair like new. We finally realized what the problem might be - There is a white zip on pillow case type cover over the foam chair cushion. I firmly believed that this was processed with some kind of bleaching agent and is leaching into the slipcover. Trying to get PB to address, but I might as well jump off a bridge. Has anyone heard of this?

My 2 cents re: West Elm. The stuff looks cool, but you have to be careful what you buy, based on all of the complaints above, the pricing, and how crappy some of the stuff seems in person.

I got a samll couch for $700 (approx) about two years ago; I didn't want to go to Ikea due to a lot of their crappy furniture I've seen over the years, and everything else that I liked was way more $ than I wanted to spend; I wasn't sure on West Elm but I took a chance. It was a total hassle to assemble it. Fortunately, the couch frame's holding up fine (knock on particle board), although the cusioning is getting a little spongey, but that at least is fixable. My biggest fear was that a $700 couch would be falling apart by now, but so far, so good. FYI, I'm single and live alone so it doesn't get a lot of abuse.

I wasn't a huge fan of the Brooklyn store; they were out of stock of what I wanted and just weren't helpful.

I have purchased the platform bed from West Elm and two low cubby side tables. I have been happy with them so far, except they do tend to scratch.

i previously ordered the rolling cubby unit and they sent me the wrong pieces. They did have UPS pick it up, but that took longer than expected.

I was thinking about purchasing a sectional, but after reading these comments, probably won't. Thank you for helping me make my decision. If it says "assembly required", most likely it is not quality furniture.

If you value your hard earned money you'll regret the day you purchase any furniture from west elm. I purchased a complete set of pario furniture in 2005, enticed by their current styles and comparatively lower prices. However, the quality is pathetic and as the parent company, Williams-Sonoma should be ashamed of themselves. It took 9 weeks from the first shipment to arrive, til the final piece. I sent back 80% of the order due to splintered & chipped wood. Each shipment contained damaged goods, but I pieced together separate components from each shipment to construct a usable product. 8 months later, the espresso stain had faded, the wooden slats warped away from the joints and many of the pieces were again splintered. Very cheap. Very disappointing. And the customer service was below satisfaction.

I just purchased their "Modern Storage Console" yesterday, needed a new TV stand and I loved the retro modern look. Well, i get around to putting it together today and holy crap, what a piece of crap this thing is. Im headed back to the store tommorrow to see what I can get done about this. Their locking mechanisms DO NOT WORK. the top of my tv stand slides RIGHT OFF when you grab it by its underside. If I cant get them to make this right, im going to have to mod the thing myself to make it usable. Inexcusably poor quality. The Ikea "Markor" entertainment center I had before this was 2/3 the price and stayed in one piece without flaw. Avoid West Elm furniture.

West Elm's furniture scratches and isn't the best quality, yes. But it is quite cheap-in comparison to brand names. If anyone has problem with scratches on the wood furniture, just ask the store for a cover-up pen. It's what the store uses to keep their furniture on the floor looking good. Some of their textiles aren't very soft even if they are "250 thread count" and prices seem comprable to stores like ikea and target. The most fantastic product they have are their towels. They wash very well and are sooooo soft! I also like the basic collection of pillows and duvet inserts. As for solid wood v. engineered wood, their furniture acutually utilizes both. The legs of furniture are always solid wood while generally most of the rest of the construction is engineered. There is furniture that is constructed with more hard wood such as the narrow leg dresser set, you just need to ask when purchasing.

ex-West Elm employee

West Elm has a problem which is they are expensive for build- it-yourself furniture with fair/poor quality pieces. I went to their store with caution after reading these reviews. I live in Miami and their stores are relatively new down here and the showrooms are beautiful. The pieces look good from a distance until you touch them. They are obviously made from pressed wood with wood veneers and, yes, some have a hollow sound to them. I must disagree with previous comments that they are bargains, they are not. I refuse to pay $800.00 for a sofa and have to built it even if it is just putting on the legs. I also refuse to pay over $500.00 for a dresser that I have to build myself. I can find similar clean lines chairs/sofas at other furniture stores with similar prices and are already built. West Elm will also charge you for them to built the furniture for you which will further increase the price. Their accessories/housewares can easily be found at Target for cheap. Also with IKEA about to open down here, they are in for stiff competition.

If you are in New York,then try www.nycbed.com or www.bigapplefuton.com.I got a solid wood dresser from them for $300.

Wow thanks for the heads upon the furniture. I enjoy the West Elm catalog every month and will probably still buy some of their accessories because they are nice and aren't too expensive. I'm looking for a new couch though, a sofa bed in particular. I live in Manhattan, any suggestions where to find a nice one besides C&B?

Okay, if you're still reading this old post you were probably burned by West Elm too! My story is a little different. I tried to order stuff by phone but they were so difficult, didn't want to honor a discount I was given, that I decided not to go through with the order. Imagine my surprise the next morning when I checked my email and found that the order had been placed and I was now out $800. When I called to complain, I was told that they may or may not be able to stop the shipment and couldn't seem to understand why I was upset! I have now spent 2 days trying to get back my money from them, and am looking into filing credit card fraud charges against them through my bank.
DO NOT BUY FROM WEST ELM IF YOU VALUE YOUR SANITY!

Just purchased/received a cut-out bookshelf from West Elm. Loved the look, hated the price (cost over $500 with taxes/shipping). The piece was shipped well, very protected, and for good reason. Once you start assembling the thing (directions were very good), if you LOOK at it wrong it will damage the wood. I slipped and a shelf fell onto the side of the bookshelf - it made a HUGE HOLE in the wood! Which was obviously hollow! My husband and I were horrified. Granted the wood would have been scratched or dented with normal quality furniture - but a hole?!? This stuff is not worth the price. It looks great, but I am wary of the day we have to pack up and move to a new home, if ever - this bookshelf will probably be shredded in the process. We can't believe IKEA is sturdier than this crap.

Also, if anyone wants to write to West Elm, here are some names and addresses. I am going to pen a letter to them as soon as I'm done here:

Dave M. DeMattei
Group President, Williams-Sonoma, Williams-Sonoma Home, west elm

Laura J. Alber
President

W. Howard Lester
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer

Williams-Sonoma, Inc.
3250 Van Ness Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94109

Let them know how you feel, refuse to purchase their products, etc. ...this is the only way companies can improve and get REAL feedback (don't email, it usually goes nowhere) from customers. Likewise, if you love West Elm, do the same of course. :)

I like West Elm for their lamps and accessories. Would I buy furniture from them? No. But like IKEA, they are a good source for the little things.