Okay, here's the pitch. At the bustling blogger offices, we are working on a Apartment Therapy free classifieds system that would be exlusively for furniture, helping people get rid of and find furniture they need.
It has to be better for furniture junkies than Craigslist's furniture section. (Obviously.) We have our own ideas about how to improve on it, but want to know - those of you who use Craigslist for furniture - what improvements you would like to see. Comments below.....
And while your thinking, consider that this is our top pick because we just love the color and the price. This bright orange (vinyl?) sofa looks indesctructible (it was in a bar), and has great lines. (Thanks, Craig!) MGR
OTHER GOOD STUFF
- All Scavenger
- Vintage Herman Miller plastic chairs for $100 ea
- Green wool trad. rug (tough color! but good price) for $90
- DVD storage unit for $25
- Queen wrought iron 4 poster bed for $300
- Solid pine dining table and chairs for $800
- Leather club style couch for $650
- Vintage 70's style gold coffee table for $85
- Antique oval pedestal table for $65
- Antique display cabinet with glass door for $250
- Wow! 50's brocade armchair for $400
- Steel barrister bookcase for $300
- Directional chrome armed couch for $500
- Super cool mid century couch and chair that need a little love for $250
Craiglist improvements:
An image preview on entry titles would seriously cut down on the about of crap you need to get to in order to find something nice. (It has gotten a bit better with the addition of the "pic" tag on titles, but I believe the tag only shows up on items with pictures put up through the CL images button, not in html. It should search for html img tags.)
A way to sort by object type would be wonderful, (a.k.a. couch, chair, table, etc.)and a way to sort by style. (a.k.a modern, western, etc.)
A way to sort by price would also be good.
An email subscription based on paramaters you set would make it so I don't have to sit there constantly refreshing the page. (for example, some of my paramaters might be type: couch, chair,keywords: le corbusier, van der rohe) It would email me immediately if anything with matched with a type, and a keyword, you could throw price, and tons of other stuff on there too.
I love the "flag" option, however in order for me to find it truely useful, it needs a "this is the uglest most broken piece of crap on earth and i don't ever want to look at it again" button. There are way too many "card table, top cracked, leg missing, otherwise fine" posts.
Whether or not people deliver/mail should be an included item such as location and "it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests".
Including a section for measurements, even if it's a rough estimate, would be very helpful. Since many apartments are small, it'd be nice to know whether something would fit before bothering the seller.
Along the same line as measurements would be a condition section, not everyone mentions the giant hole in the back of their sofa, so a rating system with accurate description of what each number means would rock. (example: 1- Furniture is pretty much holding together, but I wouldn't want to eat off it. 5- Furniture is so shiney and new you'd think I kept it wrapped in plastic and installed a "Keep Off" sign.)
That's about all I've got for now.
I hate to say it, but discriminating against IKEA and Pottery Barn furniture would go a long way. Taste is a matter of opinion and there is no accounting for taste, but taking out the standard post college furniture would be a start. That way you'd get unusual and interesting pieces. And if you want IKEA either head to Brooklyn in a couple years or craigslist.
Also, furniture that is usable and not broken would be appreciated. Quality is important. Pics should be a must, atleast as a reference.
Dimensions, dimensions, dimensions! And while I'm no great Ikea or PB fan, some of their pieces taken out of context are not all bad.
How can I get an orange vinyl sofa like the on pictured in MISSOURI????
Requiring dimensions, preview pictures and the name of the source would be a great improvement over Craigslist, as would info on upholstry stuffing content, for those with allergies. Specifying how many flights are involved would be a help too. But the really crucial improvement would be excluding those damned stores and dealers that infest Craigslist, posting the same ad several times a day.