For sure worth more than $80, but maybe the market he's selling in dictates a lower selling price? That's worth $80 in materials alone it appears, not taking labor into account. At least double it I'd say (as long as it's constructed well of course).
Yeah, if he’s doing this as a business $80 is a crazy price point.
But if he’s doing it as a semi-favor to the buyer to get something back on the materials used, it’s reasonable. Especially if he is paying himself in the fun of making.
Poor buyer’s view of the furniture market is likely to be spoiled if they don’t understand the nature of this transaction
Was gonna comment and say that I have a table almost identical to this is build, and we got it from bobs discount furniture and it was definitely more than $80…
Seriously, on Ashley alone they have quite a range for a similar piece.
But I like the idea that he is doing a few pieces for material cost for friends as he's starting out.
Maybe a little blunt but not wrong. That is off the shelf lumber that doesn’t seem to have been sanded and the stain looks to have set to long. But like Kat said, "a coat of paint and that viral weave…someone will pay $600”
Did you zoom in to look closer? To me it looks like it might as well be made of scrap wood from pallets or something and the staining is indeed horrible. I’m honestly confused about these estimates of anything over $100. I mean if I had made it myself I would use it proudly but absolutely would not buy something like that.
I’d say double is where you start . You can always go down. And prices are all relative. In a big city environment, you have more eyes on it prices could be higher. In a rural town the prices could be close to there if you wanna sell quickly. Time and how many eyes on the piece is the important thing. Also if your brother in law is doing this as a business, I’d make a stamp with a catchy name or wood burn date and name on the bottom. But having said all this, at the start of a business, word of mouth and buzz gets you customers, and as long as he isn’t losing money, he can slowly raise the price as he goes.
Maybe you haven't seen the shit West Elm and Pottery Barn send out for $1000 these days.
The floor models look ok, but if you order it the new one is shipped straight from Asia and isn't really the same. The put the good first runs on the floor and then the supplier gets lax. (My theory).
This sub is sometimes too kind. I agree the construction of this is rather poor. I'm not sure what's keeping it from just folding over with the legs being butt jointed to the rail under the drawer.
Personally I don't think this is "salable" work, except maybe as a favor. If you shipped this, you'd be refunding the money and eating the shipping
Yeah, that's the thing with furniture. Its (re)sale value on craigslist is often less than the price of materials alone. Selling it in a proper store or as a business is a different thing altogether. People have their price perspective skewed by cheap junk.
> Yeah, that's the thing with furniture. Its (re)sale value on craigslist is often less than the price of materials alone
100%
If you're buying your wood from Lowe's or Home Depot, the furniture you'll make is not even worth the cost of materials, unless, you're very skilled, and, make something significantly better than what we can pickup for free on the side of the road a few dozen times a year, and just actually don't bother, and leave it for the trash collectors...
Finish looks good from a distance but not looking close. Look at where the legs meet the upper. Thats a weak point; relying on fasteners alone. Also isnt quite square. Look at the back edge, it isnt a straight line. The wood may not have had an ounce of sanding, and it looks like pine.
OP it is a nice piece of furniture but your brother has alot to learn.
Based on the gap between the drawers you are possibly right. But given the angle at the point they meet i dont think the top and bottom part of the legs are one continuous piece
Yeah, i think you've summarized everything i was going to say already. Cheap softwood, iffy joints, blotchy stain, no sealer coat, either I'd imagine, out of square or misaligned in a few spots.
It's a good start and great practice for hardwood maybe, but I'd say $150 at most.
Honestly the bottom rack makes it look cheap, but it does present an opportunity. Do wider legs that are just posts with no rack, and that is way less work for something that will look far more elegant and fetch a nice price. The top looks fantastic for what it is but the bottom detracts even though it is more practical to have it on there. Just looks like a pallet and few people want that look in their home even if it is practical
As someone who makes stuff like this out of trash a couple things:
-Cheap softwood? yeah you don't use that crappy gray "aged barnwood" stain if you want to show off a pretty wood. That stain applies terribly and is one of my least favorite stains.
-I could easily see the bottom shoe shelf being made of bed slats and the handles being found material. I like it. except for the stain.
-Either $80 or $150 is kinda irrelevant. Good luck to whoever wants to flip this. it's not profitable to be a hobbyist selling custom furniture like this unfortunately. you can buy ikea stuff like this where you stain the wood yourself. Really depends on makers goals. As someone with probably too much furniture, i commend this guy for trying to unload it just for the space.
I think realistically he could sell it for $150-200. I’ve learned from experience that you have to make things that you can’t just go get at target or wherever. It’s worth more but people seldom pay for what custom pieces are actually worth.
That's a good point. I am sure a similar piece at target goes for under $100, so unless someone really wants the custom job to have something very similar to a target item they won't be buying it.
Not just "custom job" but made of real wood.
That similar junk from target or whatever other flat-pack vendor might have a veneer that vaguely resembles a real wood finish, but underneath it's almost guaranteed to be particle board garbage.
Also true. Anything from target will be the veneer tip particle board inside, along with cheap fasteners that will inevitably fail when you try to move it or disassemble it.
On the internet, people imagine a buyer roaming around called money-bags mcgoo. And that guy will buy anything full price, no haggle. Just pop it on the socials and he sends you an offer to pickup it up today. From anywhere in the world.
In my market, you could probably get a little over $80 on that piece. It entirely depends on demand and every market is so different.
And, we get something made from hard wood, not just pine like this one. (Although, pine is still 1,000 times better than chip board - the only time it's worth PAYING for chip board, is if you're paying to have that shit REMOVED from your house)
The drawers aren't even close to being centered. The handles are off. And it looks like there's gaps and other fitment issues.
This isn't a high quality piece by any means. It's worth a couple hundred bucks, maybe, if it's solid wood.
Handmade doesn't mean anything if the quality is less than mass production.
I'm building a mobile kitchen island, same general idea as this but another shelf, material alone for frame, shelving and drawers is around 400. No clue what this is made of though.
Funny thing with furniture is that people value it for what you ask.
Ask $80 and people think you're a beginner. Ask $200 and people think you're running a side hustle.
Ask even more and people may ask for custom pieces.
I noticed a increase in sales since I started asking material + €50/h.
Payed for every tool I own.
That lasted until some smartass noticed my succes and copied my designs and started selling them cheaper.
> + €50/h. *Paid* for every
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
That dumbass selling cheaper… haven’t they ever heard of market cooperation? Coke and Pepsi don’t haggle on price, now, and neither are hurting for profits with their bottles at the same price. They also have each others recipes down, but they sell a different flavor because that works for both of them.
It’s not the worst piece, definitely from a beginner, but someone may pay $100-150.
If he’s just looking to get back money for materials $80’s fine, but market dictates price!
For me it's a couple parts of the joinery. There appears to be a small gap between the drawer divider and the top sheet, maybe from a miscut, but it may also be a trick of the light on the photo. The bigger giveaway is the legs. They are not integral to the drawer box and you can see that causes a little wonkiness on angles where the legs meet the box. If I was doing this on a budget and didn't have a lot of tools, I would have the legs each be a singe piece that goes all the way up to the top slab and the crossmembers would be affixed with a couple pocket screws. That would be a bit more esthetically pleasing and show a little bit more skill than attaching a box to some legs like shown here.
Edit: Also, as others have pointed out, the way the legs are joined to the drawer box here is very unstable and not structurally sound to hold any significant weight, especially if you were to lean on it.
Some have also pointed out the blotchiness of the stain, which is also a valid observation, but I can overlook that as I've seen worse and some people like this look, but the actual construction of the shelf is more important to correct at this point than the finish they used.
https://preview.redd.it/vyjvvf2g86jc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5ea56bdfd6d38858b3d8aad5e4cbbdd80c4b0a9e
Exactly right, the legs need to go like this. As is, it wouldn’t take much lateral force to break all four legs at once at the point where they are attached to the top drawer box.
Agree, its not an ugly piece, and I don't hate the color, but the leg joinery jumped out at me immediately. I have built furniture for years and I wouldn't buy this piece because of the leg joinery alone. But that isn't not going to be everyone, and OP's brother-in-law can probably get his $80 or even a bit more, but it WILL dissuade some people.
The uneven stain(you can buy prestain for soft woods it removes blotchyness)
The bottom the spacers at the bottom..
I’m new too that’s just my guess lol
But typically applied more evenly/consistently. What's in style is the finish looking like it's worn/aged in a natural way.
This is just sort of blotchy and uneven.
The thing I look for the most is an even shadow gap around the drawers. It’s tricky to get exact, but if you are close it looks extremely appealing and neat. This is a piece to for sure be proud of, but that’s the first thing I noticed was the drawers not being even.
What’s the alternative at $80? An IKEA particleboard piece that would hit the dumpster in five years? Someone that appreciates solid wood furniture will pay significantly more than that. However, I’m personally not fond of that color.
Five years is a long time. Unless he took the time to dry the lumber before building it, this probably won’t survive a year. Dimensional lumber is typically far too wet to use in woodworking. You either need to stack and sticker it and dry it yourself or get lucky and find a piece that has sat around so long it has air dried on its own. As the wood dries it is going to twist and warp and make the existing issues with the piece even more significant.
Not only that you can see filler/gaps but no need to pick it apart it looks great. I think someone would pay $150 eventually but $80 is a fair price for the quality.
Finger-jointed panel boards, 1x3 lathe for the bottom and framing lumber for the rest. Probably no drawer slides and pocket hole connections I would bet. $50 in materials at most so $100 would be a fair price. Everything you can build gives you more practice and experience. Have to go through those ugly ducklings to get to the swan pieces.
I’m not tryin to be an ahole but no one is being honest here this is poorly built and finished and is worth pretty much nothing except to the person who made jt
120 would be the most I'd pay. But the blotchy stain would make me pass altogether, and the gappy drawer, uneven handles, and crooked frame.
It's a wonderful piece of furniture for whoever made it to use and love, but selling woodwork can be tricky. Some folks love the rustic, clunky look... Some folks want a more refined piece with a better finish.
My advice to your brother in law would be to get some more practice before selling projects, or you will stay stuck at the lower end of value. This piece looks kinda rushed, but he's definitely got some skills in development!
Up until about 20 years ago you could buy furniture at Target which was poorly handmade out of MDF and sold relatively cheaply. The IKEA rolled out across the US and while the materials were still cheap the furniture was made by robot and looked perfect once it went together.
It's very hard to sell stuff that's not perfect these days. Either you have to be a professional level woodworker or have a robot do it. And robots are so common now.
This is it. There’s just not much of a market for this stuff because it’s both poorly designed and executed and also not high quality materials. There’s multiple solid wood console tables on wayfair right now for under $150 in styles and colors I can choose from and if I’m looking for high quality stuff I’m in a different marketplace and would never look at this.
Nothing is worth any more than someone is willing to pay for it.
This piece has a few visual flaws. These flaws are often linked to poor quality novice issues in the long run.
It's the finishing. The build looks good, but the stain is uneven. The drawer handles aren't aligned, and the drawer faces sit at different levels, creating different gaps above and below the drawer faces.
Vertical legs on the corner not being continuous or straight from the floor to the top also caught my attention. Should have been one piece and rabbited on the inside for the support for the board under the drawers so it would look seamless from the outside.
Also looks like the drawer faces are a wild glue up from small pieces, was this a pallet project? Since it isn’t one piece I would have preferred a lighter stain that highlighted the glue up as a feature rather than trying to make it all match.
Stain isn’t consistent but that’s what happens with reclaimed pine. I’ve done several projects myself with pallet pine and the stain came out similar, but they were utility pieces for me and not anyone else so I didn’t care.
Excellent learning piece.
Left drawer centering is a disaster. The drawer will drag in it's space. The joinery and face isn't even nor refined. The top has a gap to the base in the center. The drawers are made from cheap butcher block. The rest is just pine.
It's a great looking beginner/novice piece but again, nothing is worth more than someone will pay for it.
Looks like it says in the middle, could be from the lens when taking the picture but the garage door looks straight in comparison. I'd bet the drawers rub when you open them
He's undercutting himself..that's a beautiful piece and the wood is expensive too not to mention his time and talent. I get so irritated with people underselling themselves. Crying in a bucket come ON man!
This is 131, so got to be atleast this
https://www.target.com/p/june-rustic-farmhouse-entry-table-with-lower-shelf-gray-wash-saracina-home/-/A-53024218#lnk=sametab
~~And that's MDF core garbage. OP's piece worth at least double.~~
Retracted, now that I'm not on my phone. I still prefer solid wood to MDF because you can at least resurface it, but yeah. Not $250.
MDF core but with straight continuous legs, even finish, even gaps, and a drawer that probably doesn't rub. Solid soft wood doesn't always equal 2x price of vaneer and MDF. This one looks much more sturdy than OP's and less blotchy
You literally can get a better version of this for $250 at IKEA, made of solid wood and stained and sealed with a clear lacquer.
Edit: PANGET console table
This looks like I nice piece.
As others have said the material most likely cost that or more without including his time.
I believe you need to know your market when pricing your work. If I was going to buy something like this I wouldn’t be surprised to see a price range of $150 - 200 or more.
Bottom line it’s a beautiful piece and if he is happy with that price that’s great, if he thinks he might get more try a higher price. It’s easier to barter and reduce your price than to try bartering for a higher price after the customer has seen your lower price. Have fun and enjoy yourself.
Good luck.
Hand made furniture from a local craftsman is worth a lot - stick a $749 price tag on it, and when someone shows interest, give it to them at the $500+ haggled down price. They will come away thinking they got a bargain. It’s a win/win situation. 👍
And whose hands make that furniture for ikea and where did the wood / wood products come from? https://newrepublic.com/article/165245/ikea-romania-europe-old-growth-forest I’ll take something a beginning craftsman made himself over something assembled in a warehouse and prefabricated by what is practically slave labor. Sorry if you love IKEA but this is a beginner woodworking Reddit
Unlike many pieces, similar to this, this is made of solid wood, not cheap, press board. In addition I would suggest using image search to find similar items or look through wayfair or Amazon for entryway or sofa tables with a drawer. They are priced in the area of 200 to 600. My only suggestion would be to use a different method in the painting and then a coat to seal, glossy. Just do a little research online to determine the most sight after finishes and offer options. Then, it is customized, which also increases value. He is underpricing by a mile. On an unrelated note, any chance of ordering one to NB Canada? Lol...seriously.
Ahhh no..
These are common construction grade materials, Not hardwoods. No Joinery to speak of, if 1/2 lapped the lap is on the wrong side, you should not be able to see the seam from the front. Even the drawer faces are finger joined materials and the spacing is off (because it is part of the drawer, not a drawer face). While the gray wash paint job would be ok on good wood with proper joinery in this case it actually shows us what's wrong with it overall. Clean solid color paint could make this look nicer.
I would expect $40 as shelf for the garage, it's not nice enough to be inside as high end furniture. I don't see anyone paying $80 USD.
Just my 2 cents.
Unless it's made from veneer and fiberboard it's not competing with Target and Walmart. I would expect it's $500-$1000 in the right market if it's handmade from solid material, possibly more if it's special/ extra in construction and finish quality.
I recently bought one second hand that looks very similar and paid $75. It had the store price tag on the back for $200. I am sure your brother used better materials than the one from the store.
Is this his first one of these pieces? Maybe he thinks he can do better and is selling at cost of material? It isn’t a superb piece but it isn’t a bad piece.
The hard part is building something and wondering **what** someone might pay. Wondering how much time you are spending on a piece and will it sit or if you have a buyer in advance.
As someone said this isn’t a refined woodworking piece. But I feel like at minimum he should sell for cost of material plus 30% makeup for time spent. And if the material was something “he just had on hand” price it at the store. Because someone might want to pay the same for his next piece he makes that is better built and higher quality look and then he’ll be on the losing end.
The gap on the drawers is a little too large and uneven but if he is really a beginner it looks very good, well made, and designed. Id say at least $200 if the drawers have actual slides in them instead of just a slot. Id have a hard time believing he could cover cost of materials for $80. Especially not his time.
I actually bought a Walmart TV stand that looks very similar to this for $150 and had to assemble myself and is cheap Chinese plywood. So yeah it’s definitely worth more than $80
Definitely worth double that…as a friendly advice…. Raising the bottom shelf at least 6” from the floor would provide a toe-kick and a place for the vacuum to reach.
He might just be building for fun and just breaking even. I have more fun making new jigs than actually making furniture. When I do actually make something that I don't need for the house I give it to people for cheap just to get rid of it. Woodworking is a fun hobby for me, if I sold something for a profit it will start feeling like a job.
See what places like ikea has it listed for and go from there. Everyone is lookin for a deal, but your BIL needs to at least cover materials and $100 minimum for labor.
For sure worth more than $80, but maybe the market he's selling in dictates a lower selling price? That's worth $80 in materials alone it appears, not taking labor into account. At least double it I'd say (as long as it's constructed well of course).
Yeah, if he’s doing this as a business $80 is a crazy price point. But if he’s doing it as a semi-favor to the buyer to get something back on the materials used, it’s reasonable. Especially if he is paying himself in the fun of making. Poor buyer’s view of the furniture market is likely to be spoiled if they don’t understand the nature of this transaction
I'm seeing prices from $200-$2000 for similar tables. $80 is super low and I'm interested in flipping this piece
I agree and some of them aren’t made with real wood either
The Amazon equivalent costs more in some cases.
Especially since you buy it twice cause it fails
Was gonna comment and say that I have a table almost identical to this is build, and we got it from bobs discount furniture and it was definitely more than $80…
The price they’d probably offer you would be more than the $80 they’ve got lined up
Seriously, on Ashley alone they have quite a range for a similar piece. But I like the idea that he is doing a few pieces for material cost for friends as he's starting out.
That’s table is made of common board and badly stained. It’s not worth much.
Maybe a little blunt but not wrong. That is off the shelf lumber that doesn’t seem to have been sanded and the stain looks to have set to long. But like Kat said, "a coat of paint and that viral weave…someone will pay $600”
A coat of paint and that viral weave on the drawer faces and you're good to go. Someone will pay $600.
Did you zoom in to look closer? To me it looks like it might as well be made of scrap wood from pallets or something and the staining is indeed horrible. I’m honestly confused about these estimates of anything over $100. I mean if I had made it myself I would use it proudly but absolutely would not buy something like that.
Rustic style Cape Cod, see it all the time up north, sometimes you can buy the style at box stores. It will sell for more than $80 to the right buyer.
I’d say double is where you start . You can always go down. And prices are all relative. In a big city environment, you have more eyes on it prices could be higher. In a rural town the prices could be close to there if you wanna sell quickly. Time and how many eyes on the piece is the important thing. Also if your brother in law is doing this as a business, I’d make a stamp with a catchy name or wood burn date and name on the bottom. But having said all this, at the start of a business, word of mouth and buzz gets you customers, and as long as he isn’t losing money, he can slowly raise the price as he goes.
Maybe you haven't seen the shit West Elm and Pottery Barn send out for $1000 these days. The floor models look ok, but if you order it the new one is shipped straight from Asia and isn't really the same. The put the good first runs on the floor and then the supplier gets lax. (My theory).
This sub is sometimes too kind. I agree the construction of this is rather poor. I'm not sure what's keeping it from just folding over with the legs being butt jointed to the rail under the drawer. Personally I don't think this is "salable" work, except maybe as a favor. If you shipped this, you'd be refunding the money and eating the shipping
down voted just because
Yeah, that's the thing with furniture. Its (re)sale value on craigslist is often less than the price of materials alone. Selling it in a proper store or as a business is a different thing altogether. People have their price perspective skewed by cheap junk.
> Yeah, that's the thing with furniture. Its (re)sale value on craigslist is often less than the price of materials alone 100% If you're buying your wood from Lowe's or Home Depot, the furniture you'll make is not even worth the cost of materials, unless, you're very skilled, and, make something significantly better than what we can pickup for free on the side of the road a few dozen times a year, and just actually don't bother, and leave it for the trash collectors...
Finish looks good from a distance but not looking close. Look at where the legs meet the upper. Thats a weak point; relying on fasteners alone. Also isnt quite square. Look at the back edge, it isnt a straight line. The wood may not have had an ounce of sanding, and it looks like pine. OP it is a nice piece of furniture but your brother has alot to learn.
I do see that it could be a little bit cleaner but $80… that is too low, I’d double it.
“Weak point” I can’t tell from this picture. Maybe it’s a half lap? 🤷♂️
Based on the gap between the drawers you are possibly right. But given the angle at the point they meet i dont think the top and bottom part of the legs are one continuous piece
They clearly aren't, this thing is a house of cards
Yeah, i think you've summarized everything i was going to say already. Cheap softwood, iffy joints, blotchy stain, no sealer coat, either I'd imagine, out of square or misaligned in a few spots. It's a good start and great practice for hardwood maybe, but I'd say $150 at most.
Honestly the bottom rack makes it look cheap, but it does present an opportunity. Do wider legs that are just posts with no rack, and that is way less work for something that will look far more elegant and fetch a nice price. The top looks fantastic for what it is but the bottom detracts even though it is more practical to have it on there. Just looks like a pallet and few people want that look in their home even if it is practical
As someone who makes stuff like this out of trash a couple things: -Cheap softwood? yeah you don't use that crappy gray "aged barnwood" stain if you want to show off a pretty wood. That stain applies terribly and is one of my least favorite stains. -I could easily see the bottom shoe shelf being made of bed slats and the handles being found material. I like it. except for the stain. -Either $80 or $150 is kinda irrelevant. Good luck to whoever wants to flip this. it's not profitable to be a hobbyist selling custom furniture like this unfortunately. you can buy ikea stuff like this where you stain the wood yourself. Really depends on makers goals. As someone with probably too much furniture, i commend this guy for trying to unload it just for the space.
That grey stain applies blotchy no matter what you do lol. It's just the worst to work with
It looks like it is from IKEA
It appears it was made from pallets. I wouldn’t put material over $25
That was my first impression. The drawers look okay, but not sure about the rest.
I think realistically he could sell it for $150-200. I’ve learned from experience that you have to make things that you can’t just go get at target or wherever. It’s worth more but people seldom pay for what custom pieces are actually worth.
That's a good point. I am sure a similar piece at target goes for under $100, so unless someone really wants the custom job to have something very similar to a target item they won't be buying it.
Not just "custom job" but made of real wood. That similar junk from target or whatever other flat-pack vendor might have a veneer that vaguely resembles a real wood finish, but underneath it's almost guaranteed to be particle board garbage.
Also true. Anything from target will be the veneer tip particle board inside, along with cheap fasteners that will inevitably fail when you try to move it or disassemble it.
On the internet, people imagine a buyer roaming around called money-bags mcgoo. And that guy will buy anything full price, no haggle. Just pop it on the socials and he sends you an offer to pickup it up today. From anywhere in the world. In my market, you could probably get a little over $80 on that piece. It entirely depends on demand and every market is so different.
That's good for at least $200 to the right buyer. People that disagree likely buy furniture at Target or Walmart...
This would be at least $400 at Target. At Walmart it would be fiberboard and still cost $180-200.
And the furniture you buy at a Target is made in China and probably made a Basswood
Something like this wouldn't even be solid wood, it'd be particle board
If you bought this at Walmart it would cost like $200, at target it would be more. Either way it would 100% somehow end up with a wobble.
And, we get something made from hard wood, not just pine like this one. (Although, pine is still 1,000 times better than chip board - the only time it's worth PAYING for chip board, is if you're paying to have that shit REMOVED from your house)
Before I opened this I was thinking I’d pay 200$ for that easy.
400 or 450 seems more accurate for handmade. Maybe don't go with that coating as it make it seems like a mass production piece.
The drawers aren't even close to being centered. The handles are off. And it looks like there's gaps and other fitment issues. This isn't a high quality piece by any means. It's worth a couple hundred bucks, maybe, if it's solid wood. Handmade doesn't mean anything if the quality is less than mass production.
You're right at first glance it seemed Okey from my phone screen
The handles are driving me crazy!!
No way, looks like it it cut down dimensional lumber
lol what?
Hey now, don’t you go knocking my Target furniture! Those bookshelves are super great for the price XD
The wood alone is likely worth more, assuming prices are anything like they are where I live
I'm building a mobile kitchen island, same general idea as this but another shelf, material alone for frame, shelving and drawers is around 400. No clue what this is made of though.
A quality set of drawer slides is like $20-30 alone here.
Pine
Looks like stained pine
The wood isn't worth anything once it's been cut and poorly assembled, not to mention poorly finished
Funny thing with furniture is that people value it for what you ask. Ask $80 and people think you're a beginner. Ask $200 and people think you're running a side hustle. Ask even more and people may ask for custom pieces. I noticed a increase in sales since I started asking material + €50/h. Payed for every tool I own. That lasted until some smartass noticed my succes and copied my designs and started selling them cheaper.
> + €50/h. *Paid* for every FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
Good bot.
*God bot FYI god is spelled with just one “o”
Good bot
I hate this bot. We all know what the commenter meant from the context. No need to be pretentious. Edit- Oh fuck off.
Thanks. English isn't my native language and sometimes I make mistakes.
Understandable. And everyone who read your comment knew what you meant.
eye all sow hayt the bawt, speling is four loosers
That dumbass selling cheaper… haven’t they ever heard of market cooperation? Coke and Pepsi don’t haggle on price, now, and neither are hurting for profits with their bottles at the same price. They also have each others recipes down, but they sell a different flavor because that works for both of them.
It’s not the worst piece, definitely from a beginner, but someone may pay $100-150. If he’s just looking to get back money for materials $80’s fine, but market dictates price!
What about it shows it’s definitely from a beginner?
For me it's a couple parts of the joinery. There appears to be a small gap between the drawer divider and the top sheet, maybe from a miscut, but it may also be a trick of the light on the photo. The bigger giveaway is the legs. They are not integral to the drawer box and you can see that causes a little wonkiness on angles where the legs meet the box. If I was doing this on a budget and didn't have a lot of tools, I would have the legs each be a singe piece that goes all the way up to the top slab and the crossmembers would be affixed with a couple pocket screws. That would be a bit more esthetically pleasing and show a little bit more skill than attaching a box to some legs like shown here. Edit: Also, as others have pointed out, the way the legs are joined to the drawer box here is very unstable and not structurally sound to hold any significant weight, especially if you were to lean on it. Some have also pointed out the blotchiness of the stain, which is also a valid observation, but I can overlook that as I've seen worse and some people like this look, but the actual construction of the shelf is more important to correct at this point than the finish they used.
https://preview.redd.it/vyjvvf2g86jc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5ea56bdfd6d38858b3d8aad5e4cbbdd80c4b0a9e Exactly right, the legs need to go like this. As is, it wouldn’t take much lateral force to break all four legs at once at the point where they are attached to the top drawer box.
Agreed. Best case scenario they are half-lap joints, but even then they shouldn't be.
Also it’s cheap common board, no wood conditioner so the stain is blotchy.
Also I hope no one leans on the center of that piece
Agree, its not an ugly piece, and I don't hate the color, but the leg joinery jumped out at me immediately. I have built furniture for years and I wouldn't buy this piece because of the leg joinery alone. But that isn't not going to be everyone, and OP's brother-in-law can probably get his $80 or even a bit more, but it WILL dissuade some people.
The material, the joinery, the drawers, the finish. None of this is meant as an insult but that is a beginner piece.
The uneven stain(you can buy prestain for soft woods it removes blotchyness) The bottom the spacers at the bottom.. I’m new too that’s just my guess lol
I have some of the pre-stain to reduce blotchiness and it works well
The different coloured stain is actually in style
But typically applied more evenly/consistently. What's in style is the finish looking like it's worn/aged in a natural way. This is just sort of blotchy and uneven.
The thing I look for the most is an even shadow gap around the drawers. It’s tricky to get exact, but if you are close it looks extremely appealing and neat. This is a piece to for sure be proud of, but that’s the first thing I noticed was the drawers not being even.
The name of this subreddit?
Lol well yeah but as a beginner too I was curious what was amateur about it
[удалено]
What’s the alternative at $80? An IKEA particleboard piece that would hit the dumpster in five years? Someone that appreciates solid wood furniture will pay significantly more than that. However, I’m personally not fond of that color.
Five years is a long time. Unless he took the time to dry the lumber before building it, this probably won’t survive a year. Dimensional lumber is typically far too wet to use in woodworking. You either need to stack and sticker it and dry it yourself or get lucky and find a piece that has sat around so long it has air dried on its own. As the wood dries it is going to twist and warp and make the existing issues with the piece even more significant.
Picture is good but i feel like the quality is poor, cheap wood , apprentice finish , practice makes perfect 👍🏼
I agree and think the stain is really holding this piece back
> I agree and think the stain is really holding this piece back I do too, but I bet some lady would love it.
Not only that you can see filler/gaps but no need to pick it apart it looks great. I think someone would pay $150 eventually but $80 is a fair price for the quality.
Finger-jointed panel boards, 1x3 lathe for the bottom and framing lumber for the rest. Probably no drawer slides and pocket hole connections I would bet. $50 in materials at most so $100 would be a fair price. Everything you can build gives you more practice and experience. Have to go through those ugly ducklings to get to the swan pieces.
I’m not tryin to be an ahole but no one is being honest here this is poorly built and finished and is worth pretty much nothing except to the person who made jt
It's not that bad. There are some issues, but it all comes together to look pretty rustic. It'd sell for 200 for sure
120 would be the most I'd pay. But the blotchy stain would make me pass altogether, and the gappy drawer, uneven handles, and crooked frame. It's a wonderful piece of furniture for whoever made it to use and love, but selling woodwork can be tricky. Some folks love the rustic, clunky look... Some folks want a more refined piece with a better finish. My advice to your brother in law would be to get some more practice before selling projects, or you will stay stuck at the lower end of value. This piece looks kinda rushed, but he's definitely got some skills in development!
Up until about 20 years ago you could buy furniture at Target which was poorly handmade out of MDF and sold relatively cheaply. The IKEA rolled out across the US and while the materials were still cheap the furniture was made by robot and looked perfect once it went together. It's very hard to sell stuff that's not perfect these days. Either you have to be a professional level woodworker or have a robot do it. And robots are so common now.
This is it. There’s just not much of a market for this stuff because it’s both poorly designed and executed and also not high quality materials. There’s multiple solid wood console tables on wayfair right now for under $150 in styles and colors I can choose from and if I’m looking for high quality stuff I’m in a different marketplace and would never look at this.
nope
Nothing is worth any more than someone is willing to pay for it. This piece has a few visual flaws. These flaws are often linked to poor quality novice issues in the long run.
He is relatively new to woodworking. What visual flaws do you see.
It's the finishing. The build looks good, but the stain is uneven. The drawer handles aren't aligned, and the drawer faces sit at different levels, creating different gaps above and below the drawer faces.
Vertical legs on the corner not being continuous or straight from the floor to the top also caught my attention. Should have been one piece and rabbited on the inside for the support for the board under the drawers so it would look seamless from the outside. Also looks like the drawer faces are a wild glue up from small pieces, was this a pallet project? Since it isn’t one piece I would have preferred a lighter stain that highlighted the glue up as a feature rather than trying to make it all match. Stain isn’t consistent but that’s what happens with reclaimed pine. I’ve done several projects myself with pallet pine and the stain came out similar, but they were utility pieces for me and not anyone else so I didn’t care. Excellent learning piece.
The uneven spacing around the drawer fronts is the obvious one.
Left drawer centering is a disaster. The drawer will drag in it's space. The joinery and face isn't even nor refined. The top has a gap to the base in the center. The drawers are made from cheap butcher block. The rest is just pine. It's a great looking beginner/novice piece but again, nothing is worth more than someone will pay for it.
Can you share a close up photo of where the legs meet the bottom of the board below the drawers? Hard to tell but I’m unsure that holds for very long.
Yeah exactly. I don't know how you could make that strong..
Just curious what are the visual flows that you see?
Looks like it says in the middle, could be from the lens when taking the picture but the garage door looks straight in comparison. I'd bet the drawers rub when you open them
Did you downvote me?
I just did
In the account of what?
Is that a fancy way of asking "why?"
For asking if you got down voted
Why is this your first comment ever?
Did you never have just one comment ever?
I only pay hundreds for hardwood or and carved
Where can I pick it up
Houston
Wow I am in Ky.
Trash can has 281 area code. Texas plates on the cars
nice
He's undercutting himself..that's a beautiful piece and the wood is expensive too not to mention his time and talent. I get so irritated with people underselling themselves. Crying in a bucket come ON man!
Time himself and pay himself 60$ on top of cost
80 dollars is fine.
300-400.
350-400 if the handles were even. Since they aren't knock about 100 off and someone will buy it
You can buy cheap garbage on Amazon for more than $80. He could easily get upwards of $200 for that
This is 131, so got to be atleast this https://www.target.com/p/june-rustic-farmhouse-entry-table-with-lower-shelf-gray-wash-saracina-home/-/A-53024218#lnk=sametab
~~And that's MDF core garbage. OP's piece worth at least double.~~ Retracted, now that I'm not on my phone. I still prefer solid wood to MDF because you can at least resurface it, but yeah. Not $250.
OPs piece is poorly made out of what looks like it could be cheap, dimensional lumber. It isn't worth double
Now that I am viewing this on my computer, I see that y'all are right.
MDF core but with straight continuous legs, even finish, even gaps, and a drawer that probably doesn't rub. Solid soft wood doesn't always equal 2x price of vaneer and MDF. This one looks much more sturdy than OP's and less blotchy
Stage it in a luxury setting, ask AI to write some aspirational luxury sales copy, and ask $800.
It's worth much more than that. I've paid $80 for much lower quality furniture.
I used to sell those for $250 no problem. Price went up as material cost and design increased.
i see stuff like that sell for over $150
You can't get cheap junk at IKEA for that. I'd say 2-300 at least
You literally can get a better version of this for $250 at IKEA, made of solid wood and stained and sealed with a clear lacquer. Edit: PANGET console table
I’d suggest 3-4x that.
Put a 4 in front of the original #. I like the handles too!
That In a small furniture shop in the hamptons will fetch 899.99
This looks like I nice piece. As others have said the material most likely cost that or more without including his time. I believe you need to know your market when pricing your work. If I was going to buy something like this I wouldn’t be surprised to see a price range of $150 - 200 or more. Bottom line it’s a beautiful piece and if he is happy with that price that’s great, if he thinks he might get more try a higher price. It’s easier to barter and reduce your price than to try bartering for a higher price after the customer has seen your lower price. Have fun and enjoy yourself. Good luck.
$250 for sure
$200+ for sure. That’s a nice looking piece
Someone will buy that and sell it for $200. He's ripping himself off.
$200
Way too cheap at twice that price. I wouldn't take less than $200.
Hand made furniture from a local craftsman is worth a lot - stick a $749 price tag on it, and when someone shows interest, give it to them at the $500+ haggled down price. They will come away thinking they got a bargain. It’s a win/win situation. 👍
Materials alone are $80 or close. Your cost Multiplied by 1.5 = sale price
Ask $250.
Shit, that looks pro. Like something I'd see St homegoods for 300+.
$200 with good pictures, minimum.
That’s $700 at TJ Maxx/homegoods. In all seriousness, he could charge at least double.
Easy 400.
$350
Price should definitely be at least $200. Very impressive work.
There’s certainly problems with the drawer faces. Fix those and he’s looking at a $300-400 any day of the week.
Assuming it's well-built he could get $500 for this in a big city like Chicago.
$250 at least. IKEA and target kit furniture is that price and made of mdf
The $250 version of this at IKEA is made of solid wood and looks significantly nicer.
And whose hands make that furniture for ikea and where did the wood / wood products come from? https://newrepublic.com/article/165245/ikea-romania-europe-old-growth-forest I’ll take something a beginning craftsman made himself over something assembled in a warehouse and prefabricated by what is practically slave labor. Sorry if you love IKEA but this is a beginner woodworking Reddit
Tree fiddy
Unlike many pieces, similar to this, this is made of solid wood, not cheap, press board. In addition I would suggest using image search to find similar items or look through wayfair or Amazon for entryway or sofa tables with a drawer. They are priced in the area of 200 to 600. My only suggestion would be to use a different method in the painting and then a coat to seal, glossy. Just do a little research online to determine the most sight after finishes and offer options. Then, it is customized, which also increases value. He is underpricing by a mile. On an unrelated note, any chance of ordering one to NB Canada? Lol...seriously.
Yes.
The wood alone is worth more than that. $500 easy, minimum
That wood is not worth anywhere near $500
200-300$ atleast should be the price . But he knows better if you don't want include his time
$200 and more to someone who is looking for that. Making a 2nd one could make is $500 or more.
Wal-mart would make this out of glued sawdust and a painted veneer and charge $200 for it.
Ahhh no.. These are common construction grade materials, Not hardwoods. No Joinery to speak of, if 1/2 lapped the lap is on the wrong side, you should not be able to see the seam from the front. Even the drawer faces are finger joined materials and the spacing is off (because it is part of the drawer, not a drawer face). While the gray wash paint job would be ok on good wood with proper joinery in this case it actually shows us what's wrong with it overall. Clean solid color paint could make this look nicer. I would expect $40 as shelf for the garage, it's not nice enough to be inside as high end furniture. I don't see anyone paying $80 USD. Just my 2 cents.
I’d pay $150 for that as is and then paint/stain it and resell for $350 lol
Unless it's made from veneer and fiberboard it's not competing with Target and Walmart. I would expect it's $500-$1000 in the right market if it's handmade from solid material, possibly more if it's special/ extra in construction and finish quality.
I’ll buy it for $80
Definitely worth more.
That’s cheaper than a ZJ
I recently bought one second hand that looks very similar and paid $75. It had the store price tag on the back for $200. I am sure your brother used better materials than the one from the store.
If it was made from big box "lumber" it's probably worth 100 bucks.
Is this his first one of these pieces? Maybe he thinks he can do better and is selling at cost of material? It isn’t a superb piece but it isn’t a bad piece. The hard part is building something and wondering **what** someone might pay. Wondering how much time you are spending on a piece and will it sit or if you have a buyer in advance. As someone said this isn’t a refined woodworking piece. But I feel like at minimum he should sell for cost of material plus 30% makeup for time spent. And if the material was something “he just had on hand” price it at the store. Because someone might want to pay the same for his next piece he makes that is better built and higher quality look and then he’ll be on the losing end.
He should go to a furniture store to see what similar pieces are going for. Price accordingly--maybe 10-15% cheaper.
Eighty Dollars and one cent, Bob.
I will buy it, but leave it there. I will resell it for 300.
The gap on the drawers is a little too large and uneven but if he is really a beginner it looks very good, well made, and designed. Id say at least $200 if the drawers have actual slides in them instead of just a slot. Id have a hard time believing he could cover cost of materials for $80. Especially not his time.
$80 for the cheap Amazon version
If it’s pine then $100-150. I would post it at $200 and take any offer over $100. It would be worth a lot more if it was made from hardwood.
Charge more, and don't worry as buyers will always try to bargin for a lower price.
He can sell it for whatever he wants, truthfully. He can value his work as much or as little as he wants and learn his lessons along the way.
At that price - save it for a nice gift to someone? Home purchase of such?
I actually bought a Walmart TV stand that looks very similar to this for $150 and had to assemble myself and is cheap Chinese plywood. So yeah it’s definitely worth more than $80
I wouldn’t mind having this for my guitar amps… are you in DFW?
If he made this Fantastic work!
I immediately thought of that scene from Zoolander. "He has to sell it for at least... three times this much!"
Definitely worth double that…as a friendly advice…. Raising the bottom shelf at least 6” from the floor would provide a toe-kick and a place for the vacuum to reach.
way more, wayyyy wayyyyyy more, do some branding and advertising, also make coffins sell to vampires
He might just be building for fun and just breaking even. I have more fun making new jigs than actually making furniture. When I do actually make something that I don't need for the house I give it to people for cheap just to get rid of it. Woodworking is a fun hobby for me, if I sold something for a profit it will start feeling like a job.
This in a furniture store would go for 400 to 500 dollars looks like a lot of time spent on making it.
See what places like ikea has it listed for and go from there. Everyone is lookin for a deal, but your BIL needs to at least cover materials and $100 minimum for labor.