you might try Amish crafters, depending on where you live. otherwise, search for handmade furniture!

Is that a business? Do you have contact info? handmade furniture as a search query doesn’t exactly narrow down the results. I’m looking specifically for companies in NC (or elsewhere) that make furniture this way.

Are you looking for SOLID wood frames? If so, Hancock & Moore, Century Signature Line, Leathercraft. Only a small percentage of makers still use solid hardwood, 95% of the industry is now plywood based (referred to as "engineered hardwoods in industry terminology". My store is in Alexandria VA, and I carry two of those three brands. You can't buy direct from the factory in NC.

Hickory Chair, Hancock and Moore, Taylor King, Century. If leather? Hancock and Moore, followed by Taylor King are best bets.

You may not buy at the factory. Only an outlet retail store

Take an exacting drawing of your room if buying a sectional, and draw to scale before any purchase, anywhere from anyone. Take a fat wallet as well.

IMO it does not matter how many times you tie springs they start losing spring the first time you sit down. I like Italian made leather furniture it is made to last with a webbing support system that lasts as long as you want it . IMO a good choice for expensive furniture pieces is a sofa and 2 chairs that gives you the ability to change layout even if just for Christmas and if you ever move they are much more adaptable to another space.

Taylor King is a plywood-based company. Century is ONLY the Signature grouping, their other series are plywood. Hancock and Moore has moved to plywood on motion, but their stationary is still solid hardwood. Hickory chair I am not sure of, though they were recently acquired by Century under the Rock House Brands umbrella.

I agree about a sofa and two chairs. I like the modularity and ease of incorporating into a new home. However, it is not as cozy as a sectional and you lose a seat in a family room for watching tv and movies. We won’t be buying a left or right handed sectional so it should be able to fit into a new home as well. I see arguments for both. Personally, I’d opt for a sofa and two chairs, but I’m not the boss of these decisions. I’m just the gatherer of the data.

I’ve attached two pics and a layout. Please excuse the mess; we are still unpacking, and the kids aren’t helping. For the sectional, we are planning a pair of loveseats and corner. One side of the loveseat will be parallel to the window next to the fireplace.

Back to furniture manufacturers. So far we have Hickory Chair, Hancock and Moore, and Century Signature.

That‘s not very many. How about Huntington House, MT Company, Sherrill, or King Hickory. Any others?

"IMO it does not matter how many times you tie springs they start losing spring the first time you sit down. I like Italian made leather furniture it is made to last with a webbing support system that lasts as long as you want it "

You may be the only person in the industry with this opinion and I have noticed you post this opinion quite a bit. An 8-way hand-tied spring-up system on a solid ash or maple frame is generally accepted to be the gold standard in the business and far superior to any other chassis and suspension construction. The main issue with this method of build is that it's expensive to make from both a material and labor standpoint vs the inexpensive Pirelli Webbing you refer to. It also requires depth in the frame to contain the springs so seat decks that are narrow in height cannot use it. But for longevity and comfort its still the top choice of every manufacturer that is willing to put that cost of the build into their product.

Sorry............NOTHING will outlast Hancock and Moore. Nothing, And nothing will have more long term support and comfort.

I did recently do a custom leather sectional ( Taylor King ) for a client. Everyone loves it........to die for comfy. Near seven foot boys in the family......and they are thrilled with the seat depth and curl up space,. Also strongly resembles a RH I would not let them buy

MY own sofa is eight way hand tied Taylor King, now twenty years old with several covering iterations. Solid as a rock, supportive, lofty spring down cushions still. What can I say.? : )

The free for all is evident. Looking through discussions, companies who made furniture the “right“ way just 2 years ago have switched to other methods either because the consumer demands it or they are gobbled up by ownership that demands it. I’m not arguing here. I also didn’t ask for the best though they should be on the list. I asked for the companies who still make it the right way. H&M isn’t the only company who does it this way. They might be the best, but their are others. I’m interested in collecting the names of the companies that still do, as few as they may be.

I asked the same question to Hickory Furniture Mart. They gave me a list of showrooms and the high end manufacturers they sell. Some meet my criteria and some don’t.

Good’s Home Furnishings (email: info@goodshomefurnishings.com / 828.322.3471 ). Quality brands they represent include: Baker, Bernhardt, Sherrill, Taylor King, Whittemore-Sherrill, Vanguard.

Hickory Park Furniture Galleries (email: hparksales@hickorypark.com / 828.322.4440 ). Quality brands include: Century, CR Laine, Hancock & Moore, Wesley Hall.

Southern Style Fine Furniture (part of the Heritage Furniture Gallery & Outlet - email internetsales@heritagefurnitureoutlet.com / 828.322.7000 ). Quality brands include: Michael Thomas, Miles Talbott, Huntington House.

Reflections Furniture (email: info@reflectionsfurniture.com / 828.327.8485) Quality brands include: American Leather, Eleanor Rigby

Leather and More (email: ryan@leatherandmoreinhickory.com or leatherandmore@embarqmail.com / 828.324.0668 ) Quality brands include: American Classics leather, McKinley Leather.

I’m not interested in RH or PB for that matter. You are paying for overhead and branding.

Check out Arhaus’ outlet while you’re in NC.

Bernhardt is junk unless an accent piece, Baker was the Cadiillac for decades......a bit less so now, though pricing still is Cadillac. Sherill used to be great, in fabric......less so now. Arhaus is better than most online, still not great, given pricing. Fine for dining chairs, accent case goods. CR Laine is a lightweight hand tie. Cushioning and tailoring are very mediocre. Lee is low moderate at best.

For the money/longevity/quality as I listed earlier post.

Anyone like Charles Stewart?

We actually have a Charles Stewart loveseat in a red toile. It’s faded but it is pushing 10 yrs.

Are you choosing comfortable seating or just the # of seats you get? Comfort comes with an armrest period.

KEEPING ROOM Standard where?? In a country that pruduces more throwaway big ticket items than almost any other country . I have leather Italian sofas that are 40 yrs old never had then recovered and replaced the foam inside the cushions when we gave it to our son 25 yrs after we bought it . Iam sorry but the US is not the be all and end all of production for many things including furniture. Europe is a huge step ahead for manufacturing items that don’t end up in the landfill in 10 yrs . I would love to buy all Canadian made but unfortunately we are heading in the same direction as the US apparently to keep people working producing stuff that constantly needs replacing.

There are sofas USA made that have been sat on for the last 30 years. But I wonder if you bought one today, in Canada or anywhere else, if those are the same as 30 or forty years ago. I sincerely doubt it. Truth is? Nobody WANTS anything to last that long.

"Kids" today, don't even start a family until their mid thirties. They aren't worriyng about owning a couch that lasts until they are sixty.....seventy. They just don't want to junk it at five years, and unfortunately thy generally DO. Most of that due to current quality, unrealistic expectations of what it costs to get something really decent. Or what "decent" even entails in construction or workmanship.

I will again point out the irony of the generation that is SO concerned with the environment, but they buy throwaway furniture.

I can't afford new furniture that lasts decades.

The upholsterer I use to make the furniture for my clients of course says that most of what's out there is junk. I occasionally buy from Mitchell Gold/Bob Williams and Verellen

Jan Moyer you are right on the money.

Every single manufacturer knows how to build an upholstered piece the right way, it's not a secret and it's not rocket science. However this is a price-driven industry and the consumer demands lower prices, so most these companies respond accordingly. There are only two ways to lower the cost of the build 1) Reduce you labor costs 2) Reduce your material costs. You take it out of the craftsmanship or the materials.

A manufacturer will decide what level they want to produce at - and then target the build to that price point. This is very much a time-business as well, so they are always looking for ways to make it faster to save on labor cost to meet target goals. The result is shortcuts and elimination of time-honored techniques and materials. How much can they eliminate in the cost to build is a meeting they have in staff every single week? Dealers demand it because they have the pressure from the retail consumer. However, everything they reduce - takes away from the quality of the build in one form or another. At some point down the line, they're are producing junk that goes to the landfill rather quickly.

Companies that are publicly held and traded on the stock market are under enormous pressure to maximize profits for stockholders. Those that are privately held much less so, depending on what the owner wants to do. Best example I know of this is Hancock and Moore, which was started by Jack Glasheen and Jimmy Moore when they were fed up with the cutbacks at Classic Leather in the early 1980's and decided to go out together and build a new company that doesn't take shortcuts. I know both of them quite well personally and they have never wavered in the quest to build the best in the industry and also take care of any issues that may pop up from time to time. They very soon took over from Classic Leather as the # 1 builder in the USA. Jack and Jimmy retired a few years ago and sold the company, but not just to anyone. There were many who wanted to buy it, but they would only sell to someone who has the same beliefs and would continue the legacy of the build. That was Alex Shuford at Century, who runs his companies the same way. That's why H&M is now a part of Rock House Brands, the parent holding company.

I don't carry poor or mediocre brands in my store. I know what makes a good piece of furniture in the 34th year of doing this and I build relationships with both my suppliers and customers, not just "make sales". I know that cheap sofas go to the landfill quickly, good ones actually cost less over time as they are serviceable for many years. It's my job to show clients what makes a good piece of furniture and what they are getting for their money so they can make an informed decision. Knowledge is Power. Empower the consumer through education, which is also why I participate in forums like this and run one myself. How strongly do I believe in that? I even have a cut-away of a Hancock and Moore chair in my store that I had custom made to show those interested how its made. Once you know the right way to do it, it's easy to spot the poorly made stuff. For the most part "you get what you pay for" in this industry.

- Duane Collie

"Ponna once a time" as a little kid once said!

I obviously agree w/ Keeping Room. Just the other day, I had a client back OUT of an order for a Hickory Chair sofa she loved a mere 48 hours prior. Sticker shock from someone who can well afford what she loves! From someone who is picky !

What do you pay for a car? Is that the same price as twenty years ago? How long do you keep it?!

Frankly?! I'd like everyone who ever whined about the price of a great sofa to go in their basement! Look at the shelves and crates of 29.00 decor. To count the sofas they have put in the landfill, or simply stared at long after there was any comfort left, let alone good looks.

Designers don't make the prices. But we do know the good, the bad, and all in between.

Ask yourself how long you want to keep this sofa. If the answer is two years ? Buy one for 2k! You'll get the sofa that "costs " a grand per year. Want the ten year sofa? Spend 5 to six K!!! Now you have a sofa that will last a decade at roughly HALF the price per year. Maybe longer and for less if your maintenance is good!

Thats the math of you get what you pay for.

Leather!? More$$$:)

Jan, my husband and I (early 40s) are buying new couches for the first time in almost 20 years, and WOW! Sticker shock and showroom disappointment are huge factors this time around. We've come to the same conclusion though: furniture that's comfortable, attractive, and made to last is going to cost significantly more than it did back in 2002, so we have adjusted our budget and decided not to rush this investment.
I'd like to know whether Norwalk gets favorable reviews from the designers here... I've heard lots of good things, but only from people who stand to make a commission.