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| Possibly related discussions | Replies | Views | Latest reply |
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| Buying furniture in Vientiane ... By swag on 1 Dec 2007 | 0 | 1782 | 1 Dec 2007 |
hannesnaomi
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I have heard that Thailand is a great place to buy furniture. Wondering if its worth it to purchase furniture there and have it shipped back to Canada? Anyone done this? Easy to do? Costs involved? Recommend shipping companies?? Best city or store to shop at?
Thanks :)
#1 Posted: 9/2/2008 - 13:31
wombatwood
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hope u get replies,i to want to do the same only to australia
#2 Posted: 9/2/2008 - 13:51
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somtam2000
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We bought quiet a bit of furniture in Thailand and have dragged it around with us ever since. Some of the nicest stuff is refurbished teak (the wood is taken from an old teak house and remade into furniture).
There's a massive selection of stores in Bangkok that do this kind of thing -- and any reputable store will be able to arrange shipping, often they can put you onto a few shippers and you can compare costs.
I can't help on shipping costs though... as ours have always been as a part of a bigger shipment.
A good place to start is the furniture section at Chatuchak -- the vendors there often have warehouses further out that hold a wider variety of pieces...
You may want to check with customs in your home country to check on regulations regarding the import of wood, as I know in Australia they can be a bit tetchy.
#3 Posted: 9/2/2008 - 14:51
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khunwilko
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Thailand doesn't really have a long tradition of making furniture....so most of what you get is a copy of China, Burma or some other neighbour. If you are sure it's recycled timber I would say if you like it buy....BUT most furniture you see is made from poorly seasoned timber of questionable origin....so if you care for the rainforest BEWARE.
Solid timber in any product always has a doubt about how "green" it is as it it really not necessary or environmentally friendly to make good furniture out of solid wood anyway.
#4 Posted: 9/2/2008 - 17:14
somtam2000
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Good advice from KW there -- indeed buyer beware.
If you're looking for reclaimed wood in furniture (as we were) -- the patina (the feel and texture of the wood) pretty quickly distinguishes an old piece to something relatively new. We bought from Art of Living -- at 60,000B, the three pieces we bought were not cheap, but they're now almost ten years old and look as fine as the day we bought them.
#5 Posted: 9/2/2008 - 17:32
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