I also ordered mine from Don Lamor in Hickory, NC. The sofa retailed for $2200 locally, not including fabric protection, tax or delivery. I was able to get it from DL for $1809 total...that was with fabric protection and delivery and with no tax. I told my local place this price and the closest they could come was $1900, again not including tax, delivery and fabric protection. That said, I'm still waiting on my sofa. The four-month mark is next week. It has come in to their store and I'm awaiting shipment. I hope to get it in a week or two.

Tess 5b-- Thank you for your kind post sharing how much you love your recliners. Thanks too for the pix. Your room looks wonderful! Last week I returned to the two stores selling the recliners, this time testing the Eknores first. Then I went and sat in that Benchmark recliner and it was so-- uncomfortable! It reclines --but not nearly as far as the Ekornes, the back support was non-existant and just plain weird, the mechanism choppy... What was I thinking? While the Consul will be on sale until Sept. for $995, I'm thinking of waiting, saving up and going for the Mayfair. Feels like a cloud. I should be able to swing it by October, just in time for some serious winter reading. I've also been leaving the brochure all over the house just in case DH wants some serious brownie points for our 10th anniversary! Thanks again for your input. I greatly appreciated it. (I love the couches too! I'd go for the Kensington Low back...) I'd love to try the senator but my local store does not have it on display. Boo Hoo. Lenvt Here is a link that might be useful: Mayfair

Lexington Furniture Company in Lexington, KY, which is closer to you, has good prices and a large number of manufactures to choose from: lexfurniture.com. You don't have to travel to the store to buy furniture out of state. Simply choose the piece you want from your local store, then contact the out of state store to order.I shop out of state stores all the time. I have purchased a Baker bed, Kindel dining room set, 2 Hickory Chair night tables, a Century sofa, 2 Wildwood lamps, Bernhardt bed, Hekman coffee table, $16,000 worth of Fabrica carpet and I have never had a problem. Everything I have purchased out of state was a lot less than the quoted prices I received locally. The Hickory Chair night tables were $2,150 each locally, and I paid $1,350 each from Boyles. My bed was just over $9,000 locally, and I paid $7,500 at Boyles. My sofa was $4,500 locally, and I paid $2,800 at Boyles. My coffee table was $900 locally, and I paid $458 at Boyles. My son's bed was $1,200 locally, and I paid $990 at Boyles. My mattress set was $2,600 locally, and I paid $2,100 (including tax and delivery). Boyles has to collect tax, but I would have paid tax locally anyway. Plus, I would have paid more tax as the cost was higher at home. My local store charges $130 per hour to deliver. Boyles charges me a flat rate and on some items, I received free delivery. You just have to make sure you are dealing with reputable stores. I only use Boyles in Hickory, NC, Carpets of Dalton in Dalton, GA for carpets. The recommendation for Carpets of Dalton came from this web site. Before you order, ask about their return policies, how they handle damaged or defective furniture, and how payment is made. Some stores only take credit cards for the deposit with the balance due by check when the furniture is ready for delivery. As soon as the furniture arrives, have the piece unwrapped outside and examine every inch of it before you let them bring it inside. And I mean go over every inch of it. Do this whether you buy it locally or out of state...and make sure you follow the stores instructions to the "T" in regard to damage and defect procedures. That includes noting all and any problems on the delivery documents...both the stores documents and the delivery service. Boyles examines the furniture before it leaves the warehouse, but I still examine it and they tell you to examine it upon arrival. Another think I like about Boyles is they also clean any fingerprints and dust off after they bring it inside. They also put it where you want it placed. I really like their customer service. Almost all stores--both local and out of state, will attempt to repair a piece of furniture, before they replace it. It is a matter of course. But make sure you know how they plan to handle damage. I have a Hancock and Moore sofa, chair, and ottoman on order with Lexington Furniture in Lexington, KY right now. I cannot comment as to their delivery service, but I hear their D&D service is not so great, so I requested they use Sun Delivery. It will cost me more, but the price savings from buying through Lexington is more than $900 less than Boyles and $1,500 less than my local store...plus no 8.5% sales tax. So the extra $100 to have Sun Delivery is ok with me. That is not to say that I do not shop locally. I just purchased $9,500 in furniture from my local store. I could have gotten it for less out of state, but the saleswoman worked with me for so long that I felt it was only right to buy from her. Beware of Rose Furniture and Blacks in NC. They are hit and miss. These stores delivery a lot of damaged furniture and are not easy to work with to have the problem resolved. But some people swear by them...

Just wanted to give an update on what has transpired over the weekend. We found a set of dressers + nightstands that would work in our room. Broyhill Bryson. While probably not everybody's classification of "forever" furniture, if our Ikea stuff lasted 15+ years of hard use, I'm sure these will last us at least double that. We found them at Value City during their 1/2 off sale, but I was leary about getting anything from there after hearing and reading some horror stories. I went to a local furniture store who sells Broyhill (among other brands) and he gladly matched the price and was very appreciative for the opportunity to do so. I will also be looking for furniture for my den in the next year or so, so it was nice to know a local place where I could go and get this kind of deal, while helping the local guy out. Delivery will be 2-4 weeks and hopefully this will go as well. I fell in love with a Flexsteel sectional...so that's on my list for the den if all goes well with this purchase. And while I'm sure some of you have no problems buying used furniture, I am one that can go either way...depending on the use and the age of the piece. I have many antique oak pieces (I'm talking over 100 years old, some of which are dressers) in my home, but they are not used to store clothing. I couldn't see myself putting clothing in them, just with the textures of the drawers, etc. I use them for my living room for storage. I have had the experience of buying a used dresser for my son's room and having everything inside the dresser smell like the previous owners items. I tried everything, and in the end wound up using it in the basement because I couldn't stand it. I know you can sand (we did), clean (we did), paint (didn't go that far). Anyway, than you so much for all the suggestions. I've posted a link of the items we got. We were able to find 2 nightstands that were tall enough (30 x 30 x 18), a large door dresser, a chest, and even a bench that has drawers to go under my window, all for $2115 plus free delivery. I like that this set is a light wood, and it has some distressing (so I don't have to cry when I put the first ding in it). I most likely will be recovering the bench though, not crazy about the neutral burlap looking upholstry. And even though I do not like matchy matchy stuff, I would have splurged for the bed in a heartbeat if it would have fit in my room without covering a portion of my window. Those drawers underneath make me drool at the extra storage...LOL Now, on to window treatments. No clue but I definitely like white (my room is now yellow as opposed to the pic above). I have to post more recent pics to see if any of you have ideas. Here is a link that might be useful: Broyhill Bryson