MFI fitted bedroom wardrobes, any good? or any other bedroom idea's would be appreciated in the Brighton area
Question:I'm trying to do my bedroom at the moment it's an complete empty shell & I need either fitted wardrobes or may even consider free standing ones for now.
Cannot afford to spend loads, checked out MFI but not sure on quality however, compared to Sharps & Hammonds they are a lot compettive & seem to have sales on all the time! Should I maybe find a carpenter who could at least install the MFI stuff or use MFI for everything for example.
Answers:
I agree with previous statements - avoid MFI like the plague. The quality is atrocious and they have one of the worst reputations in the industry, which is why they are always having sales.
Places like Ikea, although they are freestanding, are much better quality for the money that you pay.
Shop around for ready made furniture rather than flatpack. What you see at MFI is not usually of the same standard as what you get after you have built up the flatpack in your own home. Some small shops are willing to take a lower price for the furniture than the marked price. Use your bargaining skills.
Good afternoon i am Pierce from Pierce & Banderiezz.
Interior designs.
Mallard furniture industries MFI to you and me Are going bust within the next 2 year which is why it always seems to have a sale on Moben is set to be buying them out.
Mfi produce very low quality items at a pumped up price inflation compared to what you could buy from likes of ikea or b&q or myself.
My personal advice is save a little if needed and employ a good interior designer whom will make and produce the articles them selves for your room.
If at the time you can not find a designer whom is able to offer the full service please feel free to contact myself .
I dont work on flat fee i only charge for my time the produce.
And of course travel if deemed neccesary.
I bought MFI fitted wardrobes last summer. DON'T GO THERE! IT'S A NIGHTMARE!!! Where to begin...
Design service is o.k. but I was disappointed when it arrived to find out that it's basically glorified flat packed furniture. If you're any good with an allen key and a screw driver you'll manage basic assembly fine.
The tricky bit is fixing bridging units and so on so that they look seamless.
The furniture itself is compressed chipboard no better than you'd get at Ikea and splits easy. The drawer bottoms are only very thin so the slightest bit of weight and they bend. Mine are aleardy warped.
I didn't get the right handles that I'd ordered and changing them was a nightmare. Door hinges were also missing. Once MFI have got your money they don't care. The aftersales service is poor. I spent nearly £600 on my wardrobes because I thought they'd be a "lifetime" purchase but I so wish I'd spent £300 at Ikea instead. Granted, Ikea's aftersales (or even presale service for that matter) isn't great but at least with them you know what you're getting into!
Back to MFI. However, to give a balanced view... a colleague at work got total bedroom fit out from MFI (spent thousands) and doesn't have a bad word to say!
Another tip as well. if they've got a sale on of ex-display stock, find the manager and haggle, you'll save pounds!! They just want the stuff out of the way.
Apologies for extensive ramblings but I hope you get the picture
IKEA have some cheaper alternatives nowadays, I saw one wardrobe & cabinet made of pine with white plastic panels and a white fabric front.
The beauty of buying flat pack, box standard, MDF based, formica topped furniture is that it's VERY VERY easy to customize! A good sand down and some imagination can make a boring piece into something wild, wonderful, exotic, modern or unique! It depends on your budget. Try and find used pieces in charity shops, or ask friends/family if they're throwing anything away. Fix it, make it strong, sand it and it's your blank canvas.
Look at wallpapers (not your flowery kinds, something more contemporary that appeals to you) and paste onto the furniture, glue photos all over the doors (be careful with air bubbles), find interesting wrapping papers or magazines/newspapers and glue them on or just do a really simple paint job and add new handles!
I took a boring flat back cabinet once, tiled the 2 exposed shelves, added real wood door knobs and painted it in country blue, with a crackle effect and red hearts on the doors ...it's looks like an antique piece from a Swiss cottage!
Make sure you varnish the doors well (70 thinner ; 30 varnish x 3 coats).
TIP: 'AGE' the furniture by adding brown oil paint to the varnish or by using a cloth and wiping on furniture wax in a dark colour.
ALWAYS PRACTICE on card or scrap wood first.
Find a good local man who will fit the MFI units for you, Make sure he is a competent tradesman not a fly-by-night who grabs your money and runs. A proper tradesman would most likely want a deposit but then would complete the job before wanting the rest of his money. When the job has been done satisfactorily look happy and pay. Whatever else happens, don't change your mind part way through the project, give your man a proper chance. Remember things can be changed at the planning stage quite easily, but after starting changes cost money. Keep the kettle boiling....... Pat.
I have just had a kitchen installed, the fitter was superb but that is the only thing that is superb about them! All I will say if you decide to order from this shower then make sure you check your order in every minute detail.They reissued me paperwork & 3 seperate items had different codes but same price & description. To my cost I ended up on numerous times arguing on the phone with them to get the right bits delivered. The whole process was very stressful & I would NEVER repeat it, and will NEVER use this company again however cheap & "value for money" they appear to be. Hope this helps? Use another company
B&Q do some nice stuff
Check Out the Furniture Auctions in your area... You can pick up real bargains and have a great time as well.
You could pick up a complete bedroom for a fraction of the price and really good quality.
ive been in the situation of needing a closet what i did was i got some metal closet clips and a long round wooden rod if u need shelf space put a piece of wood above that and hang a sheet down to cover your closet area. it worked for me and was easy and cheap.
There is a great company in Ontario, CA that supplies many unfinished stores throughout the country: Skog Furniture. They build wardrobes in many styles, any size, many finishes and a choice of Cherry, Oak, Alder or pine. You can sketch out your space..nothing formal..w/the dimensions you need and they'll build it for you at less then prices you would pay at custom cabinet shops!! And, NO PARTICLE BOARD!
MFI are a large very inflexible company not know for the best in customer relations. You have to pay up front when ordering so they always have the upper hand. Saying that I have just re done our bedroom using there units and its very good. The final quality depends on the craftsman doing the work so choose carefully. The quality off flat pack stuff from all suppliers is much better now than it used to be. Far fewer bits missing or not fitting, but MFI delivery is not up to much. Often bits arrive later than the timed delivery and because you have already paid your bargaining position is VERY weak. A private carpenter will probably give a better price than the company
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