1. Living Room by Serena & Lily how much does it cost?
All too often clients are shocked at how much it costs to furnish a new home. Furniture shopping isn't something that most people do on a regular basis. It's part of my job so I do. There is almost always sticker shock when they see that each and every item adds up to a (considerably) large sum. To get a general idea I decided to shop a few rooms from well know catalog companies.
The photo above is from the Serena & Lily Catalog. A pretty, beachy, coastal living room that is the basic items I looked for from each catalog to price compare.
Serena & Lily is a popular catalog with designer quality furniture and looks. Ballard Designs a catalog that has been around for quite a long time. Ballard has designer looks and even very popular designer lines from names like Bunny Williams and Suzanne Kasler. It has been my experience however that the quality is not in line with other brands.
Finally we will look at Pottery Barn a great place for reasonably priced basics. As I perused the Pottery Barn website I was pleased to see many high end lamps that were once exclusive to designers only. They do have the price tag to match however.
Individually you may think, oh that's not too pricey when you look at a lamp or table. Put them all together and it all adds up quickly.
Click on any photo below for info on each of the items from Serena & Lily
And the grand total for the living room above.....drum roll please!
Note: Sales tax is not included
Note: Shipping Dates are varied - you will get this in separate shipments.
Very likely an increase in shipping rates more than what is shown.
THE SERENA & LILY GRAND TOTAL
$31,128.00
Let's just say for the sake of argument 32K.
Please let's also note that this room is not complete.
There are no window treatments. With the addition of draperies, shutters and or blinds the total cost for furnishing and decorating the room will go up, and likely quite a bit.
Take a look at The Shade Store to get an idea of window treatment pricing. Here is a coupon you might like to use.
Scroll Through Below for pricing on each item.
Lets price the same Living Room from another furniture catalog.
2. Living Room from Ballard Designs How Much Does it Cost?
This however is not an apples to apples comparison. Ballard Designs has designer lines and some good looking pieces, but the quality is No comparison to Serena & Lily
I tried to select similar items and the same quantity.
Note: Sales tax is estimated
Note: Shipping Dates are varied - you will get this in separate shipments but they have included an estimate.
THE BALLARD DESIGN GRAND TOTAL
$18,015.14
Quite a substantial savings with Ballard Designs versus Serena & Lily but again I can not stress this enough - they are not the same quality. As with all things in life
YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR
Scroll Through Below for Ballard Designs Items
3. Living Room From Pottery Barn How Much Does It Cost?
Similar selections a sofa, two chairs and ottomans, throw pillows, a throw, pair of lamps, a mirror, a chandelier 2 end tables and an area rug. All similar items and the same quantity for each catalog company.
Note: Sales tax NOT included
Shipping NOT included
Shipping Dates are varied - you will get this in separate shipments but they have included an estimate.
THE POTTERY BARN GRAND TOTAL
$12,925.00
Scroll Through below for prices on Pottery Barn Items
This was a little bit of a surprise to me. I did not think that Pottery Barn would be less expensive than Ballard. Even though I tried to select pieces that are similar the Serena & Lily sofa has a great braided trim on the bottom that could not be found in either of the other two catalogs.
The Final Numbers
Serena & Lily - $31,128.00 exclusive of tax and shipping may be more than quoted
Ballard Designs - $18,015.14 that includes $590 for shipping and $1,167.14 in Sales Tax $16,258.00 in purchases alone.
Pottery Barn - $12,925.00 exclusive of tax and shipping Roughly $14,682.14 if we add in the estimated tax and shipping from Ballard.
It bears mention again that not one of these are complete designs. There are several items that would need to be added to have a final and complete design and I used the Serena and Lily as a jumping off point to make a comparison.
Well that was a fun little exercise! Hope you found some value in it.
Looking for more? You might like one of all of these posts.
Are Your Renovation Expectations Realistic?
Interior Designers What do they Really Do?
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