We asked nans what they think of fast furniture

These days, we tend to want everything fast – fast food, fast fashion, and now even fast furniture. We are no longer seeking furniture items that will last us a lifetime, but rather something that will satisfy us for merely a season.

To remind us of a thing or two, we went back a couple of generations and asked what they cherished most about the furniture in their homes and the consumer craze that is fast furniture.

Listen to episode six of Somewhere Else: 

Relearn the value of money

In the past, if you wanted a quality piece of furniture, you would save up and buy something that you intended to keep forever. Marjorie, 84, of Nerang, Queensland, says when she got married buying something as necessary as a fridge required careful consideration.

“When I got married it was 200 pounds for a new Westinghouse fridge, and they were only small, about my height,” she says. “My husband’s wage was only 10 pounds a week, so it took us two years of savings to buy that fridge.”

Because she learnt the value of money at a young age, Marjorie expects her household items to go the distance. “If I was to buy a piece of furniture for $50, I’d still expect it to last a while, otherwise what’s the point?”

Buy to keep

Just one look at websites such as Facebook Marketplace or Gumtree and you’ll find countless “like new” furniture items that people are offloading – purchased on a whim, and then let go of just as quickly.

Patsy, 91, of Hamilton South, NSW, says in her time things were meant to be cherished for life.

“When I got married in the 1950s, my parents bought us a lounge chair as a gift, and even after all these years I still use that chair every day – in fact, I’m sitting on it right now,” says Patsy over the phone.

When asked to describe the chair, Patsy says it has years and years of people’s backs imprinted into it, adding to its sentiment.

“It has no real value, but I am connected to it. It’s got wide arms that I can put my coffee or gin and tonic on, it’s comfortable, and that’s about everything I need.”

If something breaks, fix it

Over time, it’s only natural that furniture will age and break, in one way or another. But once upon a time, people were not so quick to throw things out. In fact, 88-year old Joan, of Birrong, NSW, says when something breaks, you should always try and fix it.

“I’m a child of the Depression, so we learnt to make do and find a use for everything,” Joan says. “To throw something away was the last thing on our minds – even if a dining chair became worn I’d get it reupholstered, I wouldn’t get rid of it.”

Joan says whenever she sees furniture in the council clean-ups, she can’t help but feel a little disheartened. 

“There’ll be a perfectly good dining table that’s just missing a leg, and I’ll think, ‘that could have been fixed’.”

Ignore the trends

When asked to name her favourite piece of furniture, Joan says that it’s her Chiswell china cabinet that she takes the most pride in. 

“It’s full of memorabilia and family heirlooms,” she says. “It’s where I display my own christening mug, my mother-in-law’s wine glasses, and my May Gibbs figurines, which I love.”

Joan also cherished her TV cabinet which was part of her Chiswell collection, so much so that when it came time to upgrade her television to a flat screen, instead of paying attention to the trends of today she sought to have another made to match her beloved set. 

“I took a cupboard door off the proper cabinet, and went to a local furniture maker that I’d seen in a brochure,” she say. “They then matched the style and the type of wood into a new cabinet that would fit my TV. I don’t follow trends, I’m 80-odd years old, I like what I like.”

Bring back sentimental value

Looking around our own homes today, we have to wonder how emotionally attached we are to that Ikea sofa in the living room, or that Kmart bookshelf in the entryway. It’s very likely that the answer to this would be, not much at all.

With that, there’s something rather inspiring about how past generations treasure the items in their homes, enough to hope that they will not only last their own lifetime, but also those in the family that follows.

“I’ve had the same coffee table for the past 40 years that my brother made me,” says Marjorie.

“He passed away a few months ago, so it’s pretty special to me. It’s also the coffee table that all my grandchildren learnt to stand up on, holding onto as they walked around it. It’s as sturdy as the day it was made, and I wouldn’t get rid of it for anything. I do hope it stays in the family for generations to come.”