We must all had to rely on second hand furniture in during our lifetimes – that first flat when Grandma offers out the old brown wardrobe and Aunty Flo says you can have her old dining room set when your Uncle Albert buys her a new one. . . . Gradually over time we decide to invest in some better pices of our own and gladly dispatch the old brown’ns to the auction house or a charity shop that deals with furniture and effects.  The choosing of the new items can be so exciting but also rather annoying if the store offers super quick delivery times but these tend to slip.  This is very much a feature of the stack them high, sell’em cheap variety of mega store.  It can be so tempting to go to these huge places that sell the latest fashionable trend in furnishings;  that nice shade of sky blue pink sofa bed or whatever.  It pays however to shop around and see what exactly you get for your money as I did recently when seeking out a new sideboard.  I had seen a really lovely one in an out of town emporium.  It is light oak and the design is super modern with no frills or fussy bits.  The shade of the oak appeals greatly in that it looks sunny – as if it has absorbed the sunlight and is storing it up for me!  I already have a lovely honey coloured dining table in light oak and the sideboard would go very nicely.  However, there was some hesitation in the his voice when I asked the sales guy about delivery!  So back to my local high street family furnishing store.  May be a little dearer but much more reliable.