PUBLISHED July 23rd, 2024 06:00 am
Be it styling a new home or sprucing up your nest, furniture plays a significant role in creating the mood and aesthetics of your space. Lucky for us, we have access to the plethora of affordable designs on Taobao, China’s largest online marketplace. But more than price, you can also buy unique furniture designs on Taobao to spruce up your home. From the bedroom to the living room and the dining room, these creative furniture pieces serve more than their practical purpose, bringing a touch of character to your home.
Shopping on Taobao
For those who need a little help with Chinese, Google Translate is a useful tool to ease your registration and shopping process, even if it’s ad verbatim. And with Taobao’s photo-recognition software, it is convenient to search with photos and screenshots. Although the results may not be as accurate as using word search, it does bring you closer to what you might be looking for.
For an insight into each seller and their products, a little research into the “evaluate” section, noting the number of reviews, photo reviews, and rating, will paint you a better picture of what you are going to get.
When it comes to shipping, Taobao’s preferred international shipping partner is Cainiao, which offers direct and consolidated shipping via air or sea freight. Otherwise, working with a Third Party Forwarder that charges by cubic meters , instead of weight, can be a cost-efficient method.
For the Living Room
Living Room Centerpiece: Coffee Table
Place this round two-tiered coffee table in the center of the living room as the main focus of any modern or minimalist themed design. It plays with contrast in textures and height, with the top table made of glass, and the bottom table made of slate. Slate is a durable surface that can withstand heat and scratches, and is relatively hydrophobic, making it easy to maintain. This coffee table even comes with two drawers to stash away your TV essentials.
Shop the coffee table here.
Cat-Lovers Sofa
A sofa for cat-lovers. Shaped like a cat at rest, this sofa is as soft and cosy as it looks, at least this is what some of the reviews say. The sofa is made of flannel and high-quality memory sponge, and it comes in one to four-seater configurations, so you can enliven almost any space with it. If white is too stark, customise it in one of the other five colours to match your overall design.
Shop the Cat Sofa here.
For the Study Room
The Great Oak Shelf
Give a pop of colour and design to your collection of books, with this undulating shelf designed to maximise shelf space. The designer noticed how much overhead space was created by shorter books on a levelled shelf. He kept spaces between the shelves uneven, so that shorter books can be placed at shorter ends, saving some space. Using an M- like design at the back, the designer aims to create a sense of flow.
Shop the Oak Shelf here.
A Warm Embrace in a Chair
Designed to uplift, this chair is shaped like a cloud that gently embraces the person sitting in it. And from the raving reviews of relaxation, warmth, and cosy afternoon naps, the “embrace” has clearly come through. The chair is available in three sizes -small for children, large and extra large for adults. And all chairs come with an attached ball as a footrest. Complement your design themes by customising the cotton and linen fabric from their selection of colours and prints. Take a good break and relax in an embrace.
Shop Embrace Chair here.
For the Bedroom
Sleep on Air
This might be the closest you can get to sleeping on air, while being on ground. There’s no sorcery or complicated carpentry work here, just clever placement of support that gives the illusion of a levitating bed. It even comes with energy-saving LED lights that bestows that glow when you go up and down the bed. The frame fits a king- sized mattress, and it comes in four easy-to-match colours. You might even add-on a leather-bound “floating” side table to complete the levitation look.
Shop levitating bed here.
For the Dining Room
Secrets of the Dining Table
Looking all simple and sleek, you wouldn’t think this dining table is hiding any secrets. That’s where you are wrong. Not only can it extend its ends to accommodate more food on the table, it can even heat them up with its in-built electric stove. This means you can keep food warm while you eat, or conveniently host a hotpot party. The slate table top is heat and scratch resistant, and comes in seven colours. Select one of the three colours for the steel base, and there you have your unique dining table.
Shop retractable dining table here.
To Bar or Not To Bar
This retro-styled island can be flexibly set up to become a personal bar, kitchen island, work station, or coffee counter. It comes in three parts – a table, a cabinet, and a counter, which you can rearrange for different purposes or to fit into specific spaces. With the use of brown wood and textured glass on the cabinet, it exudes an old world charm especially when the LED lights illuminate from within. And it is also made for modern convenience with in-built electrical power tracks on the side of the counter.
Shop bar counter here.
Top Image: Cat Sofa