– The wood may be very heavy because it is filled with sand or a mixture of materials, including plaster, paper, shredded wood, glue and garbage. Not only will this mean that you’re paying far more than you should pay thinking it is made of solid wood, it also means it is quite fragile. But what’s worse, is that it can foster insects that will infest your furniture and eventually your home as they spread and multiply.

– It also may be the case that the wood has absorbed a lot of water due to bad storage or transport conditions, making a beech-wood (zan) dining room chair too heavy to lift. In this case, the water will eventually evaporate, leaving the chair crooked, deformed or even cause it to break. Ask the seller to get you the wood’s humidity-measuring device to see whether it has absorbed to much water and don’t buy anything that comes up to above 12.

3. Color:

– Beech wood (zan) is not of very light color. Ask to see the wood before it is painted, if it is of white or cream color, it is not solid wood. It is rather left-over shreds of wood from different sources, glued together and bleached to unify their color and trick you into thinking it is one, solid piece of wood. Nouh, however, adds that it is very difficult to see the wood unpainted, unless you are dealing with a carpenter, and there are kinds of woods that have cream or beige color, so if you can’t have a wood-savyy person with you opt to buy from reputable manufacturers to avoid any tricks.

4. Manufacturing:

– You can tell if the manufacturing is good when there are no joints between pieces of wood forming a straight line and each straight line should be made of one pieces of wood, advises Nouh.

– The bulk of furniture shouldn’t be nailed or glued, it should rather be joint from ends and corners, much like a lego piece — what’s called me’asha’ (dovetail) or na’r w lesan (mortise and tenon) in the furniture manufacturing world, which are also glued but have higher durability given the structure. These make the furniture more solid and durable than fragile glue or nails that should only be used for minor parts or accessories.

– The legs on your chairs, cabinets and couches should be heavy, made from solid wood and joint not nailed or glued to the body.

5. Finishing

The finishing is essential in quality furniture and rather easy to spot.

Look out for:

– Any rough surfaces, even on the insides of drawers or cabinets. Proper sanding is essential and it will easily show.

– Check for even polishing and staining, especially on the sides and corners.

– Inspect the piece closely for any dust specks, rough spots or bubbles in staining.

– Look out for finishing that is too glossy that you can’t see the wood grain, it might mean it is hiding something.