The 14 Best Places to Buy (Stylish) Furniture on a Budget

All Modern Jones 86'' Upholstered Sofa (Was $1,250 — Now $999)

This sapphire rust color in a sleek silhouette is a contemporary twist on Scandinavian style. Built on a solid wood frame, it's durable and comes in multiple upholstery options. The color is chef's kiss too.

Joybird Lewis Sofa (Was $2,455 — Now $1,350)

Joybird is offering up to 45 percent off best sellers and 35 percent off site wide. This best-selling sofa is a major steal right now. It has deep cushions, shelter arms, and pillowed backs to make your binge nights extra lounge-y. We love the gold velvet, but you can choose from more than 10 colors and even more upholstery options. It comes in four sizes too to fit your space.

All Modern Rae 84-inch Upholstered Sofa (Was $1,999 — Now $1,799)

This mid-century style sofa with metal legs is small-space friendly and also comes in a stylish sectional. Available in several colors, the sofa is cushiony-soft and a living room showstopper in this olive green.

CB2 Durant Wheat Velvet Sofa (Was $1,799 — Now $1,439)

This swoon-worthy sofa makes a bold statement in wheat-colored velvet and a striking design at just over 100-inch wide. Featuring feather down cushions and FSC-certified birch frame, we actually can't believe the markdown. It's stunning!

Poly & Bark Argan Leather Sofa (Was, $2,061 — Now $1649 with code LABOR)

If you want something a little more rustic, go for this buttery cognac tan leather sofa. With feather down seating and mahogany finish legs, this comfy sofa gives Magnolia Home vibes for your modern cabin style.

Article Abisko Sectional (Was $1599 — Now $1099)

This small-space sectional in quartz white fabric and titanium-finished legs looks like it belongs in a 5-star hotel. If you can manage a creamy white sofa (ie, no dogs or kids), this lounger is a spot you'll find yourself reading, watching, resting all day long. You can have nice things!

Interior Design Fiona Loveseat (Was $1845 — Now $1476)

This curvy and stylish loveseat is perfect for studio spaces with a retro silhouette that is sleek and totally lovely. The camel velvet is pretty gorgeous but you can also choose from more than 50 color and fabric combos.

Interior Define Maxwell Fabric Sofa by Apartment Therapy (Was $1845 — Now $1476)

Want to really embrace color? This berry hue is rich and so beautiful. Designed by Apartment Therapy founder Maxwell Ryan, the custom sectional sofa (you can choose from a bunch of colors and textures) is inspired by a classic silhouette with modern materials to make it light and comfy. We love the low profile and luxe deep seat you can sink into.

Pottery Barn Pacifica Return Bumper Sectional (Was $2,298 — Now $1,839)

For a subtler pink, this Pottery Barn sectional is actually more compact than it looks at 100-inches wide and features cushions so cozy you won't want to get up to do the dishes!

Burrow Ember Sofa (Was $1599, Now $1359)

Burrow is offering up to 60 percent site wide this Labor Day weekend. With extra wide, extra deep cushions made with triple-foam, plus steel hardware and a hardwood frame, this chenille sofa checks a lot of boxes for the perfect sofa. It also comes in 5 different sizes, including sectionals.

Crate and Barrel Aris Grande Deep Track-Arm Sofa (Was $1,899 — Now $1,614)

If you're a fan of the Nancy Meyers aesthetic, this coastal-style sofa - with clean lines and deep bench seating - is for you. It comes in 230 different fabrics and colors!

Burrow Range 4-Piece One Arm Sectional (Was $1799 — Now $1439)

Blue lovers, we haven't forgotten you! This compact modular sectional is perfect for hosting, napping, and streaming. It's designed for those tight corners you need to pivot a sofa into.

Article Sven Tufted Velvet Sofa (Was $1499 — Now $1049)

The blue and green varieties of this popular vintage-style sofa with tufted seating are on sale now. Go get 'em!

Harper & Bright Designs Chaise Lounge Sofa (Was $754 — Now $596)

This super affordable sofa requires no assembly and comes in a chic boucle fabric. We love the elegant chaise style, perfect for lounging and hosting.

West Elm Palour Sofa (Was $1699 — Now $1,444)

This 82-inch sofa in the color mauve (tho you can choose others) has a posh Bridgerton quality we love. The frame is sustainably sourced and the bench seating keeps your seat intact while you binge on past episodes.

IKEA Morabo (Was $1,249 — Now $1,049)

Featured in a light green fabric and metal legs, this 4-seat sectional is your new favorite spot to chill — at an affordable price!

West Elm Avalon 68.5" Channeled Sofa (Was $1,399, Now $1,189.15)

This sweet seater in evergreen velvet and channel tufting is small, stylish, and luxe. A keeper!

RIBBA Frame

IKEA is a steal for frames compared to other frame or custom frame shops. I have been using the Ribba frame for years for large-scale prints, gallery walls, and photo-sized frames. Mix them with vintage frames and trinkets like above to add character and a little soul to your space.

FLÅDIS Basket

I use these seagrass baskets everywhere to store and hide unsightly things like laundry supplies, my daughter's toys, and even to cover planters. They're collapsible and under $10!

TORNVIKEN Kitchen Island

I was searching for a kitchen island forever until I came upon this oak one and I love it! I get compliments on it all the time from guests who are surprised it's from IKEA. There's roomy storage on the shelves on one side and legroom on the other side for bar stools. I chose Serena & Lily barstools to give the look an upgrade.

BLANDA MATT Bamboo Serving Bowl

This bamboo bowl and serving set is perfect for serving big salads while entertaining.

HILDEGUN Dish towel

I grab a few of these every time I visit IKEA. They have a French country vibe and work as dish towels or dinner napkins. The 79 cents is kind of an insane price too.

ULLERSLEV Sheepskin

This real sheepskin is the soft texture every cozy home needs. I have one draped over my daughter's desk chair, but they also look great on a dining bench or in a reading nook.

BERGPALM Duvet Cover and Pillowcases

These striped duvet cover sets are a great cotton canvas for guest, kid, and master beds. I love that they come with two shams, and I'll top them with a printed quilt from Coyuchi or patterned pillows from Coterie Brooklyn to elevate the look.

FJÄLLARNIKA Duvet Insert

IKEA is also great for duvet inserts. I say go with a mid- to higher-range here for one that has some weight and comfort.

IVRIG Glass

Stemless wine glasses, which is what I use these for, are also ideal for water and juice!

STOCKHOLM Mirror

Mirrors can be so expensive! Why?! I use this walnut veneer mirror in my bedroom, just above a walnut dresser. Love the 24-inch size.

JÄMLIK Scented Tealight

I bring a few of these out for dinner parties. The sweet vanilla scent isn't overpowering and the candles give just enough light to make it feel like a cozy and intimate occasion.

LAGKAPTEN Tabletop

I've been using this tabletop for more than 10 years! It started as a sewing table with MITTBACK trestle legs and now works as my WFH desk, holding my printer on one of the trestle legs. My daughter has an IKEA desk too that we swapped with HILVER bamboo cone-shaped legs for a modern look.

LACK Wall Shelf

I've used these floating shelves for forever too. For kitchen shelves in my junior one bedroom in San Francisco a decade ago and now in my daughter's playroom to hold all of her Legos.;)

MÅLERÅS Picture Ledge

I use these picture ledges in the kitchen to hold my IKEA wine glasses, a beautiful paddle cutting board from Crate & Barrel, and a small plant.

ÄNDLIG 3-piece knife set

These IKEA knives, also a long-term purchase, stay sharp, are comfortable to use, and are great for everyday use!

BUMERANG Hanger

Finally, these IKEA hangers are affordable and look great to streamline your closet decor. No wire hangers here!

IKEA Items I Avoid

I tend to avoid the more popular items from IKEA, such as the best-selling POÄNG Armchair. If you have one, no judgement! It's a great chair. I have a kid's one in my daughter's playroom that we inherited. But I've slowly invested in more quality pieces that feel unique and bring my joy when I walk into my main spaces.

Here are a few items I avoid:

IKEA has a lot of great mattresses, but a $100 mattress doesn't quite feel like a hundred bucks. I purchased the ÅSVANG Foam Mattress for my daughter's IKEA bunk bed, and maybe because of the slats below, it is SO uncomfortable. We use it to hold her stuffies for now and plan to add an extra foam cushion above.

I've never liked IKEA's fleece-like throw blankets made of recycled polyester. They just don't have a lot of substance and the material doesn't feel as good quality as I'd like it too.

Finally, a $10 floor lamp is going to look like a $10 floor lamp (home snob, here, sorry!). The BARLAST Floor lamp or similar is a no-go in my decor book.

​In which episode does JJ die?

JJ dies at the end of Outer Banks season 4 episode 10, "The Blue Crown" after rescuing Kiara from his father Chandler Groff. "I feel mad, betrayed, disappointed and heartbroken to say the least," Bruder adds. "JJ went through a lot of crap through the show and he was the one character who deserved his happy ending the most. When the series first came out, people fell in love with JJ and [Kiara]."

While the cast obviously found out about the ending while filming, fans are frustrated with how they chose to promote the show. "Obviously the cast can’t spoil a character death, but to blatantly lie and mislead fans by saying that Jiara was 'evergrowing' and fans would be happy with how the season plays out?" Bruder says. "Jiara fans deserved so much better than what we got, ESPECIALLY when they knew they were killing JJ off."

Why are Outer Banks fans so upset?

The show is the kind of phenomenon that made instant stars out of its cast, but it also made waves because of how the first season portrayed issues like classism, substance abuse, and domestic abuse. "As someone who has been around domestic abuse, I think the handling of the character JJ was detrimental culturally," another fan (who would like to remain anonymous) says. "The character suffered abuse at the hands of a man who was not even his biological father, and the writers almost framed it as if that was okay because in the beginning, his father loved him. Instead of telling a story to victims of abuse about hope and making it through trials, the writers went the opposite way. I also find it interesting that they stated this was a planned death. I think writing a character who is suffering from anxiety and clear mental health issues as well as abuse who is very young like JJ only to let him fall in love and kill him right when he starts to feel happiness doesn’t necessarily make a lot of sense narratively."

Another viewer adds that ending JJ's story that way felt "disrespectful...especially when in an interview following the episode, one of the creators literally referred to his death as pointless." She even says "it feels almost like the show died along with him."

Actress Madelyn Cline (Sarah Cameron) called JJ the "heart of Outer Banks"and for a lot of fans, JJ also became a beacon of hope, a reminder that you can endure, persevere, and come out stronger on the other side. Since the first season of the show dropped during April 2020, it's been one consistent, fun thing for TV fans since the COVID-19 pandemic began, which makes the loss feel even greater.

"Seeing him die at the hands of another abusive father was honestly kind of sickening," the viewer adds. "It’s also unfortunate that his death didn’t seem to mean anything. A character death like this would be one thing if it meant something. If he had died protecting his friends or actively protecting Kiara, rather than having already saved her and then getting killed afterward, it might’ve be easier to get past."

"It’s like a connection to something good and steady was just broken," X user @onlykiep4l says. "Killing a character that has literally gone trough so much trauma and was finally happy just doesn’t make sense. It’s not just the character that’s gone — it feels like a part of the show has ended too."

Why does JJ get killed off?

Rumors have been circulating for years about behind-the-scenes drama between actors Rudy Pankow and Madison Bailey, which has fans believing Rudy asked to be written off the show(for the record, Outer Banks creators Josh & Jonas Pate and Shannon Burke have said it was the plan from the beginning). With Rudy's exit, the writers had a difficult choice in front of them. JJ isn't the kind of guy to abandon his friends, meaning the writers obviously felt like killing him was the only option. But according to an additional viewer, "Outer Banks hasn't been that type of show."

"To attempt to turn this fun, summer, boat show into some dark, depressing story where the heart of the show is gone destroys everything that the show started out as," she says.

Another anonymous fan calls the choice "a character assassination," adding other moments from the season that feel like a different character than the one fans have come to love: barely reacting to John B. and Sarah's pregnancy announcement, or to the fact Rafe had come to talk to Kiara — especially after his reaction to Rafe catcalling Kie in the first season is a moment that led fans to ship them in the first place.

The fan continues by calling JJ's treatment a "lack of respect" toward the character. "The fact that the writers tried to make us dislike him, to soften the blow of him dying. It didn’t work. It has everyone distraught because many people’s favorite character ended up dying after 'finding happiness' for about 10 minutes in Episode 10."

​Does Sarah get pregnant in Outer Banks season 4?

But JJ's death isn't the only moment that has fans reeling. In addition to the fact viewers are saying the Pogues barely reacted to the death of their lifelong best friend, Pope is now a murderer and Kiara makes an absolutely chilling vow to get revenge on Groff — a far cry from the characters we fell in love with in season 1.

"Outside of the JJ of it all, a lot of plot lines/dynamics in part 2 felt off," one of our anonymous fans continues. "Sarah’s pregnancy plot line, especially when coupled with the quote from a creator about ‘giving her a baby specifically because she wasn’t ready’ feels incredibly tone deaf given the current state of things here in the US. The fact that there wasn’t even a conversation of if she wanted to continue with the pregnancy felt very icky. Overall, episodes 1-4 of this season did feel like Outer Banks, but everything after that felt like it was from an entirely different piece of media."

However, some fans are excited to see where the show goes from here. "JJ was such a strong character and his presence will obviously be missed, [but] I am excited to see how the Pogues react and what they do to get revenge on Groff," Virginia McGrew says in an email. "I also think that the scene of JJ dying with Kiara was extremely well done and emotional, making his passing even sadder. I ultimately believe that JJ’s passing serves as a reminder of the themes the show."

"JJ made the group even more aware of friendship, the importance of chosen family, and loyalty, which was seen throughout the season and especially in the finale," she continues. "Now that he is gone, the other Pogues will have to step up even more, creating a shift in their dynamic. While many believe that Outer Banks might not be worth watching after this finale, I truly think that it is only going to get even deeper and more interesting."