Furniture is described rather than graded, and the description has a shape that leaves nothing to discover on arrival.
The order
- Measurements, in centimetres, including seat height where it applies
- Material — solid wood, veneer, laminate, engineered board
- Structure — sound, wobbly, needs attention, and whether it is usable now
- Surfaces — rings, scratches, heat marks, water marks, fading, lifted veneer
- Moving parts — drawers, doors, hinges, castors
- Repairs and replacements, named
- Smell — smoke, damp, storage
Words to use precisely
Solid means solid through. Veneer is a thin layer over something else — a real and common construction, and not a fault, but it must be said. Refinished — the original surface was removed and redone. Declare it. Restored, repaired, married — the antiques vocabulary applies to anything old.
Say whether it is usable now
A wobbly table that needs re-gluing is a perfectly good listing at the right price. A wobbly table sold as sound is a return.
For homeware
Chips, cracks, crazing, hairlines, dishwasher dulling, missing lids, replaced handles. For anything functional say whether it is food-safe, watertight, or has become decorative only.
Questions people ask
Is a water ring damage?
Yes, and a common one. Show it under raking light rather than hoping the photograph misses it.
Does flat-pack furniture have condition?
Yes — edge swelling, stripped fixings, how many times it has been assembled. All worth saying.
How do I describe fading?
Where it is, how even, and photographed in daylight. Naming the flaw raises the price.
More: condition words across every category, buying homeware.