Furniture

That depends on what "it" is. If "it" is particle board knock down furniture from that giant blue abomination, then yes, they can do it cheaper with an army of under-fed asian people.

On the other hand, "it" could be so much more. About six months ago, a friend of mine came in to work ohhing and ahhing over this dresser he bought. He went into a furniture store and bought it from a catalog. He knew I was a woodworker so he came to me to talk about it. I suggested that when it gets delivered, he should take some pictures (of the jointery and back of course) and bring them in. The end result was that it was, in deed, a very nice dresser. They're simply not mass produced to that standard anymore: dovetails that fit, the back looked like 3/8" or 1/2" ply that was rabbeted into the back. It was a perfect fit. The price: $3800 for 1 dresser, not a complete bedroom set.

I'm fairly confident that with similar wood, the tools I have now, and even my amature finishing techniques, I could make something comperable and come in at maybe a quarter of that price.

brian