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Step 1
You may think you need to visit your army surplus or used goods stores, but you usually have to buy the stuff at those locations. Instead of doing this I want you to first think of what rooms in your house need furniture. For example, say you need a bed for the bedroom or a counter for the kitchen. Whatever it may be your first assignment is to sit down and figure out what you need. When you have your list in front of you I want you to sketch how you imagine the furniture will look like.
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Step 2
Once you've created a few blueprints I want you to imagine what kind of materials you're going to need to create those pieces of furniture. Once you have an idea of lumber, fabric, padding, braces, brackets, and whatever I want you to think of where you might find things of that nature thrown out or left over in an industrial or warehouse part of town. You'd be surprised at how many companies throw out left over or unusable product from their manufacturing processes. Drive around and ask for this stuff, or if you don't mind getting dirty, jump into their dumpsters.
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Step 3
Many times I have found racks behind department stores that were used for clothing or groceries stores who have thrown out bins and a number of all kinds of odds and ends. Many times this stuff isn't broken, just out of date and has since been updated with new showcases and such. It's your job to find these items and think of how you can transform them into home furniture. I once took a peanut bin and turned it into a book shelf for my daughters bedroom. The skies the limit on making home furniture for free, the only thing it'll cost you is a little creativity and time.
