Last Updated on June 28, 2023
A good portion of the decor in my home is vintage. Guests that visit often ask me where I got this vase, that painting, or fancy rattan lounger. Much to their surprise, I know where each piece was purchased, who I purchased it from, and more often than not, I have a story to go along with that particular piece. But there are a few things to know when buying vintage home decor. Here are my best tips.
via DesignSponge (photo by Honey Lake Studio)
Not only do I want my home to be functional and comfortable with affordable home decor, but I also want it to be unique. Buying vintage tends to satisfy that individuality. By mixing old and new I can repurpose vintage items that are found, flea, or salvaged pieces. My decor always has a story to tell and my guests usually walk away talking about my home to others.
One might call me an estate sale and flea market junkie. The Boy calls it obsessed. Every weekend I’m out there, sometimes in the rain, usually in the scorching sun and humidity. I hit early buyer hours to beat the heat and to score the best treasures. It’s such a great way to stretch your budget and find those one-of-a-kind elements that no one else has.
via Patrik Hagborg Photography
You may be asking yourself when is buying vintage home decor a good idea and when should you just buy new. Well, let’s set a few ground rules.
Table of Contents
Affordable Original Artwork
If it speaks to you, snap it up! Vintage original artwork is usually fairly inexpensive, funky, and unique. I wouldn’t expect that you’re going to be finding a hidden Jackson Pollack, but you never know. Stranger things have happened. I personally like the vintage paint by numbers, portraits, and abstracts. When I shop thrift stores, I usually hit the artwork section first. Don’t forget to check out the frame as well. Sometimes a horrendous piece is harbored in a beautiful frame.
Reupholstering Vintage Furniture: Pros and Cons
Furniture from back in the day was well made. Very sturdy. More often than not, the bones of a vintage sofa will outlast a new couch any day. Deciding whether to reupholster an old sofa really comes down to quality and how much money you’re willing to invest. Personally, I’m in love with any vintage Chesterfield, but reupholstery can cost more than a new piece of furniture. Between fabric, re-stuffing, repairing springs, cording, tufting, and labor, you could be well over the $1000 mark. Ask yourself, “is this piece worth the investment, or should I buy a new modern sofa?”
via anthropologie
Now if you see a fabulous piece on the side of the road, please think real good and hard about it. It may have an interesting funk when you bring it home or worse yet…bed bugs. No one wants any part of that. Free vintage upholstered furniture should be approached with extreme caution…be prepared for the worse. There’s a reason it’s sitting on the side of the road with a “TAKE ME I’M FREE” sign. You may not want that reason in your home.
Quality Of Vintage Furniture: Dovetailing and Material
Over the course of the last 25 years, the wood used in furniture making has succumbed to lower standards. Gone are the days of dovetailed corners. Instead, frames are glued with epoxy or stapled. If you find a piece that has great bones but is missing hardware or a knob or two, just replace them. I can’t tell you how many knobs and pulls I’ve replaced with something funkier. It’s a great way to update a piece and make it unique. Easy peasy lemon squeazy.
Buying Vintage Barware, Dishes, and Serveware
Vintage barware is a statement maker when it comes to entertaining. Glasses are adorned with interesting designs, patterns, and colors. I’ve actually had really good luck on Etsy. Since I began sharing unique cocktail recipes for HOH, I especially love to use vintage barware. The gold rims, metal ombré, and funky designs make for memorable moments that your guests will not forget. Don’t be afraid to mix and match because if one breaks, well, c’est la vie. The only thing to be wary of is the dishwasher. They need extra TLC and you’ll want to wash your vintage glasses and dishes by hand.
Also, all my fine china is mix and match. I have one full set of antique china from a friend of my mother’s (her husband brought it back from the Korean War.) that I’m petrified to use it. If that gravy bowl shatters, I’m screwed. Opt for mismatched teacups and neutral mismatched plates. Vintage Pyrex is another flea market find I’m drawn to. If you’re at an estate sale, standing between me and pink Pyrex, we might have to throw down. I will not hesitate to push you out of the way.
As far as silverware goes, definitely go for the mix and match as well. I’ve seen complete sets as the flea market, but I just think it’s more interesting when a table setting is not so matchy-matchy. Check all pieces for chips and cracks. Pass those by if they will be used to serve food. No one wants broken glass in their mouth.
Champagne Smash Cocktail Recipe
Can You Repurpose Vintage Decor? Think Outside The Box
When you are on a budget, repurposing items can be a genius way to bring style into your home. It’s also a great way to create artful vignettes with quirky and personal objects. Just because a vintage ladder was once used by a carpenter doesn’t mean it can’t be used as a shelf, towel rack, or hung horizontally and used as a potholder in your home. A small vintage step ladder can become a side table. Look at shutters or a solid old door as a headboard for your bed. By repurposing vintage finds, it’s easy to tell your story and create one-of-a-kind decor.
Have a beautiful table with only three legs? Don’t fret, Cut it in half, and secure it to a wall to create a half table console in your entryway. Add casters to an oversized picnic basket and create a unique and functioning side table with storage. Convert an old typewriter table to a nightstand.
Old Wiring and Vintage Electrical
I go back and forth on this one. Don’t get me wrong, I love a vintage lamp, but I’ve also been zapped a few times. My advice, proceed with caution. Watch for things like frayed wiring and mangled plugs. Before buying, ask if it works. As far as vintage kitchen appliances, me personally, I tend to leave them alone. Yes, I still use my mom’s hand mixer from 1964, but I’m familiar with that old beast (the mixer, not my mom). As a vintage find, there can be safety issues. If you absolutely love it and must have it, buy it. It can always be used as decoration.
Vintage Linens and Tablecloths
I recently went to an estate sale where there were literally 2 tables stacked with old hankies, doilies, napkins, and tablecloths oh my! Now I don’t know when they stopped selling table linens, but they seem to be a dying breed. I sometimes find them new at Anthropologie. When flea-ing, I snap these suckas up like it’s going out of style. Vintage patterns can be really bold and unique. Personally, I like to layer and mismatch…much as I do with my vintage dishes.
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What rules do you keep in mind when buying vintage home decor? If you like these buying vintage home decor tips, be sure to check out these posts:
vintagemodernlove
this is a great article kyla! i definitely started cracking up at the old beast comment. hahaha
kyla
vintagemodernloveThanks girl! And hey! I was just thinking about you! I am thinking about going to the Sept. 26th Randolph Flea. Not sure if you are going.
vintagemodernlove
kylafunny, i was just thinking about you too! summer is nearing its end and i haven’t been to a flea market yet. i’d totally be up for going on the 26th, wanna plan on it?
Michele
All your points are excellent advice for the new to vintage shopper. People who are always on the hunt like this wind up with distinctive homes that reflect their personalities. Almost everything in our house was found at a thrift shop or yard sale, aside from a couple of emergency purchase Ikea bookshelves following Hurricane Ike.
DoloresB
Home designing can be a really awesome experience. I think it’s the most fun when you get to start from scratch, because then you can pick whatever style you want. It makes me want to move and start over.
kyla
DoloresBIt really is. I just have to train myself not to want to redo it after 6 months =) I just have so much fun with it. Thanks for stopping over!
mary jo leifermann
you have such epic taste and style !!
Lauren Woodley
Thank you for all of the insight about buying dishware and silverware for your home. I love having different styles and shapes of kitchenware (like what you’ve shown in the picture), but it can be hard to find the perfect combinations. Thus, I appreciate the tips you give for Etsy shops and using vintage barware. I will definitely have to check them out. Thanks again for sharing!
Linda Tucker
Thanks so much for sharing this advice on buying vintage home decor and furniture! I really like your point on finding a good piece of wood furniture, even if it is missing a knob or two. It is really nice that it isn’t too hard to replace those, especially when are usually essential to making the furniture functional. In fact, I think I might try going to a flea market near me this weekend, and see if I can find something that would fit in my living room!
Veronica Marks
I really appreciate your tips on upholstery on vintage furniture. I actually inherited a really great armchair from my grandma. However, the upholstery isn’t in very good condition. It still functions well, and I’ve wondered if I should just put a cover on it or if I should get it fully reupholstered. I will have to price out the reupholstering with a few people and see if it’s going to be worth it. Thanks!
Kate Branham
I love the look of your vintage furniture and decor. I love looking for and finding vintage furniture myself. It is always fun to bring something new home and figure out where it will work best!
Jason Strong
Both my brother in law and sister are huge hipsters and love this kind of style. Well, they just moved into a new home and have a lot of space to add some decor. This article has some great tips and I think that it can help them fill the empty spaces in their home.
Westly Smith
I like your section about artwork. Like you say, if you like it, you should put it up. I think that’s a great way to personalize your home decor. With artwork that you like, it will make your house unique!
Nash Rich
I’m not going to lie, I find some pretty great stuff at yard sales. Nothing is better than looking in my parents basement though. I’m a guy, but that doesn’t mean I can’t like some good decor and old stuff! Thanks for the good ideas!
Alise Harper
I just got married and am finding that home decor is important for the aesthetic appeal in the home. I like the idea of having a functional, comfortable, and affordable home with a mix of decor that is old and new. This is a great idea to have old and new decor to add the unique feel. Thanks for the great ideas!
Drew
I love those old school chairs that you decided to put at your kitchen table. They really are a nice look to the rest of the house and they add to the vintage theme.
Drew
I love vintage home decor. You have a lot of great ideas here. I can’t wait to steal a few of them.
Danni Black
I really like your tip about artwork. I think that some of the most unique homes have the best artwork in them! My husband and I have been thinking about redecorating our home for a while now so we will have to keep these tips in mind. Hopefully, we will be able to find some accents that we really like and give us the unique feel that we are after.
Emily Stone
I absolutely love this, some much great home inspo! I think my favourite take away from this, is the artistic walls, I love adding a splash of colour or creating a focal point of attention in a room.
Troy Blackburn
I like what you said about wanting your home to be functional, comfortable, and affordable while also having it be unique. I’ve heard, too, that home decor can increase the value of your home. Could that be true? We are in the middle of remodeling right now, and I’ll have to keep these great home decor tips in mind!
SOFIA
Love your ideas, I do have taste in vintage decor as well, My husband is planning to renovate our kitchen using 1980s kitchen layout this year and we are so excited about this project.
Deedee Lewis
Using knobs with other interesting pieces as home decor sounds like a fascinating and unique idea. My sister loves the antique stuff and is currently working on putting up more decorations for her apartment. I will for sure be sharing these tips with her for more antique decor ideas.
Jon Wood
I loved all your ideas and the pictures are amazing too. Vintage never goes out of style. I always look for vintage decor and furniture. I also loved the themes you have used in your pictures.
Linda
It’s all done so beautifully. My favorite pastime is shopping thrift stores. Thanks for the tips!