This combination of two photos shows a disassembled wood cabinet, left, and the cabinet refinished with white paint and brass hardware, featured in the book “Probably This Housewarming: A Guide to Creating a Home You Adore,” by Beau Ciolino and Matt Armato.
There’s always been a taste for antique furnishings. These days, a widely acquired taste.
Antiques are hot partly because of supply chain delays and higher prices for many custom or mass-market pieces. There’s also the public’s turn toward sustainability: Environmentally conscious buyers are averse to throwaway furniture and are trying to reuse and recycle.
And as always, pop culture plays a role. Period-specific shows like “Bridgerton,” “Downton Abbey” and “Outlander” have given the styles of bygone eras a romantic glow. “Mad Men” stoked a hot market in midcentury modern furniture. And designers cite renewed interest in ’70s and ’80s decor, too.
It’s all led to crowds of designers and regular people at auctions, antique shops and estate sales. Online platforms, like vintage furniture retailer Chairish and collectibles site 1stDibs, also say sales are up.
The good news from a design perspective is that it’s easy and trendy to blend antiques into any room and mix them with pieces from any era, designers say.
People are also reading…
A classic 18th century cherry dresser might be given glamorous, brushed-copper modern handles. A curvy ’60s floor lamp might light a room wrapped in prim Laura Ashley wallpaper.
More 20th century vintage pieces are popping up, whether it’s a finely carved Edwardian side table, a Le Corbusier chaise, a Pop Art-era mirror, or something as charming and small as a vintage book or ceramic.
The variety of old stuff is swelling beyond the boundaries of “traditional” décor. And a mix creates interesting stories in a