Here at Remodelista we’re fully celebrating the antique and the secondhand. As we write in our new book, Remodelista: The Low-Impact Home, “Keeping things in circulation is the most impactful way to recycle. So before investing in something new, browse the vast world of well-made used goods.”
Old things as holiday gifts? Absolutely. What we’re after are items that elevate daily life: keepers that are useful and beautiful, and, we hope, will someday get passed on to the next generation. Many of the items shown here are one of a kind; if they happen to become unavailable, join us in the hunt: Etsy, eBay, Craigslist, Buy Nothing, and the many online shops with vintage listings make it easy to flea market from home. Here’s a sampling of what’s on our own wish lists.
Above: “It’ll never happen, but I would love this Midcentury Abstract Painting, £800, from Home & Found,” says our UK contributor Nell. “Interior designer Tamsin Saunders’s shop is online and appointment-only—it’s above a pub in South West London. She has an incredible eye for unusual, one-off pieces made by hand.”
Above: Thanks to her Swedish grandparents, Julie is forever hunting down Nordic classics that remind her of childhood holidays. (Two vintage Dala horses are currently en route to her sister for Christmas—here’s hoping Justina isn’t reading this.) For herself, Julie currently has her eye on this blue example that’s part of a collection of four 1970s Viborg Dala Horses; $204.88 from Etsy seller Dala Horse Sweden.
Above: Our resident ironstone collector, Justine, wants an Antique Platter with Flow Blue Edging; $66 for the smallest via Etsy seller The Jersey Cow. “After admiring these in a shop where they were quite expensive, I found them on Etsy for a lot less,” she says. Look for the examples of Justine’s ironstone in Remodelista: The Low-Impact Home.