A Vintage New Year

We are now well and truly settled into our new house but that doesn't mean the vintage bargain hunting is over. Oh no. Over the New Year we were in Kent, one of my favourite bargain hunting locations, and the site of a second hand homeware shop that always has me mentally rearranging my furniture at home to see if I can fit the really cute piece I've spotted. This year I came home with this, which was cruelly dismissed by my father in law as 'something you would keep old spanners in' but I LOVE it.

 

There are still some bits and pieces at home that we need that I am determined to wait it out for until I spot it second hand. We really need a shoe rack, but as I've seen how much better my second hand finds look in the house I am determined to find a unique one somewhere. There's something about that that really does build patience. Like when you were a kid and you had to save up your pocket money for months for the item you wanted. You just appreciate it more somehow. It might sound a bit sad but I get genuine enjoyment from walking around my house and thinking about where I got certain items, how I spruced them up and gave them new life or who owned them before me.

The other joy of vintage and having carefully selected beautiful pieces at home is that it encourages you to take time. Rather than gulping down a cup of tea from a Matalan mug you are pouring from a 1950s tea pot into tea cups you found in your grannies loft. That automatically makes you sit back and relax a bit. The same goes for entertaining. Any evening is special when a vintage table cloth is rolled out, a cake baked and some unique touches added to the table setting with old glassware or plates.

Perhaps it seems superficial but after all this is the stuff our days are made with. Getting up, having breakfast, eating with friends and family, wandering about our homes. Why shouldn't it be beautiful? Why shouldn't it be an atmosphere that reminds you of how you want to live your life, with appreciation and open hospitality? There is nothing superficial in that! And all the better when the items you choose are saved from the tip or made by your own fair hands.

So here's to a creative and beautiful 2013. Happy new year lovely readers.