Decorating your home with antiques and vintage items

The beauty about antiques is that they come from a time when the clock was not watched. A craftsman would use the best materials and his skill to fashion an item which was made using his talents and he was proud of.

It can seem strange, that today, a well-made antique dining table will cost less than a Swedish flat pack one. Yet that can be to your advantage as a buyer, for which one would you rather own and which will last another hundred years of wear.

The mixture of old and new within interior design is becoming more blurred, large statement pieces create a centre point for the eye, regardless of whether it’s a modern apartment or a Victorian terraced house.

Large antique masonry or statues, which before stayed outside, now move indoors, creating an ancient feeling to the room and within the bathroom, makes a stunning focal point.

Paintings and prints decorate walls, add colour and shape, but can be played with. Why have an oil on canvas with a frame, instead have them hanging without, mix with black and white photographs, create a story. Hang the empty frame, it makes a talking point.

Mirrors are another item, which makes a difference on the wall. Used right, they make the room larger by building a false window into the next room or by reflecting part of the room back again.

With base paint colours being quite neutral these days, colour comes from rugs, wall hangings and fabrics. So, hunting round for material to cover chairs or make curtains can be very rewarding. Be bold, rich colours and patterns are a joy to the eyes.

Rooms can have one antique or a number. And mixing styles and periods can work in your favour. Oriental art mixes with European, African statues and French bronzes. Shape and form can work together. In a garden, you create shapes with careful planting, the same is true with your house.

Bookcases can have your favourite paperbacks or a random collection of leather-bound books, which can be purchased by the yard. Books do decorate rooms, adding interest and a talking point.

Lighting is a major key to a successful room design, depending on the ceiling height, large chandeliers or smaller wall lights. Moods are made with a lamp placed in a corner, on a table or just the floor. Making intermate spaces, dining areas or work areas. The range of antique and vintage lighting is enormous.

Furniture comes in all shapes and sizes, carved, plain, painted, distressed, large and small, an endless choice. Some need to be functional, others more decorative.

The key is to make sure it will work in your home, take measurements, photograph it if you’re not sure and go home and use that to visualise it in place. Remember the room will change in look from daytime to nighttime, does it still look like it would work in your design.

Better one stand out piece than five not so wonderful ones, its all about you, you’re taste, your home. Sometimes you may have to wait before you find that item you want, but talk to your local dealers, tell them what you have in mind, they are out each day sourcing stock, so they have more chance of finding it for you. Don’t be afraid to upstock, when you buy an item and later see something to replace it, it may be that you can use it to bargain a price on the new item, if you don’t ask you don’t get.

Finally, don’t be afraid to steal design ideas, look on the internet, visit showrooms and exhibitions, they will give you an immense amount of inspiration.

Rome wasn’t built in a day and your home will take time too

Copyright and credit to Saltwood Antiques