The Relationship Between the Pandemic and the Rising Popularity of Antique Furniture

When you're stuck inside your house for long periods at a time, you start to care more about what's inside of it. After all, the furniture you have is the furniture you're going to see day in and day out! We've seen a passion reignited for antique furniture not just because of its visual appeal, though it certainly has that, but also for the stories, amusement, and community that each piece provides. Let's take a closer look at how the pandemic, with all its lock-downs, sparked a newfound interest in antiques in the lives of so many people.

The Beauty of Antique Furniture

There's a reason that we still hand-craft furniture that looks like it was built 200 years ago: antiques are beautiful, and they blend in well with nearly any interior design scheme. If you're going to stay inside your house for most of the year, why not have pieces of furniture that you enjoy looking at?

Consider antique sofas, with their red velvet, cream jacquard, and mint knit upholstery fabrics. The fabrics by themselves are beautiful and eye-catching enough to relieve some of the boredom homeowners felt during the pandemic, but then, when you look at the carved detailing of the wood itself, you fall in love with the intricate flowers, leaves, and other nature motifs that are common in antique furniture.

Because of financial struggles caused by the pandemic, it's probably safe to say that MOST people who dipped their toe into the world of antique furniture didn't run out and buy completely new furniture for the entire home. Instead, they probably bought a small end table or a Victorian armchair to serve as a new focal point in their living room. When you're forced to tolerate the same mundane furniture in your house in the middle of quarantine, it's more tempting than ever to spice things up with a little bit of color or a new antique mirror.

Antique Furniture is Unique, Not Mass Produced

Another reason that people love antique furniture is that it isn't mass-produced; that means your antique piece is easily one of a kind, even when it's made from the same kind of wood and in the same design. Antique furniture-makers typically only use real, solid wood, so the stain of each piece of wood will be different from person to person. Buying hand-crafted furniture like that is the only way to make sure you get a piece (or pieces) that are as unique as you are!

Owning unique furniture is especially important to younger generations that are rediscovering older styles. They tend to buy more hand-me-downs and secondhand clothes instead of clothes from the retailers we're all familiar with. Many millennials and youngsters belonging to Gen-Z see the spectrum of styles as a palette to choose from rather than something to be rigidly adhered to. They often buy vintage furniture and stock their homes with it in hopes of creating a look that is both old and new and yet entirely their own.

The Versatility of Antique Furniture

There are practical reasons for the rise of popularity in the world of vintage furniture. One of these is the hundreds of ways a piece of antique furniture can be used; for example, many people have changed their antique bookcases into at-home coffee bars. You don't have to buy a china cabinet to store dishware; you can use it to display other memorabilia, pictures of your loved ones, or even alcohol.

Sometimes, when people buy a piece of antique furniture, they don't see what IS, only what COULD BE. Along with wanting unique furniture, the younger generation is all about taking on DIY projects. A bookshelf can be turned into a coffee bar, a desk into a nightstand, the list goes on and on. When it comes to repurposing different pieces of antique furniture, your imagination is your limit! Millennials, and those belonging to Gen-Z, are the most likely people to see an antique in a store and choose to do something with it that no one else has ever thought of before.

The Stories that Antique Furniture Tells

Let's face it: antique furniture gets homeowners a lot of compliments and questions, thanks to its unique nature. When we finally have family and friends over to our houses again, those antiques garner a lot of attention, making them easy conversation starters, though the talking value of these pieces doesn't stop there.

More than anything else, vintage furniture pieces are valued for the stories that they tell. You can tell stories about the day you bought the piece, what looking at it makes you think of, how it makes you feel, what period it's originally from, how long ago it was made, and who its previous owners were. Antiques allow you to either tell a story you already know or make one up! It's up to you. Story-telling is magic, and depending on the story you decide to tell, you could leave your guests thinking about that piece of furniture long after they've gone home for the evening.

The Community of Antique Furniture Enthusiasts and Collectors

Once people start collecting pieces of antique furniture, they find out rather quickly that they're not the only ones interested in the subject. Antique furniture builds communities of history fans and reproduction enthusiasts. In a time where everyone feels a little more isolated, finding any kind of community is priceless, which is another reason people have bought antiques during a pandemic.

Some of these groups get together and give each other tours of their homes, telling stories at every stop; others grab a coffee and chit-chat about their love of history. No matter which part of collecting brings people together, it's clear that we live in a time when people need each other more than ever. We're proud to be a part of such a passionate community, and we can't wait to hear all the stories you'll tell.