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How to Find the Best Vintage Furniture Shops in Your Neighbourhood

Vintage and thrift furniture shops are becoming increasingly popular, and are beginning to pop up all over cities big and small. These shops are truly a gift. They bring much-needed culture and style, and they are environmentally and budget-friendly by selling recycled materials. Many shops often support local causes too, and are run by volunteers.

Perhaps you’ve just moved to (or are visiting) a new city and you’d love to learn more. Maybe you’ve just gotten a taste for the reclaimed furniture look and want to find out how to whet your appetite over the weekend.

With so many wonderful advantages of supporting your local thrift shop, here are some tips on where to find the best ones in your neighbourhood:

Go off the beaten path

For starters, you’re not going to find many vintage shops in the high street areas. They can’t afford to compete with the pricey real estate of big box stores. The best vintage stores will be tucked away in lesser-known (but equally loved!) nooks of your city. In fact, it’s what gives them their unique charm to begin with.

Use local guides, not tourist ones

If you’ve just arrived in (or are traveling to) a city, it can be tough to find local treasures. It’s almost impossible to get your hands on local newspapers or guides before you actually arrive, so a lot of your work starts when you land on home turf.

Most grocery stores, cinemas, and coffee shops will have local city guides that aren’t available abroad. Smaller neighbourhood businesses (like vintage shops) will have small ad placements in the guides, so be sure to check them out.

Look for local coffee shops

This may sound odd, but we always seem to find that where there’s a really good cup of local coffee, a vintage shop never seems to be far behind. That’s where the everyday city dweller hangs out and shops.

Don’t forget about charity shops

A lot of used shops run by charitable organizations (sometimes called “charity shops,”) will usually do a hybrid of clothing and furniture by donation.

There’s more stuff to wade through at these stores (that may be a positive or negative for you), but you can almost always find the best little gems like pottery, old photographs, books, or furniture pieces. And the prices are awesome because the stuff hasn’t been specifically “selected” for a certain look or style. They welcome donations for a vast array of good condition items.

Use multiple keywords in your online searches

Chances are you’ll have the magical tool of Internet at your disposal. But before you start your online search, remember that many of these shops won’t have websites (although many will be searchable and will show up on Google maps).

With that in mind, here are a few tips. Search multiple terms and use the local lingo. For example, try “reclaimed furniture,” “used furniture,” “consignment stores,” “charity shops,” etc. Be sure to narrow your search down by location. So, if you’re looking for something in a specific area, filter your search. For example, you could use a Boolean search: “reclaimed furniture AND Mount Pleasant Vancouver.” You might find through your searches that there are little shop clusters in different parts of each neighbourhood.

Check out Craigslist or Kijiji for Garage Sales and Fundraisers

The micro version of the vintage store might be called the garage sale. Here’s why: at any given time in the city people will be moving from their homes and selling their stuff. Often, due to a time crunch and the fact that the furniture is used, people are getting rid of stuff at super reasonable prices.

You might also find little events like charity or church fundraisers, which are usually run entirely by donation and take sometimes take on the appearance of a small pop up shop in pedestrian-heavy streets or Sunday markets.

Support your local thrift shop for your next design project

When you support a local used furniture shop, you do a lot of good things for your community. You contribute to the wellbeing of your neighbours and participate in a more sustainable lifestyle.

If you’re looking for inspiration or items for your next design project, start by going for a walk in your own neighbourhood. You’ll enjoy it!

Do you have a local favourite you’d like to share with us? Tweet us or message us on Facebook!

 

7 Tips for Choosing the Right Floor For Your Home

Choosing the right floor for your home is no easy decision, but it’s an important one to get right.

When you’re choosing your flooring there are multiple elements to consider so that you look at realistic options, stay on budget, and finish your project on time.

Here are seven key tips to make sure that you don’t make silly mistakes during this decision-making process:

1. Consider the Room

As expert contractor, Tom Silva reminds us, during any reno you need to consider the varying needs of each room in the house. That means you’re probably going to pick a completely different floor for a bathroom versus a living room.  Here are some room-specific tips to keep in mind:

  • Living rooms: These rooms are often central open spaces that take a lot of foot traffic. Go for a floor that is highly scratch resistant, and can handle the weight of heavy furniture.
  • Bathrooms: These rooms get wet. A lot. Go for a floor that is mould and mildew resistant. You may also want a more textured floor if you’re looking for slip resistance and something warm on your bare feet.
  • Bedrooms: If your bedrooms are upstairs, chances are you’ll a want a floor with a soundproofing layer. This way you won’t hear trampling feet above you when you’re downstairs.
  • Kitchens: These rooms get a lot of foot (and food) traffic, so go for a floor that is low maintenance and won’t showcase a bit of dirt.

2. Consider Your Lifestyle and Life Stage

This is one of the most important elements to consider: how are you primarily using the space? Do you have kids, pets, lots of people over on weekends?

Getting a great looking floor doesn’t mean much if it becomes a constant chore to upkeep because it doesn’t suit your lifestyle. Be honest about where you’re at in life and choose a realistic option.

That being said, if you’re remodelling or buying a home, it’s smart to think long-term. Are you considering a family? This will make a big impact on your purchasing decision.

3. Honour Your Budget (and Timing)

What’s your price point? Are you looking to do multiple rooms or just one? Get quotes early on based on the square footage of the room. This way, you can map out how much to allocate for the room or multiple rooms, and you won’t run the risk of going way over budget during your renovation.

Timing is also a super important factor to consider. For example, if you’re doing the floor installation yourself, you’ll want to order all the materials well in advance. A special order may take several weeks to arrive.

Pro Tip: If you have leftover flooring after your installation, store it in a safe, dry place. Replacing one plank from your existing stock is much easier and cheaper than sourcing and buying another shipment of your flooring.

4. Think about Future Upgrades

Is this floor remodelling part of a long-term upgrade in your home? If so, it’s worth picking out styles in advance and choosing the best floor that matches those styles. This way your new floor will match your upgrades, not your current, soon-to-be-changed furniture. It may sound obvious, but this key point can often get overlooked.

5. Know your Style

What kind of style inspires you? How would you define your style? When you’re choosing your floor, you want to make sure that it meshes with the vibe of your home. Unless you’re doing a complete remodelling, you’ll want to make sure that it complements your current furniture and uses for the space.

Flooring stores will let you take samples home for a couple days. Definitely take advantage of that. Here’s why: your home’s lighting is much different than that of a retailer’s. You want to make sure that the flooring you pick looks as good in your home as it does in the store.

Pro Tip: Examine the floor samples in your home at different times of the day. You’ll notice how different they look in the day versus the evening. You want to love your floor at all times of the day.

6. Invest in Longevity

Can you easily replace flooring planks or tiles? What’s the warranty? These are the kinds of questions you need to ask as a savvy floor purchaser. There’s no real right or wrong answer to these questions, but you need to think about how long you plan on being in your home and how much the space gets used.

7. Make Your Flooring Count by Planning in Advance

It’s worth the time and energy to plan in advance before buying a floor. This way, you make an informed purchase that you’ll be much happier within the long-term.

How did your last floor renovation go? Looking for more advice on how to choose the right floor for you? The TORLYS Team loves to help. Contact us on Twitter or Facebook to get in touch.