Vintage means nostalgia to some, craftsmanship to others, on-trend/trendy, sustainability, it has different meanings depending on your relationship with it.  

I have a leather mid-century lounge chair. The leather is ripped, the stitching shows through in parts, the wood is scratched, blemished and worn.  The metal base is dinged and scratched - this chair has been used.  To 'restore' it would be to erase its character.   

 

There is certainly a demand for ‘mint condition vintage’, a sustainable demand? But there isn’t one authenticity, buying vintage is a diverse process for diverse people.

Blemishes, dings, marks are the character of the piece.  We have wooden vintage boxes worn away from constant use.  The ‘patina’ on these items is induplicable, it has through the passage of time created its colour, character and personality.  The sun fading on fiberglass furniture, say a Giotto Stoppino Kartell magazine rack or a Artemide Demetrio 70 Coffee table by Vico Magistretti makes it what it is.  Restoration is a beautiful process but I prefer the responsibility of custodian.  

 

Vintage is sustainable.  This point is often glanced over with its obviousness.  But take some time to consider that a 30 year old piece of furniture had whatever it took to last three decades, and what it takes to last another 30.  

Patek Philippe has a tagline, “You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation.”  Thats how we feel about these extraordinary examples of human design.  We source them, research them, bring them back to life and pass them to their next homes.

The school desk is a classic piece of British design.  This particular one was riddled with graffiti, which was honestly beautiful.  Instead of sanding the desk back to a numb version of its now character filled self, we opted to bring it into the contemporary with an all natural black stain.  A light sanding allowed the dents and dings to survive without being harmful or distracting.  The inside of the desk was kept entirely original, a salute to its character development.

When you buy Vintage you make the decision of what matters to you, mint condition furniture is beautiful, not anymore so than the rips, tears and blemishes that comprise the majority of vintage.  These blemishes can be the reason these items make it to the landfill.  A tiny ding in a perfectly working item, a change of taste, cannot be reasons to impose upon an ecology that is already overwhelmed.  Things are supposed to be used, for that reason they will show the signs of prior use, while some will embrace these nuances, others will reject.  Consider, in the long term which decision is the most ethical and sustainable.

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