Vintage Shopping Finds: Design on a Dime

Sharing vintage shopping finds and antique mall booth displays is really the reason why I started this blog. One of my Panoply sisters lives out of state but is still very active in buying and selling with my other Panoply sister and me. So, the main purpose of blogging was to share vintage finds and collective booth displays for her to see. I know it's something many of my readers enjoy too, so this post is an attempt to catch up in sharing the finds that I was drawn to buy in the second half of 2021. 

Pearson sofa (with ivory pillows only) - estate sale Nov 2021

What's different about this post, though, is that these finds ended up being ones that are currently being used in my new home, not for sale.....yet! My recent vintage shopping goals have been to fluff our new nest. You may want to backtrack to see a mini tour of my home in winter, here. Otherwise, armchair shoppers, get yourself a drink, and let's go shopping! 

Mid-August was when we first looked at this house, and we were in contract by Labor Day. With the current move from condo back to a house, there was more space than furnishings (I had purged so much just three years before!). With lead times for getting new furniture as much as a year or more due to the pandemic, I scouted estate sales from August 2021 to the end of 2021 with our new home in mind. Whether these items stay forever I can't really say right now, but they're serving good purpose in the meantime. They sure beat our furnishings we had the first few weeks we were in our house, shown below. The seller left us that lounge chair, and the captains' chairs were pulled from my storage unit.

Lounge chair courtesy of seller

The leading photo of this post shows a Pearson sofa, as one example of of an item I bought at an estate sale for this house. After looking at at least three different local furniture stores without satisfaction (not to mention all the time I spent with online browsing), that sofa cost about 10% of what a new sofa cost. 

Round rug - friend's purge Sept 2021; Occasional chair - estate sale Dec 2021

The upholstered occasional chair (above, in both natural and candescent light) was another estate find which cost cents on the price of a new one. It is situated in a reading nook that is in a spare room right now. I anticipate using this room to display my purse collections at some point. Right now - after Christmas - I've enjoyed reading in this spot.

The Danish modern dining set (below) was a great estate sale find for me. It has clean lines that fits with both modern and traditional style, and is sized perfectly for our great room for casual dining. The chairs are in a traditional fabric, but would be easy to change.

Danish modern gateleg table and four chairs (two not shown) - estate sale Oct 2021

Below are the other two chairs that came with the dining set, and they are situated in a nook in the guest room with a folding card table I found at another estate sale. The head chair of the Danish modern was in a different, coordinating fabric from the other three chairs, and matched the draperies in the house from which the set came.

Folding card table - estate sale Aug 2021; Danish modern dining chairs - estate sale Oct 2021

At the same sale where I bought the card table, I also bought a pair of Ethan Allen lamps. These are being used in my dining/sitting room.

Ethan Allen lamps - estate sale Aug 2021

Also at that estate sale in August, I bought a rocker (anticipating Baby J's birth). It is currently in my bonus room.

Rocking chair - estate sale Aug 2021

The oil painting in my dining room was purchased when I bought the sofa in November 2021. The lady whose estate sale it was from painted it in 1962, when she was 36. She passed away this past year at age 94.

Magnolia oil painting dated 1962 - estate sale Dec 2021

Various estate sales in August and October 2021 led to my purchasing a petite ebony chair, a Thomasville campaign nightstand, and a Mastercraft deacon's bench (shown in top portion of collage below, from the estate sale host's pictures). All of these were placed in the guest room, as seen in the bottom portion of the collage below.

Ebony chair, Thomasville nightstand, Mastercraaft deacon bench - estate sales July and Oct 2021

I also bought a Bassett chest of drawers from an estate sale in December that is situated in the guest room, seen below. It is solid wood and super heavy.

Bassett chest of drawers - estate sale Dec 2021

With our purge in 2019 before moving into the loft, we got rid of all our yard tools, including the rack in which we stored them in the garage.  I found a better rack at an estate sale in December, and also scored two metal garden shovels and a snow shovel! The rakes, brooms, and hoses were left by the seller. 

Tool storage rack and various tools - estate sale Dec 2021 and seller negotiated.

I also bought an extra bike so my brother can hopefully ride with us in better weather.

Bicycle - estate sale Dec 2021

Last but not least, I have a neighbor who was purging some items from his ex-wife's estate in December. I scored the gateleg table below, a beautiful finish. I don't know what I'll do with it yet, but I'm keeping it. Gateleg tables are so versatile!

Gateleg table - Dec 2021 estate

Below is a recap of the items I purchased from estate sales (and one friend's purge) that I'm using in our new home now:

1. Pearson sofa + delivery service
2. Round rug
3. Occasional chair
4. Danish modern dining set: gateleg table with four chairs
5. Folding card table
6. Petite ebony chair
7. Rocking chair
8. Pair Ethan Allen lamps
9. Magnolia oil painting
10. Thomasville nightstand
11. Mastercraft deacon's bench
12. Bassett chest of drawers
13. Tool organizer
14. Two metal and one snow shovel
15. Bicycle
16. Gateleg table with spool leg

Now, here's an eye-opening fact I want to share with you. All sixteen of the above items totaled less than what I paid for a desk and rolling file cabinet I bought for Mr. P., from a local independent home furnishings store. The desk is pictured below, and the file cabinet (which tucks beneath) is on order, and likely won't be here for six months, at least. By the way, the rug you see in the photo below was negotiated from the seller with the house too. 😉

Not too shabby, am I right? Each of the upholstered items were clean, too, I might add. And, I've already used the snow shovel, as we got over ten inches of snow on January 6. 

The lesson to be learned here is that buying second-hand furniture and other accessories can really give you a bang for your buck. Think about that the next time you or a family member are in need of a certain furnishing. Comb your local newspaper or Facebook marketplace ads, or search estate sales on your Facebook page. 'Like' the business pages of estate sales hosts local to you. Visit your local ReStore, antique mall, and consignment shops. It is so worth your time. Furniture of yesterday is typically made so much better than big box store furniture of today.

I'm still buying vintage and antique items for resale, too. My Panoply sisters and I are still displaying and selling in our local antique mall, approaching our 14th year. I hope you enjoyed this armchair shopping experience today. I'd love it if you left me a comment, letting me know you were here. Thanks for your visit today!

Rita C. at Panoply

A special thanks to Debra from Common Ground's All About Home Link Party #128, Cecilia from My Thrift Store Addiction's Vintage Charm #321, and Richella from Imparting Grace's Grace at Home #453  for featuring this post!

Parties I Share With: Pieced Pastimes, Love Your Creativity, BNOTP, All About Home Common Ground, All About Home Follow the Yellow Brick Home, A Stroll Thru Life, My Wee Abode, Thistle Key Lane, Bluesky at Home, Zucchini Sisters, French Ethereal SYS, Happiness is Homemade, Traffic Jam Weekend, Shoestring Elegance TFT, Grace at Home, My Thrift Store Addiction, Our Hopeful Home, Karin's Kottage, My Hubbard Home FWF, County Road 407 Farmhouse Friday