APRIL | Second-hand things that have inspired me this month
Second-hand interiors related inspiration, recommendations and maybe a purchase or two from the past month
Opening with a photo of our guest bedroom, which has enjoyed a steady rotation of visitors recently. When the weather gets nice and you live in the countryside, friends want to come and stay! Everything here is second-hand (except for the bedding and the bolster cushion) and sourced from a mix of places including FBMP, Chiswick car boot and my local Station Mill Antiques.
April began in Paris for us, a long weekend away to coincide with my birthday. The weather was glorious and the café fronts, canal sides and parks were full of people making the most of the sunshine. We ate and drank our way through the weekend - highlights included Brutos, Fugazi and Double Dragon for food, and Chambre Noire and Aux Deux Amis for wine.
Second-hand wise, we traipsed our way through a list of vintage recs (not the best activity in the heat) but didn’t come away with anything. We did stumble upon a Saturday vintage market on Avenue de la République which I’d say is worth visiting if you’re in the area. Then on Sunday we journeyed to the north of the city to visit the St Ouen flea market - more on this in my next newsletter.
This image below via House & Garden caught my eye the other day because we have exactly the same rug. The home in question is a beautiful 18th century worker’s cottage in Greenwich renovated by interior and production designer Anna Rhodes - a very enjoyable read. I especially appreciate reading about smaller houses and seeing how people have made the most of having less space.
Whilst I still love the rug (arguably more so for seeing it here), I’m not loving where I’ve got it at the moment. I’ve unintentionally ended up putting it in a room with a lot of similar colours which makes it all feel a bit one dimensional, whereas here, the yellows and greens really balance it out. A good reminder to have a bit of a rejig every now and then if you’re feeling uninspired by something, and to create new combinations by trying different things in different areas of your home. Chances are it’s not the piece itself you’ve fallen out of love with, just the place you’ve put it in.
I got my rug from a fair a few years ago for about £100 but I found another for sale here on eBay for £250. Identical measurements.
Would also recommend looking at the seller’s other rugs - some really great ones at good prices. Some of my favourites below.
Clockwise from top left: Small azeri wool kilim - £150, Geometric blue kilim - £250, Large blue stripe kilim - £450, Multicolour kilim - £100
Final bit of rug chat but I had to give a shout out to this one sold a few weeks back by Bohome Interiors. Epic!
A new seller I happily stumbled upon on Instagram - @broca.store. Based in London - purchase is via DM. Lots of good shapes going on!
Not to everyone’s taste I’m sure but I keep thinking about this FBMP sofa that I shared on my Instagram stories last weekend - originally purchased from Harrods in 1976!
I know it’s pretty loud but you could tone it down and modernise it with the right pieces - I think the oranges and reds in it would go beautifully with a light blue. It really reminds me of something that Meta Coleman would use in one of her spaces - example below. The sofa is sold now but I’m fascinated to know where it ended up…
I’m just starting to see a few people hitting the weekend car boots on my Insta stories. Probably something to do with all this good weather. Some on my radar to visit this year listed below if we happen to be in the area, most of which I bookmarked from Olivia Lidbury’s Times piece back in Feb (featuring a quote from yours truly).
Tripes Farm - Orpington, Kent. Held twice a month.
Ashford car boot. Held every Saturday and Sunday.
Brighton car boot. Held every Sunday at the racecourse.
I also overheard someone at a fair last year say there are some great car boots in Cornwall, all on different days of the week. Might be worth looking up if you’re planning a visit this summer.
Finally, I’ll leave you with the painting below, which I might have purchased on a whim from Wallis Studio’s clearance sale last weekend. Sucked in straight away by that combination of blues and yellows.
This is my free monthly catch-up, which I (attempt to) send promptly at the end of each month. If you enjoyed the contents and have a second to spare, please do ‘like’, restack if you’re on Substack or leave a comment and say hi or share a second-hand recommendation of your own. The comments are open to everyone :) All the above really helps me to reach new readers and increase my visibility.
Until next time x
I always love your monthly roundups so much ☺️ Thank you for introducing me to Broca Store – I'm tempted to buy several of their pieces for my living room right now!