Business Archives - Vintage Matters

Posted on March 20, 2020 by Paul Cody

It’s Spring

It’s Spring!

Today is officially the first day of Spring and the new season is upon us and we look forward to longer days and sunnier times ahead – no mention of the “C” word here..!

We cannot wait to get out into our garden again and get planting, with the help of our pooch, Bailey, the boxer.

We wanted to share some of our vintage outdoor pieces that are now online, allowing you to get creative with different shapes, form and colour.

Have a look below and let us know what you think!

This vintage 3 tier etagere was sourced from France and is the perfect way to add a bit of dramatic effect to your outdoor space.

Add vintage terracotta pots filled with Spring bulbs, herbs and decorative vintage pieces, like this old watering can.

These vintage wooden moulds were once used in India to make clay bricks!

We love the fact that today, they can be repurposed and used as a planter on a windowsill to grow herbs, or bulbs.

Apart from growing herbs, March is the time to start sewing seeds to grow flowers and vegetables, if you have the space. The Unconventional Gardener blog, shares with you what can be sewn this month.

Vintage watering cans look great nestled among bushes or pots as decorative pieces, but are practical and functional too.

Find one with the rose still attached, so that you can give your plants a fine spray of water, without damaging them.

We love finding products that can be repurposed!

This vintage cast iron cattle water drinker is perfect for small Spring bulbs and makes for an interesting talking point in your outdoor space.

Get inspired with a number of Spring garden container ideas here

This vintage basket was originally used to pick olives and now is the perfect container for growing herbs.

The air slats around the basket allowed the olives to breathe and now, once planted, will allow water to drain away.

This piece would be a great for the urban gardener!

Growing herbs is easy and fun and they are packed with flavour to add to your cooking. Check out the 10 best herbs to grow in containers here.

Here is another example of adding a bit of theatre to an outdoor space, with this vintage corner plantstand.

Get creative with your planting, pots and decorative items to add height and drama to a corner of your outdoor space.

Get your guide to the perfect Spring garden here.

Sadly, we have had to cancel our Spring pop up event in a railway arch in Camberwell, but hope to have another, just as soon as we can.

Please join our mailing list to find out when and where the next one will be.

We would love to get your feedback – please drop us a line or comment at the end of this blog and share with any friends or family who may be into vintage. Thank you!

Keep well and stay safe.

Happy planting!

Posted on September 19, 2018 by Paul Cody

Vintage Matters Updates

At Vintage Matters, we have been working hard to update the website, which is now cleaner and easier to navigate and you can now browse and shop by category too. We hope you like it!

We have been out in the markets stocking up on new pieces of furniture, accessories and letters, so please have a browse and let us know what you think.

We now have one of the largest online collections in the UK, of reclaimed letters and letter lights salvaged from shop fronts and pubs, with over 150 letters and a further 80+ which are still in the process of being cleaned, photographed or reconditioned with LED’s.

If you are looking for a specific letter that you cannot find online, then drop us an email and we can send you a link to view all the other letters not yet online.

The past few months we have been working closely with an interior architect company to source these Mid Century furniture pieces for a West End financial company, which are now in situ and look fantastic!

If you are working on a commercial project and need vintage furniture and accessories, then we would be very happy to help source them for you. Please drop us an email.

We have had several pop up events this year, back at West Elm on Tottenham Court Road, but also at their two newer stores in Kingston and at Westfield, White City. We have also popped up at The Bentall Centre, the East London Furniture Flea at Bethnal Green and more recently, a stall at the Camberwell Fair.

In June, we were very happy to relocate our storage facility to part of a railway arch right next to where we live, where we are now able to do our photoshoots too. We will be holding a pop up event in the arch in October, to which you are more than welcome. More to follow on this closer to the time.

Future pop up dates:

28th-30th September – West Elm, Kingston

12th-14th October – West Elm, Tottenham Court Road, London

27th-28th October – Vintage Matters, Camberwell

We would love to hear your feedback on the website and what you like (or not!) or what we can improve. Simply add your comments at the bottom of the blog.

Thank you!

Posted on November 26, 2017 by Paul Cody

Vintage Matters, 2 Years On!

Yes, we have been in business for two years now and how quickly it has flown!

We take some time here to reflect on what we have achieved.

Vintage Matters launched online in October 2015 and we held our first pop up event, at West Elm UK, who have continued to be a great support, as we now have a regular pop up event at the store every three months.

We worked with a stylist on the second series of the TV comedy show, Taskmaster, shown on Dave TV, where we provided a number of props from our extensive collection of products.

Soon after launch, we were contacted by a design studio, with a brief to supply vintage furniture and accessories to a “an extremely awesome PR, social media and experiential agency”, based in Old Street, London, for their new office space. How could we say no?!

You can read a feature about Vintage Matters, sourcing and supplying vintage furniture and accessories to Citizen, at INEX magazine.

In the Spring of 2016, we were lucky enough and very excited to have our home featured in 25 Beautiful Homes magazine.

In the commercial sector, we were very happy to supply Havas, an award-winning, global advertising and PR company, who were moving to a new HQ, called HKX (Havas Kings Cross) where we supplied vintage furniture for their new cafe, restaurant and reception area.

Our biggest commercial project, was to supply Amazon’s new headquarters in Shoreditch, London with Mid Century and industrial pieces for their reception area.

We were absolutely delighted to see it all in situ and think it looks pretty cool, though we say so ourselves!

In retail, we have supplied prestigious brands, including Le Labo Fragrances, Selfridges, Filson, Finistere, Shinola, Home Sense and numerous cafes and restaurants.

Our latest project was for Topshop who collaborated with Netflix on the launch of the second season of Stranger Things!

Vintage Matters has been featured in The Metro, Warehouse Home, Reclaim Magazine, to name a few, as well as numerous blogs.

Our social media channels keep growing, so if you are a fan, please follow us!

Instagram – we now have almost 1100 followers!

Twitter – we have over 1350 followers!

Facebook – we have just reached 400+ page likes!

Our mailing list is growing rapidly too and you can sign up quickly and easily on our home page.

With the popularity of our reclaimed and vintage letters and letter lights, we launched thelettermenuk on Instagram, which is dedicated to our letters only.

We have over 150 letters online and many m,ore that we are in the process of cleaning and photographing. This would make a great personal gift for someone this Christmas, so have a look or contact [email protected] if you are after a certain letter that you cannot see online.

Finally, we felt we needed to expand our team, so now have a new member on board, who is proving very popular…..

…meet Bailey to Boxer, who likes to assist in many ways!

So a HUGE thank you to all our customers, family and friends who have supported us on this incredible journey and we look forward to exciting times ahead.

Thank you!

www.vintagematters.co.uk

Posted on October 27, 2017 by Paul Cody

Our latest project for Topshop & Netflix

Now this is an interesting one!

We were approached by Your Studio, based in Shoreditch, to create a visual and sensory experience through props for Topshop & Topman, who had teamed up with Netflix, to bring Stranger Things 2 to life, in a fusion of fashion, culture and entertainment!

The hit retro sci-fi show follows a group of kids in small town America in the 1980’s, as they encounter dark forces….

We were tasked with sourcing 3 sets of identical vintage props and furniture, for 3 Topshop sites in Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester.

Your Studio had designed a corridor of 18 American style college lockers, with graphics placed at the end, announcing the arrival of the new season of Stranger Things.

Inside many of the lockers, were references to the show and the characters, including a shrine to Barb, Nancy’s locker filled with old school books and love letters, a locker full of furbies (!), The Clash, blaring out “Shall I Stay Or Shall I Go” and another locker with a loud crashing noise, coming from within the locker, giving a sense that something is trying to escape!

What fun we had with that!

We sourced the steel lockers to get that American college feel and got busy finding the various props.

We had vintage furbies flying in from all over the land, baseballs bats, fairy lights, and old school books to name just a few!

Nancy’s locker, with old school books, a baseball bat and love letters from boyfriend, Steve…

Here’s the shrine to Barb, complete with candles, flowers and a garland…

We also made an underworld portal, looking as though it was bursting out of a locker…

This event runs at Topshop until 31st October, so pop in store and have a look at their exclusive, limited edition collection of retro inspired t-shirts and sweatshirts.

For fans of Stranger Things, the second season starts today, Friday 27th October on Netflix and music streaming service, Spotify has has added a spooky Upside Down filter to its web player and desktop app that will make you even more desperate for the new episodes to drop!

If you have an upcoming project that requires vintage furniture and accessories, or need props for an event, then please email [email protected]

We also work with interior design companies, sourcing furniture, accessories and props for offices, retailers, cafes, restaurants, bars and hotels.

Thank you!

Posted on September 13, 2017 by Paul Cody

Our vintage furniture project for Amazon!

Here is a glimpse into the new Amazon headquarters, which is based at Principal Place in Shoreditch, London, which is now open for business!

Taking all 15 stories and 600,000 square feet of the building, to accomodate the workforce of over 5000 people, Amazon said in a press release that it “celebrates the industrial heritage and rich culture of Shoreditch”.

Here is the vast reception area with a modern industrial look, featuring massive exposed steel joists.

The space is well lit with dozens of naked light bulbs and steel domed lamp shades over the meeting areas off to each side, where we supplied the vintage furniture pieces.

What a buzz we got from seeing all the pieces we supplied, finally in situ!

Here, our vintage stacking school chairs are placed around a very large industrial table with a reclaimed timber top, injecting some colour into the reception area.

The stunning vintage industrial table with a heavy cast iron base, provides ample space as a work station for visitors, with high stools.

Below, are some of the casual meeting areas within the large reception space, with Mid Century lounge chairs and coffee tables that we sourced.

If you have an upcoming project for a commercial space that requires vintage furniture and accessories, where we can help add personality and character, then please email [email protected]

We also work with interior design companies, sourcing furniture and props for offices, retailers, cafes, restaurants, bars and hotels.

Thank you!

Posted on September 8, 2017 by Paul Cody

Vintage Industrial

VINTAGE INDUSTRIAL

Industrial style is here to stay, whether it be at home, in a cafe or restaurant, hotel or bar, or office space!

When vintage industrial pieces are added, it immediately brings personality and character to an environment, as these are usually unique, one-off statement pieces, that are sure to be a conversation starter.

Wood, metal and concrete are the three key materials, that will help give a space an industrial feel.

The wood can be old, painted and distressed like this pair of vintage windows that have been repurposed with mirrors:

Or this amazing old Fruit Drying Rack, sourced from France, which would provide ample storage space in a bedroom, bathroom or kitchen, or look really cool in a cafe or restaurant.

A combination of wood and metal work well together, like this old factory cart which has a reclaimed timber top and is perfect as an industrial style coffee table.

Or these vintage locker room benches, from a school in Yorkshire, which would be ideal in an entryway, or warehouse home.

Our hero piece at the moment is this huge 3.4 metre vintage industrial table, with a hand made reclaimed timber top.

Ok, so you would definitely need a very large space for this piece, but what a statement it makes!

The cast iron pedestals were once used as bases for corn grinders made by Henry Bamford & Sons, who were established in 1885 and became one of the UK’s leading suppliers of agricultural and farming machinery.

This would be ideal in a retail environment for displaying merchandise, or as a communal table in a cafe or restaurant.

We personally love the industrial style found at many restaurants, like Tramshed and Beagle in London.

This piece is currently being used at a pop up event at Circus West Village at Battersea Power Station, by Warehouse Home, an essential resource for anyone with a love of industrial and warehouse living.

This is in conjunction with London Design Festival, which celebrates and promotes London as the design capital of the world, running at various venues throughout the city from 16-24 September.

Lighting is key in an industrial environment, whether it be wall lights, pendants or table/desk lamps.

This vintage Jielde Lamp is a design classic! It was originally designed in France in the 1950’s as a work lamp and is now an iconic French industrial piece.

We couldn’t resist this great looking vintage industrial pendant, where steel and brass have been cleverly used together.

Finally, we found this old vintage bottle drying rack on a trip to Provence and thought what an amazing hat/coat rack it would make for a restaurant, or at a home or workplace with an an industrial feel.

We are out in the markets all the time, so if you are looking for a special, unique piece for your home or workplace, or for an interiors project you may be working on, then please contact [email protected]

Thank you!

Posted on July 24, 2017 by Paul Cody

Our Vintage Furniture Project With Amazon!

Our current project is working with Amazon, to supply vintage furniture for their their new corporate office, opening in Shoreditch in East London, this month.

How excited are we?!

We have been working closely with an interior design studio, who “lead in the strategy and design of built environments, transforming organization culture and enhancing people’s lives”.

Vintage Matters were given the brief to source industrial and Mid Century furniture, including tables, chairs, sofas and lounge seating for their large reception area.

Our popular vintage stacking school chairs, made of plywood and tubular metal frames, were ideal seating for a very large industrial table, adding charm and colour to the reception area.

We spent a lot of time out in the markets and found this old industrial table base, made of cast iron, that was once used in a Belgian brewery to hold beer barrels. Now with a reclaimed timber top, it is perfect as a work station, with some high stools.

We had a lot of fun sourcing some cool and unusual Mid Century pieces, like these lounge chairs above and below.

All the lounge chairs and sofas have needed re-upholstering, to comply with fire regs for a commercial space, so were focussing mainly on finding great looking profiles of the various pieces, to help create an eclectic mix.

We can’t wait to show you the pieces in situ, which is happening very soon!

If you have an upcoming project for a commercial space that requires vintage furniture and accessories, where we can help add personality and character to a space, then please email [email protected]

Thank you!

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Paul Cody

Vintage Matters Commercial Furniture Project London

OUR LATEST COMMERCIAL PROJECT

We hope you are having a good Summer!

Over the past few months, we have been busy working with a London based furniture consultancy, who provide innovative solutions to offices, universities, restaurants and private residences.

Their client, Havas – an award-winning, global advertising and PR company, were moving to a new HQ, called HKX (Havas Kings Cross) and Vintage Matters were given the brief to supply vintage furniture for their new cafe, restaurant and reception area.

We worked closely with the design team, getting a good understanding of their needs and requirements for the various pieces of furniture, as well as timing and budget and then 3 weeks later presented our ideas on what was available out in the vintage markets.

We proposed visuals showing various styles of tables and chairs for the cafe and restaurant, along with guideline pricing and finally agreed on the overall look and aesthetic, the various spaces should have.

Off we went into the markets, sourcing vintage oak and mahogany tripod tables and bentwood cafe chairs. Good, well constructed chairs like these are hard to find these days, as they are in high demand for their vintage look and durability, especially the classic bentwood chairs, designed by Thonet.

Thonet was the pioneer of having light, strong wood bent into curved, graceful shapes, by forming the wood in hot steam. He produced his “Nr1” chair in 1850 and a year later won a bronze medal at the Great Exhibition in London!

We eventually sourced 58 vintage cafe chairs.

An important piece of furniture we had to source, was a very large statement table for the Havas reception area and we found this amazing 3.5 metre limed oak table.

Circa 1880, this table was originally used in the kitchen of a stately home in Bedfordshire and now takes pride of place in the new Havas reception at HKX!

If you have an upcoming project for a commercial space that requires vintage furniture and accessories, where we can help add personality and charm, then please email [email protected]

We are currently working on a very exciting commercial project for a large online retailer 😉

….watch this space!

Thank you.

vintagemattersuk