Today’s dining rooms aren’t necessarily ultra formal spaces, but they should still be equipped with the essentials: a sturdy, sizable table and corresponding chairs; a hutch and/or buffet, and plenty of dishware and serving supplies. The good news is that all of these pieces are items that you can score secondhand—in fact, you can furnish your entire dining room without buying anything brand new.
“Every piece of furniture in my dining room—my table, chairs, sideboard, and barley twist bar cart—are all second hand finds from estate sales, Facebook Marketplace, and local thrift stores,” shares Jess Ziomek, the founder of Thrills of the Hunt in Nashville, Tennessee. “I think it’s much more interesting to slowly amass an amalgam of vintage treasures, especially ones with evidence that they’ve lived a past life, rather than having everything matchy matchy.”
Here, Ziomek and other vintage enthusiasts share some of their personal favorite categories of dining room pieces to buy preloved and offer tips on how you can do the same.
Wooden Tables
Kristin Keyes, the founder of Kristin Keyes Interiors also in Nashville, loves incorporating antique wooden tables into dining rooms. “People sometimes feel nervous about using an antique in a hardworking dining room for daily meals, kid art projects, etc., but they’re actually very durable.” Don’t be afraid of an older piece being too precious to actually use. “Think about it,” Keyes says. “The table is already 100 years old. It’s probably made it through many wine spills and paint splatters already. It will make it through whatever your family has to throw at it, too!”
Head Chairs
After purchasing a table, you’ll need a set of chairs, and Keyes likes to use matching chairs on both sides of the table and then make a statement with her head chairs. “It’s relatively easy to thrift a set of two interesting chairs, whereas six or eight can be tricky,” she says. “You can play with pattern, color, and scale.”
China Cabinets
Storage is paramount in the dining room, and Keyes likes the concept of pairing a vintage cabinet with a modern dining table. “All cabinet styles can be thrifted, and they’re often priced quite low,” she says.
Rugs
If you’re in the market for a dining room rug, Keyes suggests going the secondhand route there, too, opting for a Persian or Turkish hand-knotted piece. “There aren’t a lot of opportunities to add color and pattern to a dining rooms since tables and chairs are often wood or a solid color, so don’t sleep on the opportunity to add some pizazz to the floor,” she says.
China
Rather than purchasing a contemporary set of dinnerware, pay homage to the glamorous dinner parties of yesteryear with a vintage china set. “Vintage China can bring timeless elegance to your dining space, and if you ask me, it’s a prime thrift store treasure,” says Cheryl Luckett, the founder of Dwell by Cheryl in Charlotte, North Carolina. Luckett likes to keep her eyes peeled for intricate, patterned pieces. “Don’t be afraid to mix and match different patterns for an eclectic look,” she adds…