Do you get rid of things because they are old-fashioned?

M0nica

kittylester nothing would have persuded us to buy Ercol when we got married, dated and smacked of old people.

I am now delighted with my Ercol dining suite, so trendy, so modern!!!!!!!

Fortunately we inherited a complete Ercol dining suite, including table for 8, chairs, side board buffet, wall shelves, trolley and buffet. All bought originally in 1960s.
We love it, when we set up home Ercol was pushing their pine range. We had the table and chairs, deeply unpopular when we got rid of it.

Sell or upcycle

Or put it in storage for a few decades and it will be worth a packet

There is nothing in the slightest bit stylish about my house.

In our younger days we couldn't afford to furnish to a contemporary style and now I really don't care.

We begged borrowed and stole from relatives then, and now we have inherited (not particularly valuable) stuff from deceased parents. If I don't like a piece I won't give it house room.

But I do like a bit of a colour scheme to pull it all together.

Emerald feature wall sounds disgusting!

nanna8

Hang on to things long enough and they often become antiques - leave them to the children to profit from hehe. I agree, things were made with more care back in the day. Especially wooden things, furniture etc. I’ve got an ancient copper kettle, I love it but don’t use it now but it looks good in the fireplace. Got to clean it now and then, that’s the problem.

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I must put a note on mine for the DC - do not put this retro furniture in the skip when you clear our house!

Sell or upcycle

I tend to recycle lots of stuff by moving it around the house, repainting, staining, whatever. My TV unit is an old pine 2 door cabinet that I took the doors off, removed a shelf and painted white. It was exactly the right size for the corner. An old mirror that used to have a flowery border I painted a bronze colour with a gold trim and have in the bedroom. I sprayed some gold coloured lamps with a chrome finish and they're on bedside tables with different shades. The bedside tables are two corner tables from the sitting room that I restained. If I really can't use it I freecycle it.

Old- fashioned or retro or even antique?

We had a dark green feature wall in the 1960s.

kittlester we had Tapley furniture in the dining room in the 1960s - it has travelled around with us and did get a bit bashed unfortunately so it's been relegated to the study.
I just looked it up - unbashed it would be worth quite a bit!

Aren’t we all supposed to be thinking more of our carbon footprint and green credentials? Not replacing stuff as often? That’s my excuse anyway for my inertia!
#lazygran
‘Good enough is good enough’.
?

dogsmother

Gaga hate to tell you my mid 20s dd has just painted with a very dark green ..... seems it might be as you feared. She likes modern. Seems that is very now.

My son and partner and my friend's son and partner have just done an emerald green feature wall.

I think emerald is in fashion now.

dogsmother

Gaga hate to tell you my mid 20s dd has just painted with a very dark green ..... seems it might be as you feared. She likes modern. Seems that is very now.

Thank you!! Honestly, happens so often.

Might go monochrome then. ?

kittylester nothing would have persuded us to buy Ercol when we got married, dated and smacked of old people.

I am now delighted with my Ercol dining suite, so trendy, so modern!!!!!!!

florentina We have done our dining room in mid century furniture (mostly Danish) having declared it so old fashioned when we got married.

Up until 3 years ago my living room looked like we were living in a 1970s stage set.
Finally had the cash and inclination to give it a make over and sold all the old teak furniture to a nice young couple who had just purchased a 1970s semi as their first home. They wanted authentic furniture and mine certainly was!

I get rid of things because they are worn out, I don't like them any more and/or I can afford better.
Never because they are 'old-fashioned.'

If things are broken, then they need to be replaced. Replacing things just because they are no longer fashionable is unnecessary consumerism, adding to pollution etc - unless they can be re-purposed.

I'm not saying that I'm not guilty of unnecessary consumerism!!

Only keep them if you really like them. New ones may give the room a lift or make everything else look dated? Maybe you’d like to have a change completely. As someone else said you don’t have to keep things the same for ever!
I visited a good friend yesterday
- in my opinion, she was in old fashioned, dated clothes, no make up, no hair wash. Her home also looked old and dated too - full of furniture, ornaments, ‘collectables’, holiday souvenirs. Not my style at all but she was clearly happy in herself /everything at home. We had a good chat & I enjoyed seeing her again
( nearly 2 yrs break due to virus). They’re not hard up- the opposite!
We’re all different. Do what you want to!

Gaga hate to tell you my mid 20s dd has just painted with a very dark green ..... seems it might be as you feared. She likes modern. Seems that is very now.

welbeck

i keep things almost because they are old-fashioned.
but basically, just follow that great designer, also liker of traditional/old-fashioned styles and crafts:
William Morris — 'Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.

Better chuck myself out then,..

We are a family of second hand roses. We have a house of second hand furniture, most of it beautiful 19th century furniture, some we have bought, some we have inherited, some we have restored. We have no hesitation about disposing of things we no longer need by putting them in an auction sale or selling it on ebay.

We are currently having an extension built and sent to auction a set of late 19th century kitchen chairs, a davenport, a dresser and a small desk that were no longer needed. In their place we bought at auction, a 1950s Ercol dining room suite for the new kitchen/family room - and about broke even, making as much from selling as we paid for the Ercol.

AC have both inherited the same tendency. DD is into Arts and Crafts and Mid-century modern and inherited a magnificent Arts and Crafts bedoom suite from one grandmother, Ds and DDiL have taken furniture from family homes after grandparents have died.

Providing you treat your furnishings like your clothes, recycling,sending to Charity shops, auctions, selling on ebay or Freegling/Freecycling rather than throwing away and looking to similar souces for their replacement. so that you stay within a green cycle of change without destruction, why not change everything.

I don’t worry about fashion, I keep what I like and works for me and try to rehome the rest. My step-sister expressed horror that I had three different shades of wood in my sitting room but then she has the income and time to worry about these things.

Do none of you have opinionated daughters? We have 3, 2 of whom have no compunction about telling us when something has had it's day - thankfully not us yet!!! It keeps us on our toes!!

I’m 68, but still like to have chair back and arm rest covers on my suite. DS says both the suite and covers scream ‘old person’ which they probably do, but they are practical.

I don’t always like what they have in their home, but keep quiet!

Hang on to things long enough and they often become antiques - leave them to the children to profit from hehe. I agree, things were made with more care back in the day. Especially wooden things, furniture etc. I’ve got an ancient copper kettle, I love it but don’t use it now but it looks good in the fireplace. Got to clean it now and then, that’s the problem.

Not usually but can I do it with Mr absent?

I love vintage things. Everything was well made, unlike today. I don’t worry about today’s decorating style. If I like it that’s the deciding factor.

i keep things almost because they are old-fashioned.
but basically, just follow that great designer, also liker of traditional/old-fashioned styles and crafts:
William Morris — 'Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.