The days of the quintessential “used” furniture store showcasing sagging floral couches, musty old family photos, and crystal lamps are firmly part of our past. If you haven’t visited a modern store packed with previously owned goodies, you’re missing out on a design bonanza. And it’s so easy to now get this type of furniture. If this is something which you want but you also don’t want to spend a fortune then you should check out sites that offer discounts such as furniture in fashion’s discount.
For the most part, these stores (such as The Refind Room), do not carry “antiques,” which are typically defined as furniture at least 100 years old. And to the extent there are “vintage” items, it certainly doesn’t mean lace curtains and tea sets. Vintage can be anything from 90-20 years ago.
Fine, some may think, it is still dated…Ah, not so fast! Art deco was a popular style from 1920 through 1940 and is streamlined, sleek, and utterly beautiful. The photo to the right was taken in the 1930’s and features art deco style. The photos below are not from a Restoration Hardware catalog, but are all designs from the 1930’s and 40’s. 
Modernism was another trend in the 1930’s & 40’s that produced classic beauties, such as the Wassily and Barcelona chairs – eminently popular today. 
Scandinavian design, the butterfly chair, and the iconic stacking chair were all designed in the 1920-30’s. Ironically, these are styles we think of as contemporary and modern. 
Today’s previously owned stores do not limit your choices to styles that are “popular” today – you have a much greater selection from which to chose, from a rustic wooden book shelf to a luxury gloss coffee table, there is so much choice available. Crazy enough, you may just find the original version of the latest Pottery Barn offering. And that is pretty darn cool.
(Check out a little “vintage” at The Refind Room, 2525 S. Brentwood Blvd., 962-room. http://therefindroom.com. Photos courtesy of Judith Miller’s tome, Furniture.)