20 Tips For Finding Local Vintage

Via the medium of the car boot sale and the Wild West of Facebook Marketplace. How to plan, what to look for and some rules. Plus avoiding abduction and field fights and why you leave the dog at home.

Shopping and trawling vintage is my absolute favourite activity. I would pick a second hand shop over an outing to the theatre; an antiques fair over dinner in a smart restaurant. Although in fairness, I have a shocking history when it comes to theatre and musicals, being incapable as I am of staying awake. I don’t know if it’s the darkness or the glass of wine we have in the bar beforehand - or both - but it matters not what we’re seeing, you can guarantee I’ll be gone in sixty seconds. We recently went to see Gary Oldman in Krapps Last Tape which is only 53 minutes long - we were in the second row (I could make eye contact with Gary), but at minute 42 my head still snapped back and I almost dropped off. The shame of it.

Anyway, vintage. My parents were not particularly vintage inclined when we were children but they weren’t alone - back in the 1970’s, mid century dark wood furniture was being actively spurned in favour of more modern contemporary home interiors. We lived in Somerset when I was small and our sofa was patterned purple and blue folk floral polyester, the armchair brown puffy velour and the huge living room pouffe was long haired sheepskin. My Dad painted the TV box purple to match - in fact, they were big fans of purple. He wallpapered their bedroom in purple paisley flock, taking it all the way up and across the ceiling; my Mum wore purple patent platform boots that were hook and eye laced up to the knee.

Classic seventies decor in our Somerset home. And classic seventies trousers.

They’d lived through previous generations of quiet, simple, unobtrusive, Post War home design but come the seventies, interior decor was a whole new ball game, bohemian culture inspiring much more open plan and casual living, impactful furniture with plenty of bold pattern, bright colours and lots of texture. Bamboo, for example, was plentiful - as I sit here typing, I have both a vintage bamboo chest of drawers and a plant stand beside me. There’s elements of nostalgia around these retro pieces that help make a home feel comforting, I think.

My first real foray into the joy of second hand came about twenty years ago when my kids were tiny and we went on holiday with our friends, Ashley and Tracy, to Totnes in Devon. We rented a holiday house for a long weekend - it was November, fucking freezing, we had three kids under five between us and much of the time it was a living child infused hell on earth. There was even a hospital visit at one point. However, one day Tracy and I managed to escape alone for half an hour and she dragged me to the charity shops - anyone who has visited Totnes will know that for a charity shop aficionado, it’s the Gold Standard and since then, I have never looked back. Two vintage chain hung mirrors (the start of my collection) plus two pink and blue eiderdowns and my fate was sealed. Two decades later and I’m still as obsessed as I was that day, but not quite so time restricted. Random fact for the day: Tracy was not only an excellent charity shopper, but she’s also an excellent actress and played Maxine Peacock in Coronation Street.

We’re about to move house (yes, yes, fingers crossed anyway) and I am currently in full on planning mode and addicted - truly addicted - to both our local car boot sale and Facebook Marketplace. I admit, I have spent much time avoiding FBM as I have always been faintly terrified of it due to the closeness of the contact (giving out addresses, etc; I don’t mean actually touching), but now, you can’t get me off it. And York Racecourse Car Boot Sale started back last month - the mornings are lighter and the sun is starting to appear and I am MORE than up for a visit each Saturday morning. Side note: for my USA and Australian readers, you’d call these yard or garage sales. You have by FAR the better deal as you can do yours from your front garden whilst we have to load up our cars and drive to a windy field.

Anyway, I’ve picked up a few good tips during my excessive usage of both in the last couple of months so I thought I would pass these on. There is something excellent about shopping local vintage and thrift when you don’t have to pay the shipping, no fear of having to recruit Shiply and pay them £758,984 to pick it up for you from the other side of the country and really, just the general joy of adding to your home knowing that you’ve got a bargain. Here they are (with a small amount of tongue in cheek, obvs ).

1. Let’s start with car boot sales. You can use Find Car Boot here in the UK which will list ones within a fair radius but you are reliant on the boot sale organisers listing there. Also Facebook has a massive group with over 325k members where organisers add ones local to them so that’s worth checking out. But mostly, just Google your local ones (for example, we have a site called York Mumbler which has up to date info for all that’s going on).

2. Go early. I know, no one wants to get up at 6.30 am at the weekend but if you want the goods before anyone else, you have to be in it to win it. Be there for 7.00 am if you want to do the job properly. No one who turns up at 8.30 am is taking it seriously, believe me. Also, it doesn’t matter if it says the temperature is going to be almost heatwave levels; be prepared for rain, wind and cold at all times. This is the UK, don’t be complacent. It’s always freezing at 7.00 am.

3. Take someone with you to the car boot sale for the simple reason that you need them to help carry your purchases. You can’t carry a chair AND a vase at the same time - bribe them with the prospect of a bacon and sausage sandwich from the van. Oh, and don’t forget your Bag For Life because this isn’t the Maxx, no one will give you one.

4. Cash is King at the CBS and if you don’t have any you won’t be able to buy anything so make sure you stop at the ATM on the way. Or if you’re well organised, the day before so that you can have an extra ten minutes in bed.

   

   Wades Whimsies. Collectible then and still collectible now.

5. Unless your dog is as well trained as a Crufts champion, leave them at home. There are a LOT of dogs at car boot sales and if your dog likes to stop and sniff, then you’re on the back foot immediately, as someone else will be getting the good stuff before you even have a chance to walk the first aisle. And if you are holding on to a lead it will only distract you from the job in hand. If your dog is REALLY badly behaved (see: my dog), you risk (understandable) abuse from other dog owners when he tries to launch himself at them. Plus there’s always the unspoken fear that he might wee on a floor displayed crochet blanket.

6. If you see something cool and you want to take a photograph or video of it to show your friend (or Instagram, either way) or find out its provenance, don’t forget the Golden Rule of CBS. Ask the seller first, unless you fancy a massive field row in front of hundreds of people. We may live in a digital age where taking pictures of your food and nails is standard, but this is old school disco, people. If you break the rules here, you’ll be shouted at by a man resembling Dennis Waterman in a seventies leather bomber.

7. Know what you’re looking at - Google image search is your BFF for this. Take the photo (after following the Point 6 process) then go to your browser and press the camera icon in the search bar at the top. Upload the photograph, then click the first result which will have ‘exact matches’ written next to it. From here you can get the full lowdown on what you’re looking at. I do this with every single vintage item that I see and like.

   

   Victorian bamboo wood canopy bed. Dreamy.

8. Check markings, particularly on crockery and ornaments. Sellers often take ALL their old stuff to sell just to get rid of it, including stuff that’s been passed down to them, so there is always the chance that you’ll find something good. My sister in law once bought a vintage Gucci bowl for £5.

9. Car boot sales are also excellent places to pick up art. And not just for the picture - there are frames in abundance that are perfect for reusing, even if the work inside isn’t doing it for you. This is also applicable to Facebook Marketplace - frames are super expensive and second hand art can be picked up cheaply if you set an alert (see Point 14).

10. If you’re buying furniture, check it thoroughly - if it’s broken, make sure you know it can be fixed without huge expense. Also, smell it. I once had a cocktail cabinet delivered that I bought on eBay and it was infused with seventy years of Marlboro fumes. That shit won’t evaporate, it’s there for life.

11. Barter like you’re in the markets of Marrakesh. Never take the first price offer as a given. You are there to get a bargain so go in with negotiating tactics to rival Del Boy. You win some, you lose some, but if you take their first price without trying then you’ve not just let the car booting community down, you’ve let yourself down.

12. Right, let’s head to Facebook Marketplace, otherwise known as The Wild, Wild West. First of all, you need to set your location otherwise you’re going to bombarded with old pants from Bournemouth and nobody wants that. Go to the top right of the Marketplace home page and set the Location tab (this works the same on both the mobile app and the desktop). I set mine to a maximum 15km out of York. Now you’ll only be shown items that are close to you.

    

    Victorian cast iron fireplace for £20.

13. FBM is divided into sections - you want Home Goods if you are looking for vintage interiors. You can also search by price and brand within category which is quite good. However, you’ll find the more you use it the more the algorithm will dish you up want you want to see.

14. Set alerts for specific things you are looking for. Let’s say you’re looking for a second hand sink (living the dream). Search ‘sink’ and it’ll come up with a tab that says ‘Notify Me’ - you can set an alert so that if one comes up in your area, it’ll message you.

15. FBM likes to stick a row of adverts in between the actual, real life, real person selling things stuff. Whilst researching sinks, for example, it served me up and advert for 28 acrylic resin dentures from Temu. Try not to click on these adverts because once you’ve done it once, you’ll be bombarded with resin dentures for the foreseeable future.

16. So you’ve found something you want to buy. At this point, be aware that you are messaging someone you have never met. FBM offers you automatic responses to press and send - AVOID THESE. Believe me, sending a seller a message that simply says ‘is this available?’ with no hello, please or thank you is unlikely to make them feel warm and cosy towards you. Civility costs nothing yet buys everything, and if you want that sink at a good price then you need to get with the programme. Personal messages are the key to success.

17. Bartering is also a goer here. I have never bought anything without at least giving it a shot, it’s part of the fun. I’ve been selling things this month and I’d say half of the buyers bought at price and half tried to negotiate - I have great respect for the negotiators as I feel they are buyers after my own heart. You can back up your offer by telling the seller you can collect quickly and efficiently - they’ve put it on there because they want it out of their house ASAP. Saying you can come a week on Sunday isn’t going to endear you - same day or next with cash in hand and you’re in a prime position.

18. There are jewels to be found. Many people ripping out bathroom suites, kitchens, fireplaces, just looking to shift them before the new one is fitted and can’t be bothered to have to take it all to the tip. And doors. Period doors, contemporary doors, patio doors - ALL THE DOORS. A quick look at my local page today shows that I could equip an entire house for about fifty quid. These are your people if you’re doing a renovation or fancy a quick home update without splashing much cash.

    

    Double belfast sink £50.

19. It’s also a good place to find treasure due to the fact that there’s a wide range of people on there who like different things. What they think is old 60’s tat could be your idea of perfection. Like the CBS, you need to get in early before anyone else sees it so set up those alerts. In it to win it, and all that.

20. Unfortunately, FBM is also full of mentalists. However, the stakes are high and the rewards are plentiful so you need to be there or be square. And if you buy anything from a home address, take someone with you as back up to protect from abduction and turn on the Life360. I once took Ella with me to pick up a 3ft rubber plant from an elderly lady called Doris in Market Weighton. Just in case. You can never be too careful.

    

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