Tariffs got you troubled? Turn to vintage, thrift, estate sales

Mid-century enamel artwork by Mary Jane Oshier found at Penny Lane Antique Mall in Bellingham, Wash.

Tariffs?! Whatever is happening, or going to happen, or not happen, with tariffs on goods made outside of the USA, furnishing your home with things that are already here is one way to alleviate some of that financial strain. Sourcing vintage, antique and previously loved items, from art to dining tables, can be fun in the finding and friendly to the environment as it helps keep them out of the landfill. If you live anywhere in the region from Bellingham to Seattle to Tacoma, following are a few places I love to forage for things that have character and story and help make a house a home. One tip and part of the fun is that you should expect to visit these places more than once because so much of the stock is constantly coming in and moving out. And when you see something that speaks to you, get in there and investigate it. I like to take an item with me or put it on hold while I shop so I can think about it and do a little online research.

1) Penny Lane Antique Mall has been my favorite haunt since moving here from Seattle (Hi Madeline and Sam!) in Bellingham's Old Town area. I'm sitting in a vintage chair in our 1950s house as I type this at our vintage Scandinavian dining table from there. We've also scored a marble-top coffee table (yep with a few water marks which are easily covered with coffee table books or coasters and allows me not to care about any new water marks that may happen) and maybe my favorite thing we own - a '50s enamel artwork (see above image) by Mary Jane Oshier. She made abstract enamel art and I could not love it more for the colors and shapes and walnut (probably) frame at a more than decent price. Recently we picked up an Ekornes Stressless recliner chair from the '70s that has fabulous original navy leather and a chrome base. It has sat in our house for a while needing some fairly serious love to bring it back to life (more to come on that story which takes us to the Olympic Peninsula). Penny Lane seems to have more vintage clothing these days and has been featuring some pop-up vendors this spring in addition to numerous fixed vendors. Smaller home decor items abound here, too, and we've foraged many fun tchotchke coffee mugs (I think it's a mug rescue program at this point), vases, dishes and more. 

1966-designed Richard Schultz outdoor table, a score from Second Use in Seattle.

2) Second Use Building Materials, Seattle and Tacoma locations. This place is a treasure trove! They take in loads of lumber/wood, tile, lighting, doors (glass door handles), windows, appliances, bed frames, furniture (the list goes on) from around the region. We got spectacular limestone pavers there years ago at a fraction of the real-world price and some great tips about building our patio from an employee. Wandering there is a treat but maybe the best thing about Second Use is they put their inventory online and you can put things on hold via a phone call. Hot tip: If you find something that is to-die-for, the time to call and put it on hold is: At. That. Moment. People camp out on that website and wait for them to post their latest inventory and the good stuff can go fast. We also got an iconic 1966-designed Richard Schultz outdoor table (pictured above) that had a crack in the frame (that Dan fixed). We were able to put it on hold, drive down from Bellingham and get it home safely on top of the Subaru Crosstrek. For a deal on a designer piece, I will work (and so will Dan) lol. 

1960s teak bench by Norwegian designer Torbjorn Afdal.

3) Estate Sales. If you have time and are willing to check around, you can find some gorgeous, high-quality items at estate sales. I generally check estatesales.net searching by location to see what's coming up in the area and then peruse the goods online to see if it's of interest. (Lots of scary dolls, why people why?) Prices are often negotiable and it can be worth it to hit the last day of sales when things are generally half-price. I find though that if the estate sale has the goods, you gotta get there early and be ready to rock on finding the things you want. We've found great art books, for example, more mugs, and once did a down-to-the-last-second online bidding war and managed to win a '60s teak bench by Norwegian designer Torbjorn Afdal (pictured above). When picking it up at a Seattle warehouse, another person picking up items told us we had gotten the best piece from the auction at about a third of the normal asking price.

Those are just a few ideas for sourcing items that someone else loved first. Also, while these shopping methods bring me great joy, I realize you might not feel the same or have the time it sometimes takes - and in those cases I am here and happy to help, whether you are in the 'Ham, the Pacific Northwest or points beyond. And of course beautifully designed things are created in this country every day and were made here before any tariff talk. And some of the best makers are reusing and recycling materials. More on that to come! Where do you go for thrifty fun finds? Let us know in comments below! Happy foraging.