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The 6 Hottest Antiques to Collect Right Now, According to Dealers and Designers
From antique blanket chests to Swedish-inspired furniture, here's what to hunt for on your next shopping trip.
It wasn’t too long ago that the word “antiques” had fallen far from favor among certain high style design circles. But these days, antiques shows are the hottest tickets in town. Already this year, top designers from around the country have flocked to the Washington Winter Show, The Winter Show in New York, the Decorative Antiques and Textile Fair in London’s Battersea Park, and the Nashville Antiques & Garden Show. Whether due to continued supply chain challenges in the furniture industry, a greater interest in sustainability and reuse, or an increased appreciation for pieces with history and patina, it’s safe to say what’s old is new again.
Of course, here at VERANDA antiques and vintage furnishings have never fallen out of fashion. Over the years, we’ve shared inspiration for decorating with antiques, including a designer manifesto on why every room needs at least one piece of brown furniture. We’ve also passed along tips for antiques shopping, including the pieces you should always buy vintage, according to designers. We’ve also recognized the best antiques shops in the U.S. as well as the best places to buy antiques online. We’ve even introduced you to the next generation of antiques dealers, many of whom are not only showing at antiques fairs but also selling their finds on Instagram—and cultivating a new crop of fervent collectors.
To help inspire your next antique purchase, we asked dealers what antique types and styles are selling fastest—and designers what they’re buying most. Here’s a list of the hottest antiques trends for 2023, along with how to spot a good buy. Act fast before these antiques are going, going, gone.
Antique textile designer and dealer Rebecca Vizard of B. Viz Design is seeing a sudden increase in demand for tapestry textiles. “I did not sell a tapestry pillow for five years,” says Vizard, who creates intricate, one-of-a-kind pillows using fragments of antique textiles coveted by top designers around the country. “The tapestry market went down, but I knew it would come back. It’s just so classic. So, I bought a bunch while I could. Now they’re getting harder to find at good prices.” You can shop B. Viz Designs this year at The 550 Market during the Round Top Antiques Show and at the Nantucket Summer Antiques Show, as well as in their brick and mortar stores or online.
New Orleans-based designers Bill Brockschmidt and Courtney Coleman, known for decorating with antiques (as seen here in this New Orleans townhouse), have found themselves drawn to Biedermeier furniture more and more of late. “It was so in-then-out, but we’ve always admired the way it can be sleek and quirky with beautiful veneers and ebonizing,” says Brockschmidt, who also owns New Orleans art and antiques shop Sud, named one of VERANDA’s most beautiful shops in the world in 2022. When shopping for Biedermeier pieces, Brockschmidt advises paying close attention to the finishes. “The character of the veneers and inlaid wood makes a difference because it is not only craftsmanship, but true artistry like making a painting or drawing,” he says.
Chairish, the online antiques and vintage marketplace, reports a recent uptick in sales of antique blanket chests, particularly those with original decorative painted finishes. “These can be Swedish or Pennsylvania German, but the more ornamentation the better,” says Noel Fahden, vice president of merchandising. Fahden notes that this comes on the heels of a “pronounced resurgence” in traditional furniture over the last year. “This ran the gamut from Chippendale to Federal and included both American Colonial Revival pieces and original English and Continental antiques,” she says.
Fajaluaza Ceramics
At dealer Marta Gualda’s booth in Nashville, Fajaluaza ceramics, a ceramic tradition that originated in Granada, Spain, in the 16th century, were far and away the top sellers. “Blue and white is always classic, even though Fajaluaza is less seen compared to other ceramics, but the green pieces, or lebrillo, draw collectors for their size and designs,” says Gualda who runs a gallery in Charlotte, North Carolina. The dealer attributes the increasing popularity of Fajaluaza ceramics to their primitive and abstract patterning, and to the strong statement made by their limited palettes of blue or green, colors that were used to embellish historic Andalusian palaces. Gualda advises collectors to pay attention to the pieces’ imperfections. “These are expressions of the life of an object,” she says. “These ceramics are testaments to the material and the evolution of humans.”
Painted Swedish Furniture
Antiques dealer Charles Peed notes that painted Swedish furniture remains a perennial top seller at his family’s Palm Beach showroom Casa Gusto. “Swedish furniture is very relatable by its imitation of other styles and its obligatory use of warmer raw materials,” says Peed. “It bridges between well-made brown furniture and high-gilded French Louis stuff.” Peed adds that collectors are drawn to the style for its usability. “Functional furnishings are having their moment over the purely decorative,” he says.
Turkish Rugs with Soft Colors
For antique rug dealer Nicholas Sumner of Nashville Rug Gallery, large Turkish rugs with soft or unusual coloring are top sellers, particularly among interior designers. “Unusual colors like ivory, pale blues, soft yellows, greens, even chocolate browns, especially in the larger rugs—this is how we’re picking and what sets us apart,” says Sumner, who also runs a large rug reproduction operation in Turkey that has been impacted by the recent earthquakes. Sumner urges those who wish to support Turkish artisans to give to international relief organization Samaritan’s Purse.
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