8 Things You Should Always Buy at Estate Sales, According to Designers

Art

The first thing that designers look for at estate sales is art. It's typically quite inexpensive in comparison to the initial purchase price and reveals a great deal about the preferences and passions of the people who formerly called that place home.

Collections

Stokes also enjoys looking at "weird personal things that people collect" at estate auctions. Whether it's antique metal model vehicles, pebbles, butterflies, diamonds, tiny ships, magnifying glasses, or architectural elements

Rugs

Stokes also purchases rugs from estate sales if they are available. "I am aware of their past, and it was a really well-made product in the past.

Lamps

Don't allow broken or discolored lamps stop you from using them. It's simple to have them rewired or to add a different shade to make it a unique addition to a house.

Dining Chairs

Retail dining chairs may be expensive, but Meg White of Meg White Interiors advises locating an antique set and customizing them.

Mirrors

White has discovered several exquisite mirrors at estate auctions, which have been used as wall art, above dining room sideboards, or in powder rooms.

Vintage Clothes

Quinlan is an interior designer as well as the owner of an upscale vintage clothes business in Birmingham, so she frequently visits estate sales and raids the closets.

Dishes, Glasses, and Flatware

Jenkins suggests that you take advantage of great collections of old and vintage dishes, glasses, and cutlery that have a backstory when you come across them.