Antiquing and Vintage Finds

One of my resolutions this year is to take Thursdays, when the dog walker comes, to explore design shops in the Zurich area and go antiquing, as I did this past week, hunting for vintage items and antiques. I went to three antique shops and here’s what I found. I think my trip was a success with lots of porcelain and other vintage finds!

Antiquing and Vintage Finds

As you can imagine, there are many antique beer steins in the shops around Switzerland. This one is from Amberg and the history of the town is written on the bottom of the mug. The story goes, Amberg was founded in 1007 at Ammenberg Castle. In 1034 the village of Amberg was documented for the first time. At 1100 Amberg is a city. In 1163 it was freed by Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa. Since 1329 the main city of Upper Palatinate joined the founders of the Ambergers Hammer Agreement. In 1356 there was utter destruction of the city by fire. The city view of Amber by M. Merian from 1640.

This image above is from the Coat of Arms of the Scharer Family, and would be fabulous as part of a gallery wall.

Porcelain

Tea service by Richard Ginori in the antique pattern, Gold Floral Chintz. Apparently this is rare as I can’t find it online anywhere!

This is hand painted porcelain by a Swiss company called Swiss Langenthal. According to their website, they’ve been around for 115 years and are well known in the hotel and restaurant industries.

This beautiful trash can is by Massilly France. Today they still make metal boxes for packaging in their factory in Saone et Loire.

This vase is by AK Kaiser Porcelain. It caught my eye because I recently traveled to Egypt, but this is more than a tourist souvenir; AK Kaiser is known for their high quality pieces and a quick google search shows these antique pieces are collectibles.

I’m not sure if this plate has any real value, but the colors and details grabbed my eye and I thought it was worth a look.

Just a pretty antique mirror. I have too many so this did not come home with me. I do think antique mirrors are a fabulous way to add interest to your walls, bounce light around, and add that element from another time period without competing with other items in the room.

I hope you enjoyed shopping with me. Antique stores are a great way to add interest to your home and find some really unique pieces, often better quality than what is being produced today. There are certain items that are readily available, like porcelain dinner services, and silverware, art and clothes, too. It also is environmentally friendly to shop vintage, so don’t forget about these shops when you are looking for something new for your space. Trust your gut instinct, take photos, and use google to research brands and markings that aren’t familiar to you.

Online you can search both Chairish and 1stdibs for vintage, antique and new items.