Hidden treasures

I am currently in the process of doing up my office. It is a very slow process, partly because young children and paint don't mix! and partly because of budget and time constraints. You may remember I created a treasury showing some of the things I would love to have in my office?

image - elemental.uk.com

 I am a huge admirer of vintage and of companies like elemental and were money no object would probably be their biggest customer. For now they just have to provide the inspiration.Well in honour of mother's day I was allowed to go shopping at the weekend for some office goodies. I wanted to find things that were not only practical and affordable but were beautiful too. So we headed down to Emmaus.

Emmaus is pretty much the best thing since sliced bread in my opinion and we are fortunate enough to be within 5 miles of a very large site. Who/what is Emmaus I hear you ask. For a full explanation I will refer you to the Emmaus website but here's a brief description. Emmaus communities provide a safe space for people who have come unstuck and need help to get back on their feet. Emmaus provides accommodation and employment. In the Carlton community near us they operate a cafe, a secondhand books and clothes shop and a secondhand furniture shop.

If you are willing to do a bit of digging then you can find some absolute gems. You may need to give an item of furniture a bit of love but you can get real quality.

We have already grabbed ourselves two Parker Knoll armchairs. These will be upholstered once the boys are old enough not to wreck them but one day they might look like this:

image - sallynencini.com

On Saturday I could have bought a lot of things including a mid century bureau, a sideboard, a set of chairs and a plan chest. I'd probably also have got the whole lot for £100. I restricted myself to two items though. A rather uninspiring shelf unit which I am going to strip back and paint at some point and this considerably more lovely tapered shelving unit.  Every time I look at it I smile. Surely that is the point of whatever we furnish our homes with whether an item costs us £1000 or in my case £4.

You can find out whether there is an Emmaus near you by searching on their website. But good news they also sell some stuff on line via Ebay!