Retro doesn't have to be loud, bright and shiny when it comes to furniture

Retro is back. Retro fashion for one, but also an unexpected retro furniture trend has reared its head for 2024.

When it comes to retro furniture you might visualise a 50’s home full of bright colours, loud patterned orange and brown fabrics, shiny chrome with red plastic, and teak wood furniture. And there was plenty of that around back then, and thankfully there is still a great amount of it going strong today. It was built to last after all.

But does it have to be loud, bright, and shiny when it comes to retro furniture? May & Co, an Oxford-based antique and vintage furniture shop, doesn’t think so. Although they have an appreciation for many things retro, when it comes to hunting for furniture and homeware for their online shop they are mainly looking for a different kind of retro.

Instead, they’d rather take a look at those 20th-century years from the 40s through to the 70s through a slightly different lens. And although the pieces they buy are still typically classed as retro and mid-century, they are perhaps a little less in your face.

The pieces you can expect to find at May & Co are usually made of oak, sometimes teak, and have a common thread running through them. All beautifully made with clean lines and very little fuss. They aim to offer a softer, earthy look. Whether the pieces sit alongside similar furniture or are paired with perhaps a more lively retro number they give you the chance to experiment with how you want your mid-century or retro-inspired home to look and feel.

Click below to see some of the beautiful mid-century and retro pieces that have passed through May & Co’s hands.