Before you donate Grandma's china, check this out.

If you’re over 50, you’ve probably heard by now that your kids and grandkids do NOT want any of it. Not your $30-a-place-setting Limoges china, nor your Royal Doulton figurines, nor the crystal that you lovingly picked out and registered for your wedding.

But wait! A growing number of those kids (ages between late 20’s to late 30’s) can be seen these days in thrift stores and by roadside curbs on garbage day, scooping up perfectly good stuff. A new trend has emerged and it’s called “Granny Chic” or “Grand Millennial”. The thought of dumping perfectly good furniture into landfills makes them shudder. They’re appreciating the time it took to create a needlepoint picture, or stain and polish a table to a beautiful patina that only gets better after time. They’re eschewing anything plastic or furniture that comes in a box with an allen key and instead, want to feather their nests with older pieces that have history or tell a story.

Homes decorated in “Grand Millennial” style feel cozy, approachable and lived in but to keep the look fresh, modern elements are also added. Another difference is that surfaces are not cluttered with tons of tiny cut glass or porcelain doo-dads or anything too precious. This is not a license to clutter up every horizontal surface!

A friend who I hadn’t talked with in many years has embraced this aesthetic. She invited me to her home last week for a bowl of chicken soup. The delicious broth was served in lovely china bowls; warm buns were nestled in a basket lined with an antique hanky; different cheeses and pickles were plated on pressed glass trays. The chairs were covered with petit point and her homemade honey cranberry butter was scooped from a cut glass dish. I didn’t want to leave!

To achieve this look think:

Floral and small print wallpaper (imagine 1980’s Laura Ashley)

Deeper muted wall colours

Traditional furniture- wicker, solid wood, hand carved anything

Tasseled drapes, fringed rugs and quilts, vintage prints

It’s also fun to reimagine your beloved treasures. The picture above is our Amelia holding her great-great-grandma’s silver serving tray. With some peel and stick black paper, it now is a message board on our kitchen wall.

Tea cups can easily be made into candles- a delightful hostess gift

Doilies can be repurposed into - well just about anything!

Your imagination is the limit~

Enjoy!