The Valuable Vintage Furniture Piece Bookworms Should Never Skip At Thrift Stores

Being a bookworm these days is more than just a hobby. Between Booktok and social media platforms, a big resurgence in buying books has come about, and if you drop a lot of money on your reads, why shouldn't you have a nice place to display them? There are plenty of basic bookshelves on the market that will do the job just fine, but if you love your books like treasured friends or valuable collectables, then you might want a more elevated place to keep them. 

Rather than firing up your search engine, why not check out your local thrift stores to try and find scorched bamboo bookshelves, which not only bring style and dimension to a room, but also give you a really unique place to store your novels and biographies? These vintage shelves feature a tortoiseshell finish, and while they are pricey when bought from resellers and online, if you can snag one from a secondhand shop, you might have won the jackpot of thrifted pieces.

Bamboo furniture is rich in history and can be traced back centuries. Used in China as well as Southeast Asia for a variety of purposes, bamboo was popular because of how durable it was. While still flexible, it doesn't snap easily, which is likely a big reason it started being fashioned into furniture. From Chinoise to Victorian era designs, bamboo has come a long way in interior design, influencing some of the greatest decor of all time. The thrift store is the best place to find bamboo, too, as you can likely find it for a fraction of the cost it would be online.

A piece of history that adds dimension and texture

During the 1700s, images of this material made their way to Britain, where people began using beech wood and paint to mimic the bamboo they saw in drawings brought over from Asia. In the 18th century, the Japanese method of scorching or burning wood to keep it safe from the elements and daily wear and tear, known as shou sugi ban, began to be implemented. This could be where the scorched bamboo designs came from. The tortoiseshell finish really sets these pieces apart, giving them texture and pattern in a natural, understated way.

Online, they retail for upwards of $500, but that doesn't mean they aren't lurking in a secondhand shop for a lower price if you know how to spot one. While some refer to the Victorians' knock-off versions of bamboo furniture as rickety, the real thing is anything but, and while it may look slim and unassuming, the quality of these shelves is unmatched. To ascertain if your bamboo find is authentic, check the grain for lines that flow in the same direction along the length of the wood. 

Should you snag one of these, allow it to bring dimension to your space with its natural pattern, adding small plants or brass knick-knacks among your books to bring out the warmth of the wood's coloring when creatively storing your books. The great thing about this design is you don't have to do much when it comes to figuring out how to decorate, as the material does the work for you. If it's a little worn, the key to cleaning your bamboo is to use mild products like gentle soap and a brush to remove dust.

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