Take a stroll in Spitalfields and you’ll notice sofas with decades of life. They’re rough round the edges, but that’s the point

From Markets to Mansions: London’s Love for Vintage Sofas and modern leather armchairs Vintage sofas just feel more real than anything new. My first memory of proper furniture is my grandad’s wingback chair. The arms were shiny from years of elbows, but it had heart. In the days of smoky pubs and jazz clubs, people kept things for decades. You’d keep the same chair your whole life. That history clings to vintage pieces. I found a retro accent chair in a Dalston car boot. Most people would have walked on, but I knew straight away it had something.

Friends always fight to sit in it. Furniture in London shifts with the postcode. Chelsea leans plush, with grand accent chairs. Hackney keeps it raw, with upcycled seats. The clash gives it character. Mass-produced pieces fade in months. Retro pieces get better with years. Every stain has a story. If you ask me straight, a battered sofa tells more truth than any showroom. Your seat should outlast the years. When you walk past a glossy showroom, wander a street full of second-hand shops.

Choose a funky accent chair, and single long chair let it shout London every time you sit.