Welcome to Modern Antiquarian

Hi guys!

It’s Margaret and Kelly, welcome to our new online home! We hope you enjoy our new website and all the fun things it has to offer!

As things started to wind down at The Summer House in December 2017 a lot of people were wondering “Why are you guys leaving New Canaan? Why are you leaving the store behind?” At the time our decision seemed a bit random, perhaps? Well, it wasn't, it was purposeful and thoroughly thought through and ultimately very much the RIGHT move for the brand. Bear with us on this one… we have a lot to share :).

While brick and mortar retail is incomparable to any other sales platform it’s not hard to explain why we ultimately decided to change directions. It was a hard decision process, but Margaret had always had these ideas floating around her head and when Kelly joined the team in August 2016, their creative tendencies latched on to each other and they haven't stopped developing and influencing each other since. Working together has really been a defining aspect of what this company is becoming.

Our strengths and weaknesses compliment each other. We may always be working hard but we love what we do and really enjoy the process and our day to day almost always has a dash of fun mixed in.

As I sit here writing this, the store has been closed for 38 days. 38 DAYS OF SWEET SWEET FREEDOM! This short period of time with flexibility has already proved to us on multiple occasions that we have made the right choice!

Quick Recap: after we packed the store up Margaret and I took about 6 days off for our first vacation (at the same time) ever… We met at JFK airport on January 6th, 2018 to embark on our first Modern Antiquarian trip!

I grabbed a cider and Margaret a beer, we cheersed in the airport terminal, “England, HERE WE COME.” But the airport had other plans for us… See our flight was delayed 2.5 hours… and the terminals heat wasn't working. So we all bundled in our parkas, scarves, gloves and hats and grabbed a few more drinks to wait it out, eventually boarding around midnight. We get in our seats, are ready to go and then the pilot comes over the loudspeaker, “So, there is a slight issue. The waste tanks are frozen shut due to the extreme temperatures. We can wait a few hours for the process of de-icing the plane or we can take off and be conservative in bathroom trips for the flight. I don’t think it’s worth the hold up.” Grumbles erupt all over the plane. Then as though were in a sitcom, the man in the aisle behind mine starts to VOMIT. Cue extreme nervousness about the looming 7 hour flight sans toilets.

The flight was ultimately uneventful but definitely one of the most interesting starts to a trip either of us had ever had! As soon as we were at our hotel in London we made our way to Selfridges for some retail therapy, and after we met up with Randy and Bernie of Antiques of Dallas for a lovely dinner. It was honestly quite surreal to be in London together on a buying trip, at dinner with dear friends we had met just 6 months ago. The following day we were meeting Margaret’s Antiques mentor and second Mum, Gail McLeod and our dreams from the last year were officially going to be our reality. (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) 

Our process allows for a lot of serious looking but also moments of inspiration, fun and laughter! At one particular property we were looking out the backdoor of the warehouse and Gail pointed out some kind of deer like animal; we poked our heads out and discovered the most “Instagram Perfect” scene… you may recognize the image above from one of our instagram posts during our time there…

We have so many fun, beautiful and interesting things to share with you as this world of ours continues to develop! We have a few exciting trips planned in the next few months that we are very excited to announce in the next few weeks. So make sure you are receiving our email updates and follow along on our Instagram. We are just getting started!