Where To Find Good Vintage Office And Desk Accessories

Vintage Swan Ink Thimble.

In a nutshell: Thrift shops and charity shops.

I don't scour the thrifts as much as I used to, but whenever I do, I make sure that I check out the stationery shelves where old staplers, ink wells, rulers, fountain pens and leather holders, pencils, boxes with vintage graphics, air mail envelopes, rubber stamps with wooden handles, typing manuals, typewriter erasers (the rubber now hard as a rock,) office paper clips, etc., (whew!) can usually be found.

The Swan Ink thimble was found in a charity shop in Tonypandy, South Wales, and its cost, if memory serves, was 10p.

Vintage Paper Clips

Of course, antiques' malls and shops often have all of these, but the cost is significantly higher than what one would pay at a thrift shop.

Fossil Brand Tin with Vintage Typing Eraser.

The Fossil brand tin and one of my typing erasers shown in the photograph were both found at thrift shops. Despite Fossil brand being a modern-day company, its tin graphics are marvellously reminiscent of mid-century design. I have them in my home office as décor, alongside a number of other items I've collected over the years.

Thrift/charity shops are my go-to places when I want certain items, though, more often than not, when we're looking for something specific, it's nowhere to be found. It's the thrill of the vintage hunt that makes it interesting and with thrift shops you'll never know what you might find so unexpectedly.

One of the best "scoops" I ever found was a plastic bag filled with old (and somewhat dried) calligraphy pens, dried vintage inks and bottles, and a large variety of old nibs. There were also a number of other items, but I took the bag to the manager and said that there was quite a bit in the bag that I would have no use for and I would leave with them to re-sell.

I didn't really see all of the contents until I arrived home, and I gave a friend of mine the calligraphy pens and nibs, as well as a couple of inks that were more suited to calligraphy. I have what's called familial, benign, 'essential tremor' in my hands and, mild as it may be, I become too frustrated seeing the slight modulation in my writing and decided to just give the items to her. She loves calligraphy, but didn't have any writing instruments.

So, for those of you in small and large cities where thrift shops seem to be popping up everywhere, scour the shelves, ask the staff, and drop by frequently.