We're Obsessed: Vintage Rattan Furniture Is Everywhere Right Now

From the moment we saw the rattan headboard in Poppy Lissiman's ecclectic Queens Park apartment, it became very clear: our new number one priority in life is to find ourselves an amazing piece of vintage rattan furniture. There's something about it, isn't there? Organic and unaffected, it makes the perfect addition for the kind of home we want to live in right now.

So what is rattan exactly? It's the name given to a variety of climbing palms native to Southeast Asia and, to a lesser extent, parts of Africa. It's the strongest material used in wicker furniture. Wicker, meanwhile, is the technique of weaving rattan, cane, bamboo and other organic fibres into a bigger product.

While it's had others uses over time, you probably know rattan best from those Cesca chairs you've been lusting after and other wicker furniture making waves on Instagram and beyond.

In the context of home décor, rattan translates to a refined kind of nostalgia—it's an elevated take on boho, if you will. You can buy new, but there's nothing like antique rattan to give your home that special touch.

When we asked Poppy about her method of vintage furniture shopping, here's what she had to say:

"I suggest getting inspiration from Instagram or magazines (Architectural Digest Spain is my favourite) and looking for pieces you like, then searching locally for secondhand or similar items—that's how I found my rattan headboard. I saw a similar India Mahdavi piece, which was obviously insanely expensive, but started searching from rattan pieces on Gumtree, Facebook marketplace and in auctions. It didn’t take me long to turn up some gems, including my antique headboard, which was an absolute bargain."

Let us know if you're on board with this vintage rattan furniture trend—and show us your finds on Instagram!

Are you shopping for vintage furniture on Instagram yet? Here are our favourite vintage sellers to follow.