Nostalgia wins, okay?

HF #227 | Christine Stoman

A younger version of me used to work in the museum world. Specifically, cultural history museums, where one can get totally lost in bygone eras. What fun to watch my colleagues furnish old house museums with period pieces. The best part of all was that they could also choose older ornaments, utensils or fabrics because these could have belonged to the mother or grandmother of the family who had inhabited that home. Three generations’ worth of lovelies!

There is something about vintage stuff that triggers feel-good hormones. Nostalgia is sheer emotion, quotes Sam Jacobs on spreadgreatideas.org.: "Nostalgia is a haunting melody that transcends time, weaving a bittersweet symphony of memories that tug at the heartstrings of our existence." Perhaps that is why so many folks like to interweave older items with modern ones in their décor.

The words antique, vintage and retro are often bandied about. What is the difference? Antique items are generally 100 years or older, representing a long history and often showcasing craftsmanship. Vintage items are younger, typically 20 to 99 years old, evoking a sense of nostalgia and representing a specific era. Objects deemed to be retro are modern pieces that have been inspired by styles from earlier eras, like the 1950 fridges.

Nostalgia makes one do strange things, like cherishing the wooden spoon that your father bought specifically for stirring his plunger coffee – and now, 25 years later, you are using that same brown spoon for the same (sole) reason. It’s the connection that counts.

Then there is the pensioner who prefers using a 3-plate gas stove because her mother used it and it’s more economical than her modern electric stove. That’s the point where nostalgia and frugality meet.

And what about those people who love to rebuild old motor cars and their hobbies become the passion of annual onlookers? This year alone, there are practically a hundred classic car shows planned all over the globe, with fascinating names such as Goodwood Revival, Concours d'Eleganza Villa d'Este and Auto Moto D'Epoca. The Goodwood Revival, we are told by AI, recreates the golden age of motor racing with vintage cars from 1948 to 1966, period dress, and a festive atmosphere.

It’s the period dress, that stately elegance, that lends a particular charm to such events. Dressing up for a fantasy world connects one to that time in history but also allows one to escape the current reality. Imagine leaving the mundane and inhabiting a different time and place, even if only imaginatively.

The human psyche loves the bitter-sweet wanderings into the past. Some publishers have cottoned on to this by recreating our childhood books and toys and selling them to gullible Baby Boomers: for example the remakes of Enid Blyton’s Noddy books and even poor Winnie the Pooh who has been misquoted often since that copyright lapsed. Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit dates from 1902 and has seen numerous adaptations into touch-and-feel books and movies, but thankfully her text has remained intact. Buy the antique books, or display the revamped ones in a minimalistic, modern bookcase.

Let us not forget the toy trains of the fifties and sixties. You could add those to your décor, sit back and enjoy the conversations they evoke.