Moving into a student flat ain’t glamorous. The carpet smelled like beer, but we dragged in whatever we could find. No student can afford Mayfair prices, so we grabbed second-hand. Another dragged a chair from Camden. The colours clashed, but that’s why it worked. Chairs with scars feel stronger, armchairs for sale and students get that instinctively. I’ve hosted ten people on one sagging retro sofa, retro style armchair and every time it felt right. Every warehouse flat tells the same story, and Smithers down in Shoreditch knows it.

One afternoon I stumbled into Smithers, and everything felt alive, not plastic. we were broke students, but it’s the pride of the living room. Ask around and you’ll hear it. it’s half the fun. Retro sofas don’t care if you spill. Catalogue gloss falls apart fast, but vintage carries weight. Every scratch adds more story. When you’re moving out, the stress disappears, but you remember the sofa. When you think furniture, skip the flat-pack rubbish.

Choose a funky accent chair, and make it part of your story.