Photograph by Sarah McCosham
On the day after Valentine’s Day 2026, Sweethearts Vintage hosted its first pop up event in Northside and through word of mouth, charming marketing, and smart collaborating (Young Buck Deli and Cafe Elliott set up shop in the warehouse entry—I fangirled over seeing Top Chef’s Caitlin and Brian Young), I found myself in line with scores of other MCM lovers, ready to shop.
I ended up chatting with the owners while waiting for the room to clear out a bit, setting my sights on a copper coat rack behind the payment booth that would end up coming home with me. If you ever go vintage shopping with me, know I will always pick the largest, most awkward items of furniture, first thing. Luckily, the event curators/masterminds Travis and Chelsea Ayers helped me disassemble it for easy transport in my 2009 Prius.
Sweethearts Vintage feels like the set of The Brady Bunch or Mad Men: picture a large warehouse space filled with sofas and tables, lamps and buffets, laid out like the showroom of a high-end furniture store. You could easily redo an entire family room with these carefully curated pieces—all classic, high-quality, competitively priced furnishings from the ’60s to the ’80s, with some ’90s thrown in for good measure. It’s like going into IKEA, but instead of furniture you have to put together that has a limited life span, you have ready-to-use pieces that have lived a life, yes, but were built to last.
They really don’t make things like they used to.
Chelsea told me she’s always collected vintage furniture. “The collection started to outgrow the house and around that time, we had our daughter Frankie [who is now 4]. My restaurant hours weren’t working with her schedule so I started to sell some of what I was buying…and it was selling fast!”
Photograph by Sarah McCosham
It was at that point she realized there were lots of people who liked the same “quirky stuff” she did. Vintage shopping absolutely has all-ages appeal; in my own adventures I’ve found myself in the company of teens, twentysomethings, boomers, and every generation in between.
Right now, Travis and Chelsea’s plan is to keep Sweethearts Vintage a monthly event versus setting up a brick-and-mortar space. “It gives us time to fill the space with affordable, cool pieces and it helps create that anticipation and overall unique shopping experience for everyone,” Chelsea explained.
She referenced our conversation from the event: “When you said ‘I do a lot of vintage shopping, but [this] was different from anything I’ve ever experienced, in all the best ways!’—that’s the exact shopping experience I want people to have! I want [people] to leave with something cool and be excited for the next sale.”
Speaking of the next sale…mark your calendar for the next Sweethearts Vintage event: Sunday, March 29, at 1645 Blue Rock St. in Northside. See you there!
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