Furniture and the comfort it provides has become integral part of our everyday life, but in the past things were different. People of all social classes started buying their own chairs in the 16th century. Before that chairs were a luxury for the aristocracy. The convertible couch was created by Italian Bernard Castro, who immigrated in 1919 to the United States. In the country of unlimited possibilities, in 1931, Castro created this familiar part of home coziness.

We have met Pavlina Desheva and Mila Grigorova - two young women who have the hobby of restoring and preserving old furniture. Milla Grigorova told us more about her passion:

“We are only looking for furniture that has history and that is why we need to be quite active. First the pieces of furniture must have some value and restoration must be possible. The story behind the furniture also gives added value. My favorite furniture is a marquisette, used by women in aristocratic families to sit on while they do their makeup. It has no backrest and is the exact height that lets you see your face in the mirror without hunching.”

Although restoration is just a hobby for the two girls who also work in web design and consulting business, they are becoming more and more popular among people who repair their homes and want to get rid of old furniture. With their popularity growing, Pavlina and Mila hired several warehouses, so they could store all the furniture. Some people find it difficult to separate with old pieces of furniture, because they belonged to their ancestors and many memories are linked with them, such as protecting children and grandchildren from hitting into them and stories related to loved ones. But by visiting many addresses the two women discovered the oldest pieces in their collection.

“The oldest pieces of furniture we have are several chairs, with interesting wooden elements on them. They were produced back in the 20s of the last century in the Bulgarian Rose furniture factory, which was located in Kazanlak,” Pavlina Desheva told us.

During the times of socialism furniture production in Bulgaria was a monopoly distributed among several large state-owned companies and the choice was very limited. Despite their monotonous design, these pieces of furniture also carry their charm and can still be seen in many Bulgarian homes.

English: Alexander Markov