English Salvage

Welcome to English Salvage, the largest and most comprehensive design and architectural resource in the UK supplying homeowners, architects, design professionals and the movie industry - with a reputation for the unusual, beautiful and rare plus being on-trend when it comes to interior design. Formed in 2003, we've grown year on year to become pre-eminent in our field. With clients as diverse as English Heritage; The National Trust; Disney; Fox Films; Ralph Lauren; Jack Wills; Hollister's; The White Stuff; Jamie Oliver Restaurants to name a few, we now ship all over the world.

Stone windows, mullions and transoms can date back to the 10th Century, and even earlier, though the ones we have in stock aren't quite that old! The type of salvaged stone window designs we have for sale vary from, simpler, chunkier frames to larger Gothic windows with beautiful tracery detailing (which allows windows to be larger by spreading the weight of the load above).

Its unlikely you will ever find another source of such a diverse and extensive range of reclaimed doors. We usually have over 2000 in stock at any time and are currently the only supplier to offer the possibility of searching for door by size. We have everyday Victorian and Edwardian reclaimed four panels doors, centuries old ledge and brace doors from old cottages, Victorian glazed doors with lovely stained glass, 1 over 3 panel doors from the 1930s, elegant antique six panel Georgian doors. We also have a huge stock of amazing unusual doors, antique church doors, old shop doors, fire station and prison doors, doors from monasteries and castles, massive doors from old barns.

Our range of antique lighting is incredibly diverse, from elegant 19th Century crystal chandeliers to funky 1960s floor lights. We buy and sell the lights that we love the most: reclaimed aluminium and brass ships lights, flamboyant rococo ormolu wall lights, holophane and opaline ceiling globes, chrome and glass Deco lights, opaque 19th Century alabaster and Vaseline glass, Victorian and Arts and Crafts stained glass hall lanterns, battered industrial enamel, vintage architects anglepoise lamps, Gothic church lights, Art Nouveau torchieres with flambeau glass and over the top cascades of crystal glass chandeliers.

We have an eclectic mix of roofing and guttering materials ranging from ornate finials, beautiful old weather vanes, decorated lead and cast iron rain hoppers, in various shapes and sizes, to roof vents and fluted Victorian down pipes.

We have over 700 reclaimed glazed doors in stock at any one time. These doors are highly sought after, with the current emphasis on maximising light within a house. There are many different styles of glazed door found in British architecture, so we have attempted to sub-divide the glazed door category according to style. Glazed doors really came to prominance in the 19th Century with a number of different styles emerging.

The earliest known examples of baths were found in Crete, and date from the mid-2nd Century BC. For many centuries, the most common type were public bath houses, rather than individual baths or bathtubs. When the links between dirt and the spread of disease started to become clear, the use of soap became widespread and, in turn, mass marketed. During this time individual bathtubs, located in people's homes, also rose in popularity dramatically. In the early 20th Century large soap manufactures started sponsoring radio dramas for publicity, this is where we get the term 'soap opera' from today.

We don't usually stock ordinary bricks and roof tiles, but limit ourselves to more unusual and decorative architectural building materials. We usually have a good selection of Victorian decorative bricks, roof finials and antique stone steps. The Victorians just loved design, even chimney pots were created with decoration in mind as well as the prosaic job of getting smoke out of the house. We keep a good selection of these, from louvered pots, square Georgian pots, so called long-toms, bishop hats, crown tops and every other imaginable style of chimney pot.

English Salvage sells a wide range of reclaimed furniture for commercial and domestic use. We usually have a range of tables in stock from scrubbed pine farmhouse tables, elegant regency consoles, Indian antique thakat or chakki coffee tables, large oak french tables, old pub tables and repurposed industrial tables. We also have a range of old dressers, shelf units and similar items perfect for a retail environment. We import a lot of Indian antique furniture, often elaborately carved.

We have over 2000 reclaimed internal doors in stock, probably the largest amount in the UK. The most common types are plank doors (mostly 1700 to 1900), Georgian 6 panel doors, Victorian four panel doors, then a huge variation of styles from the 20th Century, including the ubiquitous one over three panel door from the 1930s. Inbetween these main styles there are a large number of different variants. We source a good number of doors from France and other countries, and we just love the style and scale of the French doors in particular.

English Salvage always have a good stock of original Victorian cast iron lamposts of all shapes and sizes, with old and new copper lamp tops to match. Antique wall lights are harder to find, and good quality examples command high prices. Many of the reclaimed ships lights we sell are suitable for outside use. Since electrical regulations change all the time, customers are advised to check with their electrician as to a light's suitability for any particular situation. Also included in this category are porch lanterns, although these must be kept under cover, out of the elements.

We always have for sale a wide range of reclaimed double doors, ranging from massive oak or mahogany grand entranceways, to modest pairs of narrow pine doors suitable for cupboards or narrow doorways. Many of the old double doors we buy come from Victorian schools, churches and other public buildings. We also buy beautifully detailed doors, pine and oak, from France and further afield, as far as Egypt. Interior Designers are our main clients for the larger doors, which go into shop fits, restaurants and pubs.

Antique or salvaged garden furniture come in all shapes and sizes, from the more obvious vintage metal chairs and tables, to tables made from salvaged agricultural machinery, ornamental stone capitals or old rivetted water tanks. We particularly love antique wrought and cast iron French cafe chairs, elegant wirework, old German bierkeller slatted table and chair sets, vintage shabby aluminium and timeless oak garden sets. As well as old garden furniture, we also sell a range of quality reproduction garden sets.

The Front Door is an important component in setting the architectural style of a house, it is the door over which the most attention is lavished. The entranceway provides a statement about what will be found within, it should combine function, maintaining security and keeping out the elements, with style and beauty. External doors usually have bolder moulding and often have heavy moulded. External doors are usually made of pine, but oak and other hardwoods are not uncommon. We always have a good selection of reclaimed front and back doors, ranging from rare medieval studded oak doors, lovely Victorian doors with elaborate stained glass, utilitarian old plank doors from rural farmhouses and massive double doors from mansions and public buildings.

Antique benches come in all shapes, sizes and materials. One of the nicest benches we ever had was a stone bench converted from a massive 10ft ancient limestone trough, sitting on stone staddle stones. Typical English 19th Century strapwork benches always look good in British gardens and they last well. Some of the finest wrought iron benches are from the Regency period, with delicate strapwork, often curved and reeded, these are unfortunately rare. We always have a good selection of Victorian cast iron benches, the best known are the Coalbrookdale series of benches from their Ironbridge works - the Grape and Serpent pattern, their Lily and Nasturtium patterns.

English Salvage stock a variety of reclaimed gate piers, posts or pillars. The two most common types we get are stone or cast iron gate posts. The stone posts we get are usually one piece stone pillars, usually with a shaped top. These antique stone posts come from areas where stone is abundant and of a good quality, such as parts of Shropshire and Yorkshire. They are usually over 100 years old and sometimes a lot older. The other type of posts we commonly get are single piece cast iron pillars, either Victorian or from the first part of the 20th Century.

We have seen a resurgence of interest in reclaimed windows, particularly in 19th Century cast iron windows, Crittall casement windows, gothic stone church windows, old reclaimed wooden casement windows and Georgian fanlights. A lot of the time these windows are put to alternative uses, such as turning Victorian cast iron mill windows into mirrors, using arched stone church windows to recreate follies, vintage pine or oak shutters to decorate walls and shabby wooden windows to partition big commercial spaces.

Reclaimed fireplace tile panel inserts in different colours, styles and patterns. Usually of the Victorian or Edwardian era, these were commonly made to fit with antique tiled fireplaces, which generally have 5 tiles on each side, typical tiled fire inserts can be found on our website here.

The use of metal railing to provide a fence dates back to the 18th Century in Britain. Most of the early railings were quite simple affairs made from wrought iron, such as the 'Estate Railing' seen around many large estates, which comprises 4 to 6 horizontal bars of wrought iron with interspersed vertical struts, these often date back to the Georgian period. The first recorded use of cast iron for fencing dates to 1710, when ornate railing was commissioned for St Pauls Cathedral. The process of casting iron allows for decorative shapes to be produced relatively cheaply and by the 19th Century most fine houses in the major cities were fronted with runs of ornate railing.

English Salvage supply architectural elements that can lift an interior setting, ranging from the bizarre to the grand. We avoid utilitarian furniture, but love items that are different, beautifully crafted or elaborately architectural. You may find a late Victorian railway clock, a massive pair of gothic candlesticks, a 19th century jelly mould, a first world war propeller, a vintage mannequin or early dentist chair.

British gardeners have a wonderful tradition of finding new and interesting containers for plants. We probably sell more planters than any other garden item. These vary from the humble vintage flower pot, to massive cast iron cauldrons, re-purposed from previous industrial use. Other types of planters that we have for sale include elegant antique French cast iron planters; weathered old composition stone planters; ancient stone pots; old rivetted galvanised tanks in all shapes and sizes; lead planters and rare Georgian lead cisterns; the strangely named 'copper coppers'- rivetted old copper water boilers; weird and wonderful chimney pots in hundreds of different designs; old hayracks, which customers often use with liners to grow plants on walls; hanging baskets; old Victorian wirework; and the list goes on and on.

We usually have stock of new, well made oak plank internal doors and sometimes one off craftsman made doors in different styles, constructed from pine and oak. These come unpainted and ready for stain/wax etc.

Vintage cast iron radiators provide a decorative dimension to heating and for many a nostalgic reminder of school days. Old cast radiators supply more heat than is commonly thought as they emit radiant heat as well as convective heat which means that they heat objects in a room, not just the air. We carry a massive stock of the classic styles, from ideal four column radiators, princess and duchess radiators, so-called school radiators and a range of other unusual decorative styles. We always have several hundred reclaimed radiators in stock.

We buy a lot of doors every year and get to reclaim door knobs and other door furniture from them, including locks, latches, hooks and escutcheons. We also stock a wide range of quality solid brass, nickel plated and wrought iron door knobs, hooks, latches and hinges, faithfully manufactured by hand to replicate the original Georgian regency and Victorian patterns. Cast iron brackets are another speciality, both reclaimed and cast iron reproductions based on the original Victorian patterns. We use a local traditional locksmith to restore original 19th Century rim locks and rim latches.

Industrial items are usually items cleared from mid 1900s factories, as the golden age of manufacture drew to a close in Britain and old factories were pulled down or converted to housing. We also find items in Eastern Europe, often from Soviet era factories. Most of these industrial items were very solidly built from metal and quite often galvanised so they have outlived the premises from which they came. Typical items in this category are old rivetted water tanks, cast iron machine bases, factory chairs, old enamel lights and pigeon holes or other storage solutions.