Where to Shop for Antiques and Eclectic Finds: From Charleston to Savannah and Jacksonville
Antiques and vintage pieces are one of my favorite ways to give a home character and keep it from looking as though everything was purchased from the same showroom.
Whether I am searching for a beautiful chest, original artwork, blue-and-white china, an antique rug, brass accessories or simply something unexpected, I love mixing older pieces into rooms with new furnishings.
Fortunately, living in Bluffton puts us within easy day-trip distance of some great antique shopping in Charleston, Savannah and even Jacksonville, plus a few smaller Lowcountry stops closer to home.
But my criteria for a great antique store may be a little different from those of a serious antiques collector.
What Makes an Antique Mall Worth the Drive?
I am an interior designer, so I am primarily looking for things I can actually use in a home.
I want a good mix of furniture and decorative accessories. I want pieces with enough age and character to make a room interesting, but I am not necessarily searching for museum-quality antiques.
I also love a place that is large enough that I can wander around for a couple of hours and get completely lost in it.
And then there is price.
There are beautiful high-end antique stores in Charleston and downtown Savannah, but many are priced accordingly. I enjoy looking through them, but when I am actually sourcing for a home, I am often much more interested in finding an unusual cabinet for several hundred dollars than an important antique chest for several thousand.
I am also a big believer in multitasking when I am driving a couple of hours to shop. If I am making the trip, I will usually figure out what else is nearby and turn it into a full sourcing, shopping and lunch day.
After shopping many of the antique malls and stores throughout this part of the Southeast, I now have some favorites.
Avonlea Antiques & Interiors | Jacksonville, Florida
Tied for #1: my favorite for a mix of furniture and decor, plus size and value
Avonlea has moved straight to the top of my list.
With more than 200 vendors, it is big enough to spend several hours wandering through, but size alone isn’t what makes it my favorite.
The biggest difference I noticed was the quality and consistency of the booths.
Anyone who spends time in antique malls knows the drill. Sometimes you have to walk through booth after booth of things that feel more like leftovers from a garage sale before finding the good stuff.
I found much less of that at Avonlea.
There was booth after booth filled with pieces I could actually imagine using in a home: brass accessories, china, chinoiserie, artwork, antique rugs, silver, interesting lamps, decorative objects and, most importantly for me, a surprising amount of really nice furniture.
And some of the furniture prices were refreshingly reasonable.
I spotted buffets, cabinets and chinoiserie pieces priced in the hundreds rather than thousands. Prices naturally vary from dealer to dealer, but there were enough reasonably priced pieces that I found myself mentally placing furniture into rooms as I walked.
That is exactly what I want from an antique mall.
Avonlea feels curated enough to be inspiring without becoming so high-end that everything feels untouchable. There is a nice mix of genuine antiques, vintage pieces and interiors merchandise, which makes it particularly useful if your goal is decorating a home rather than simply collecting antiques.
And it is enormous.
This is not a 30-minute stop. Give yourself time.
Why Avonlea tops my list: the combination of size, furniture, decorative accessories, quality of the booths and prices that still leave room for the thrill of finding a bargain.
Avonlea was worth the drive due to the size and the consistency of merchandise from vendors, and included a good amount of quality furniture.
Make a Day of Jacksonville
If I am driving from Bluffton to Jacksonville, I am not going to antique shop for a couple of hours and immediately turn around and come home.
There are too many other good stops nearby.
One that I would absolutely add to the itinerary is Le Petit Paris Cafe, just a short drive from Avonlea.
I stumbled onto this one and could not believe how busy it was. It is an adorable French-inspired cafe with a bakery case full of pastries, croissants and other things that make it very difficult to order just one.
If you leave Bluffton early, it makes a great breakfast stop before Avonlea. Or do what I would probably recommend and spend the morning antiquing, then head over for lunch afterward.
It was amazingly hopping when I visited, which is usually a pretty good indication that you have found a local favorite.
And once you are in this part of Jacksonville, you are also a short drive from St. Johns Town Center and the surrounding shopping area, which makes the trip even more worthwhile.
For furniture and interiors, you can hit RH, Arhaus, Pottery Barn, Anthropologie and Ballard Designs. For fashion, there is Nordstrom, plus stores including Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co., Tory Burch and Aritzia, along with dozens of other national retailers.
This is exactly how I like to shop when I am driving farther from home. If I am putting that many miles on the car, I am checking several things off the list.
Jere’s Antiques, Savannah
Tied for #1: my #1 pick for antique furniture
If you are specifically shopping for antique furniture, Jere’s Antiques moves straight to the top of my list. This isn’t really an antique mall where you wander around looking at jewelry, dishes, collectibles and small accessories. This is about furniture. Lots and lots and lots of furniture.
And “lots” is probably an understatement.
Jere’s has been in business since 1976 and occupies a staggering 33,000-square-foot showroom and warehouse in downtown Savannah. Owner Jere Myers maintains his own warehouse in England, with buyers and pickers sourcing furniture throughout Britain as well as Belgium, Holland and France. On my last visit, he told me he has a 40-foot container arriving in Savannah approximately every two weeks.
The result is unlike any other antique store I’ve visited.
You will find secretary desks, drop-leaf tables, dining tables, armoires, buffets, sideboards, chests, bookcases, cabinets, desks and antique chairs in seemingly endless variations. Jere’s specializes heavily in English and Continental furniture, with pieces spanning several centuries. You’ll readily find furniture from the 17th, 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries, and occasionally as far back as the 1500s.
At most antique markets, if I am looking for something specific, say a beautiful antique chest for an entryway, I am happy if I find one or two really good possibilities.
At Jere’s, you may have 100, and that is not an exaggeration.
That’s what makes this place so valuable for me as a designer. If I need a very specific piece of furniture rather than simply hoping to stumble across something interesting, this is where I would start. While you may find some pieces with price tags in the thousands or more, I found a large number of really amazing chests and buffets for less than $1,000.
Give Yourself Plenty of Time
Here’s the catch: Jere’s is overwhelming. I would also recommend avoiding the peak summer months, as the warehouse is not air conditioned. Numerous large fans throughout the store help somewhat, but it’s still going to be quite hot shopping from June through September.
Furniture is packed from floor to ceiling, lined up in rows, tucked behind other pieces and, in places, literally stacked on top of other furniture. There are multiple upstairs areas, and this is important: if you go upstairs using one staircase and think you’ve seen the second floor, you haven’t. There are additional upstairs sections reached through other staircases.
I learned very quickly that if I found something I loved, I needed to remember exactly where I was. Frankly, I would suggest taking a photo and making yourself a little map. It is surprisingly easy to think, I’ll come back to that chest, and then spend the next 20 minutes trying to figure out where on earth you saw it.
This isn’t a beautifully merchandised antique showroom with carefully styled vignettes and wide aisles. It is much closer to an enormous European furniture repository where the fun is in the hunt.
But that’s also its charm.
If Jere’s doesn’t have something close to what you’re looking for, there’s a decent chance it doesn’t exist.
And If It Doesn’t Exist, They May Be Able to Make It
This was the part I didn’t realize until I spoke with Jere.
In addition to antiques, Jere works with craftsmen overseas who produce bespoke furniture using traditional techniques and old timber. Pieces can be commissioned to a client’s requirements, and their craftsmen reproduce fine English and Continental furniture.
So suppose you find the perfect antique buffet, but you really need it six inches longer. Or you love the detailing on a cabinet but need a particular height for your space. Jere explained that they may be able to have a similar piece made to your specifications.
For a designer, that opens up an entirely different set of possibilities.
What You Won’t Find
If you’re looking for rows of vintage accessories, costume jewelry, pottery or little collectibles, this would not be on my list. There is some artwork, mirrors, clocks and decorative pieces, but furniture is overwhelmingly the star here.
That is exactly why I rank Jere’s differently from the other antique markets on my list.
Some places are wonderful because you never know what you’ll discover.
You go to Jere’s because you know what you’re trying to find.
Need an antique secretary? Go to Jere’s.
Need an English chest for an entry? Go to Jere’s.
Need a dining table, armoire, buffet, breakfront or set of antique dining chairs? Go to Jere’s.
Jere’s has one of the largest collections of English and Continental antique furniture in the country, and after walking through all 33,000 square feet of it, that claim isn’t difficult to believe.
My advice: wear comfortable shoes, allow at least a couple of hours, take photos of anything you like, and drop a pin on your mental map before you wander away from it.
For serious antique furniture shopping, Jere’s is my #1 stop.
Mount Pleasant Mall | Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Tied for second: best Charleston-area destination for sheer variety
Mount Pleasant Mall has been one of my longtime favorites and remains my number two choice.
It is another place where you can easily lose track of time. There are a lot of vendors selling a combination of antiques, pre-owned furniture, artwork, jewelry, collectibles and home accessories.
But it is very different from Avonlea.
I would estimate that a significant amount of what you see at Mount Pleasant Mall isn’t actually antique or vintage. There are booths selling new artwork, coastal accessories, oyster-shell pieces, jewelry, clothing and other newer home decor.
Personally, that doesn’t bother me. I am decorating homes, not curating a museum.
There is some nice furniture and I have found plenty of interesting decorative pieces here. It is also one of those stores where inventory changes enough that I can visit repeatedly and still find something new.
The downside is that the booths are much more inconsistent than Avonlea. Some are beautifully curated and filled with things I love. Others require quite a bit more digging.
Still, if I have an afternoon to antique shop in the Charleston area, Mount Pleasant Mall is usually on the list.
Why it ties for second: lots to see, a broad mix of merchandise and enough home furnishings and accessories to make the trip worthwhile, even if much of the inventory is newer.
Terrace Oaks Antique Mall | Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Tied for second: best for consistency and quality
Terrace Oaks Antique Mall ties with Mount Pleasant Mall for my number two spot, though the two earn it in very different ways.
Terrace Oaks has won a Reader’s Choice award for best antique shop in Charleston eight years running, and it is easy to see why once you spend some time there.
Unlike Mount Pleasant Mall, Terrace Oaks doesn’t carry any new merchandise. This is strictly antiques and vintage.
They have a really solid selection of nice furniture, artwork, silver, brass and china.
I always appreciate a store with consistency, and Terrace Oaks has it. Booth after booth felt curated rather than picked over.
Why it ties for second: Mount Pleasant Mall is roughly a third new merchandise, including paintings, local artwork, clothing and home decor, so it has a healthy mix of old and new, though some booths cross into junky-junk territory. Terrace Oaks skips the new stuff entirely and sticks to antiques and vintage, with a consistency across booths that keeps me coming back.
Village Emporium | Mount Pleasant
Best smaller, curated stop
Village Emporium is one of my favorite smaller shops in Mount Pleasant.
It has a much more curated, designer-friendly feel, with a mixture of vintage and antique furniture, rugs, chinoiserie, bamboo pieces, glassware and decorative accessories.
The only reason it doesn’t rank higher for me is simply size.
I can shop Village Emporium pretty thoroughly in about 30 minutes. Compare that with Avonlea or Mount Pleasant Mall, where you can spend hours wandering through aisle after aisle.
Still, I love the merchandise and almost always want to stop when I am nearby.
Antiques of South Windermere | Charleston
Antiques of South Windermere is another good Charleston stop if you prefer a more curated experience rather than the gigantic antique-mall treasure hunt.
You’ll find furniture, art and smaller decorative pieces, and it feels much more like shopping an established antiques store than digging through hundreds of individual vendor booths.
While you are in the shopping center, there is a much smaller antique shop called Well Furnished that is also worth a stop. It is far smaller, with much less inventory, but what they have is high-end, curated statement pieces. If you are looking for a statement chest or a single standout piece of furniture, you may find it here.
How I Make a Charleston or Mount Pleasant Trip Count
Charleston and Mount Pleasant are another good example of my multitasking philosophy.
If I am driving up from Bluffton to antique shop, I will usually add whatever other errands I can’t easily accomplish at home.
For me, that frequently means a stop at Trader Joe’s or Total Wine in Mount Pleasant.
It may not sound particularly glamorous, but it is practical. Antique shopping, client sourcing, Trader Joe’s and a Total Wine run all in one trip? That’s a productive day.
And because Mount Pleasant Mall, Village Emporium and Antiques of South Windermere are all relatively close to other Charleston-area shopping, it is easy to build an entire day around the trip instead of driving two hours simply to visit one store.
Other Antique Shopping in Savannah
Savannah has a completely different antique-shopping scene.
There are wonderful antique dealers throughout the historic district, including some truly beautiful stores. But prime downtown real estate comes at a price, and that is often reflected in the merchandise.
I enjoy looking, but the most expensive antique store isn’t necessarily the most useful one to me as a designer.
In addition to Jere’s for furniture, these are some of my other Savannah stops I find interesting.
Picker Joe’s Antique Mall & Vintage Market
Best for eclectic browsing and nostalgia
Picker Joe’s is simply fun to wander through.
It has a much more eclectic personality than Avonlea, with a combination of antiques, vintage and mid-century furniture, architectural salvage, lighting, artwork, books, collectibles and nostalgic pieces.
For the way I shop, I find that Picker Joe’s leans somewhat more toward collectibles, salvage and nostalgic pieces and less heavily toward the furniture-and-decor combination I found at Avonlea.
There is furniture, and there are always interesting finds, but I haven’t generally found the same number of furniture bargains here.
That said, it is absolutely worth visiting. Half the fun is seeing what is around the next corner.
Picker Joe’s also has a vintage themed coffee and soda shop attached, where you can treat yourself to some ice cream while you browse. This is one I like to bring my husband along to, since it makes for a fun Saturday afternoon date.
Tapley’s Mercantile and Antiques
Good for browsing if you enjoy the hunt
Tapley’s is another good-sized Savannah antique mall.
I find it a little more hit-or-miss.
There are interesting things to find, including furniture, home decor, jewelry and collectibles, but there is more digging involved and less of the consistent furniture selection I am usually hunting for.
Some shoppers absolutely love that type of antique mall.
If your idea of a successful afternoon is poking through packed booths until you discover the one great brass object hiding in the corner, Tapley’s may be exactly your kind of place.
Seventh Heaven Antiques
Best for sterling silver and finer antiques
Seventh Heaven is very different from the big multi-vendor antique malls.
This is where I would go if I were specifically searching for sterling silver, fine antiques or a more important decorative piece.
They are particularly known for sterling silver, and that alone makes the store interesting to browse.
I enjoy stopping here, especially to look at the silver, but I don’t think of Seventh Heaven as primarily a bargain-hunting destination.
The quality is higher, and generally the prices are too.
Clutter | Savannah
Clutter is less of a traditional antique mall and more of a small eclectic furniture consignment and design shop.
The inventory mixes old and new pieces with mid-century, traditional and contemporary furnishings and accessories.
For someone furnishing a home, that can actually make it more useful than a store devoted exclusively to period antiques.
Jones & Bull | Historic Savannah
Jones & Bull is one of the prettier, more curated places to shop in downtown Savannah.
It carries a mix of antique, vintage and newer furniture, rugs, artwork, lighting and decorative pieces.
Because it is curated and located in the Historic District, I think of it differently from a bargain-hunting antique mall. It is worth browsing for inspiration and unusual pieces, especially if you are already downtown.
A Yemassee Detour Worth Making
Yemassee probably isn’t the first place that comes to mind when you think about a day of shopping for a home, but there are two stops here that are worth knowing about.
Lowcountry Living Room | Yemassee
Best small hidden gem
I found Lowcountry Living Room almost by accident.
I was in Yemassee for an estate sale being held in the adjoining building and wandered into Lowcountry Living Room while I was there.
What an adorable little store.
It is much smaller than the antique malls on this list, so I probably wouldn’t make a special drive to Yemassee solely to shop here. But I was impressed by the quality of what they had.
There were some really interesting furniture pieces along with art, accessories and decor, and the overall selection felt thoughtfully chosen rather than junky.
That matters to me.
A small shop filled with 20 things I would actually put in a room is often more interesting than a huge antique mall filled with hundreds of things I have to sift through.
If you happen to be in Yemassee, Lowcountry Living Room is absolutely worth stopping into.
And there is another reason to make the detour.
Pair It with Fletcher’s & Co. Rugs
Right around the corner is Fletcher’s & Co., another one of my favorite resources, especially if you are shopping for rugs.
Fletcher’s is housed in an old train station and has a huge selection of Turkish, Persian and Oriental rugs at surprisingly good price points.
If you are looking for a more traditional rug, including Persian, Oriental or Oushak-style options, this is a particularly good place to browse.
It has become one of my go-to resources for clients looking for those more traditional styles.
I have used Fletcher’s with clients, and one of the things I especially appreciate is being able to see large rugs in person. Rugs can look completely different once you get them out of a showroom and into a home.
For anyone who loves antiques and interiors, combining Lowcountry Living Room and Fletcher’s makes Yemassee a much more worthwhile little shopping excursion.
Lowcountry Living Room may take only a short time to browse, but add a stop at Fletcher’s and suddenly you have a very good reason to get off the interstate.
A Couple More Favorites Closer to Home
Beaufort Antique Mall | Beaufort
Beaufort Antique Mall on Lady’s Island is an interesting local stop, although I don’t consider it much of a furniture destination.
I find it more useful for smaller decorative pieces such as brass, pottery, china and glassware.
There is some digging involved, and some booths are stronger than others, but if I am already in Beaufort I enjoy stopping in to see what has arrived.
Coastal Exchange | Bluffton
Coastal Exchange is another good local resource, particularly because it isn’t limited to antiques.
The store carries a combination of furniture, art, lighting, vintage pieces, antiques, Mid-Century Modern items, local artwork and newer home decor.
That blend makes it useful when you are furnishing a room and simply looking for something interesting rather than insisting that every piece have a particular pedigree.
My Favorites at a Glance
If I were choosing where to spend an afternoon based purely on how I like to shop, this is how I would break it down:
- #1 (tie): Avonlea Antiques & Interiors, Jacksonville, best mix of furniture and decor
- #1 (tie): Jere’s Antiques, Savannah, best for furniture
- Runner-up (tie): Mount Pleasant Mall and Terrace Oaks Antique Mall
- Best small hidden gem: Lowcountry Living Room, Yemassee
- Best bonus stop for rugs: Fletcher’s & Co., Yemassee
- Best smaller curated Mount Pleasant shop: Village Emporium
- Best eclectic Savannah browsing: Picker Joe’s
- Best for sterling silver and finer antiques: Seventh Heaven
- Best if you like to dig: Tapley’s Mercantile
- Best local Beaufort stop for small finds: Beaufort Antique Mall
Why Avonlea Is Now My Favorite
The best antique mall for me isn’t necessarily the one with the oldest or rarest merchandise.
It is the place that makes me want to keep turning corners.
I want enough furniture to start imagining pieces in actual rooms. I want tables covered in brass, porcelain and china. I want artwork leaning against walls, rugs tucked into corners and a cabinet I didn’t know I needed until I saw it.
I also want to occasionally look at a price tag and think, wait, that’s all they’re asking for that?
And I want enough inventory that what I thought would be a quick stop somehow turns into several hours.
Of all the antique malls I’ve visited within day-trip distance of Bluffton, Avonlea currently does that better than any of them.
The extra drive to Jacksonville is worth it, especially when you add Le Petit Paris and St. Johns Town Center and turn the trip into a full shopping day.
If you are building or furnishing a home and want help mixing antiques, vintage finds and new furnishings, Bluff & Bay Interiors offers interior design, styling and sourcing throughout Bluffton, Hilton Head, Beaufort, Savannah and the surrounding Lowcountry.