There’s no place like a vintage home. It's easy to transform your dwelling and we show you how.

Retro is so hot right now. Old news? Yes, but that’s why we love it. We’ve always had an obsession with the past, adopting feelings of nostalgia for times we’ve never even experienced but which have been romanticised to us through films, plays, fashion and music.

The international popularity of vintage fairs and shops (as well as our own car boot sales and flea markets – such as the Sunday morning market in Birgu) is evidence that, for many, capturing this nostalgia in our homes has become a passion. Vintage pieces tell a story, they personalise a home, and the search for treasures is even more fun than regular shopping. Sure, it gives us the same feeling of elation as regular shopping on the high street, but with just that extra feeling of pride (smugness) because, oh wait, it’s a one of a kind! But do remember, vintage means classic – not chipped, broken or smelly.

Here’s some simple ways to add a spot of vintage to a home:

• Choose the era that’s right for you – do you like the kitchy 50s, the mod-look 60s or the bohemian 70s?

• Of course, trying to furnish your entire home from one specific era can become quite tricky, so have a go at mixing old with new. This could be crockery picked up from a car boot sale, laid out on crisp white lines; or modern frames enveloping historic prints.

• Frame old posters, photographs or clippings from old fashion magazines and hang them on the walls.

• If you have a thing for vintage, chances are you’ve already got a few special pieces. Whatever you do, don’t hide them away! Whether they’re handbags from the 50s, silk scarves handed down from your nanna or antique silver spoons you’ve picked up on your travels, find ways of displaying them. Aside from anything else, they will make great conversation starters!

• Instead of wallpapering an entire room with a pattern that a granny would pick out, chose a pretty wallpaper and make it into a piece of art by framing it. That’s much more subtle.

• Old china serves brilliantly as vases for flowers.

• Lastly, vintage biscuit tins are beautiful and super useful. They don’t have to hold biscuits either. They could hold crackers, or even oatcakes. And you could use them to house everything from sweets to your knitting needles. There are no rules.