Circa

This is what I would classify as a labyrinthian mind map of an antique geek’s day dream. Walking through this place reminds me of Surrealist painting come to life. Circa has a plethora of odds and ends strewn throughout several different rooms. They have everything from a collection of gently loved retro furniture, jewelry, rugs, artwork, a small bazaar of electronics, records, and an impressive amount of kitchenware that would make a retro inspired kitchenista giddy with joy.
There is stuff every which way you look that it doesn’t require you to have any rhyme or reason to the direction in which you start. You really can meander through here for a pretty decent amount of time. The smaller items such as the kitchenware, bits and pieces of art, textiles, etc., are exactly the price point that make sense. On the other hand the larger furniture pieces, and rugs, aren’t exactly affordable for the average buyer. Bear in mind this is a place classified as an antique shop and the cost of items reflect that.
I would recommend this place for those that are looking for a unique gift for that quirky friend in your life or even a funky new-​old accent for your place. I would probably continue thrifting for furniture however, as some of these pieces while definitely very cool, are far above the typical bargain shopper’s palate. This shop is definitely sui generis, and if you’re looking for that, you’ll love this!

This antique shop is awesome. It’s gigantic (multiple rooms) and stuffed with stuff, so there’s always plenty to look at, and they seem to get new things quite regularly. They have a great furniture selection, and a good policy for buying large pieces.
I don’t always find something I’m dying to have, but it’s always a lot of fun to look around, and I’ve found some great items here and there. Great shop. Some fun quirky stuff to see as well (ie. box of arms).

Wonderful place to scour for that needed item, or just to wander, waiting for something to jump out at you — you really never know what you will find.
I’ve found the prices very reasonable, and they seem to be continuously expanding.
Great place to spend an hour with coffee and other snacks right across the street. Go!

This place has good selection. If you dig around you can find some nice items. The furniture selection is pretty good as well I like it.

Hands down best antiques store in Charlottesville, with good reason. They get a TON of awesome items in. Wide variety from cheaper, eclectic pieces to more expensive heirloom furniture. And reasonably priced to boot. Have yet to find something here that isn’t negotiable or priced to sell. They know how to move items and what to move, and it shows. Impossible to beat so far!

pros: Sweet store. The main store (out of three total) is huge and filled with knickknacks and furniture. There are separate rooms for old electronics and books and things.
cons: Walking around will take you weeks. You’ll have to dig a lot. Some of the things are on the pricier end.
overall: I feel like it usually is worth it when you spend the time to look for something nice. You usually always find it. But then you have to pay for it.

When I moved here I had absolutely no furniture. I went to Circa to look at dining room tables… and wound up buying my entire 2 bedroom apartment’s worth of furniture! They had same day delivery for a $ 25 charge. This meant that they delivered literally everything to my house for $ 25 and brought it up to the apartment (although we of course tipped the guys also). The furniture was very affordable, which meant that I had money left over from my budget afterwards, and the staff was so nice and patient. It was also pretty cool that the owner works there and was able to tell us where she got some of the pieces and the history before them.
I did notice that the very front room on Allied tends to be more expensive and have more of the collectible pieces. I got almost everything I bought from the back room on Allied… but there is another room across the parking lot and a lot of the new arrivals go in there.
The one thing is that I think the store can be hit or miss depending on how busy they’ve been and when the last auction was. One of my friends went a week later, during student move in, and didn’t find anything she wanted.
Overall, I HIGHLY recomend this place!

Like any other used furniture place, luck will drive most of your experience… you either find something you need/​want or you don’t. The odds are good, tho b/​c they have 3 huge spaces spread around the warehouse shopping area and they’re constantly unloading new truckloads of stuff. If you see something you want, BUY IT, else it will be gone when you return tomorrow.
But even if you don’t score, the people who work here make your trip worthwhile. Are they a family? I don’t know but they act like it: they kinda don’t want to be there but they have to b/​c mom said, but while they’re there, they do their best to pleasantly help you get things taken care of.
I’ve seen people get mildly annoyed because there’s no one at their fingertips to answer a question but, c’mon, there are 3 huge rooms that can’t all be staffed with a thumb-​twidling associate. You have to work as a team and walk over to the main room with your query. They seem to somehow have every piece stored in memory…
So, anyway, this is a good place for funky, solid furniture & vintage kitchen stuff you do need and nicknacks & doodads that you don’t need. You don’t have to take the furniture home right away– you have 3 days to wrangle your friend’s pickup (how hard is that in Va?). Or, they deliver for 25 bones.