One of the Greenpoint waterfront's newest additions is Le Grenier, a boutique focused on industrial-aged gems. The boutique is your classic Brooklyn antique store with a bit of morbid side. Imagine something a single sailor might own in a ghost story from the turn of the century. Don't get us wrong, creepy is not a bad thing. In fact, for a shop owner to be true to this senablity is a rarity. Having a clear vision and fulfilling it takes strength--something that Le Gernier extrudes.
Address:
19 Greenpoint Avenue
Brooklyn NY 11222
United States
Neighborhood: Greenpoint
Metro Area: New York
Website: http://www.legrenierny.com
That's not a typo. Doshaburi Doshaburi is the second incarnation of Doshaburi, our favorite Spanish avant-garde fashion shop. Doshaburi the sequel is a more sophisticated, minimal take on fashion, with some to die for pieces from avant-garde fashion legends and newcomers alike.
Ann Demeulemeester jacket
Ann Demeulemeester belt
Christian Wijnants knit dress
Petar Petrov sweater
Ute Ploier scarf
New to the guide by way of reader suggestion is Wok in Milan (and online!). The store explores the artier side of fashion from energetic T-shirts by Kokon to Zai to one of a kind jewelry like a wooden bead necklace by Lidja Kolovart (above).
Address:
Viale Col Di Lana 5a
20136 Milan
Italy
Neighborhood: Porta Ludovica
Metro Area: Milan
Website: http://www.wok-store.com
For some time, the rack or two of menswear inside Project No. 8 has been a source of some of the most considered yet creative men's clothing in New York. From these relatively humble beginnings came No. 8b, the Project No. 8 team's ambitious standalone men's boutique. The designers represented at shop share an almost obsessive attention to materials and craftsmanship. But creativity is also of import as each finds a way to subtly subvert stodgy menswear norms. Also in store are what could be considered projects No. 8c and No. 8d--namely a line well-made basics developed by the store under the label Various Projects and a collaboration with furniture manufacturer e15 to represent a rotating selection of the company's line.
Maryam Nassir Zadeh is a gallery like boutique just on the outskirts of the guided-tour heavy Lower East Side. It's the kind of space you have to live in New York to know about, or perhaps get lucky and pass by on happenstance.
The store blurs the line between a boutique and a gallery. For instance, the cover of their website presents a gorgeous glass sculpture by Philip Low. Clothing for men and women hang adjacent to modernist sculpture, while tables of sculptural jewelry sit alongside vintage accessories and ephemera.
The artistry of the boutique reminds us of De Vera in Soho which similar to Maryam Nassir Zadeh sells a variety of one-of-a-kind curiosities. But what makes Maryam Nassir Zadeh unlike anything we have seen in New York is that they are able to bring this kind of high-end curatorial eye to the space but make it contemporary at the same time. These are not priceless Italian baroque church relics--the items sold in Maryam Nassir Zadeh are very present, very relevant, and very in-touch if not a year or two ahead of their time. You can feel Zadeh's direct connection to store with her textiles that fill the space with warmth and dismiss the conservative ultra modernist appeal of bigger stores like Jil Sander. This is not your grandmother's modernist boutique.
Some between the rarefied gowns that once might have once traipsed across a red carpet to the plucky dresses that spent most their time on '70s shag carpeting is where Vagabond NYC has found its niche. Not strictly designer vintage and definitely not flea market finds, the New York based online boutique presents an exquisitely styled collection of vintage dresses and separates from designers famous and forgotten. While a few pieces hover into the price brackets of designer vintage retailers, most are only a modest splurge for a very wearable piece of fashion history.
Geoffrey Beene
Rifat Ozbek
Eden & Eden is not, it turns out, redundant. There really are two of them. There's a sophisticated Eden that travels the Europe and collects notable design objects and jewelry, even tracking down one off vintage items. And the quirky Eden that injects a bit of humor and quirk into the collection. The result is a shop that curates a truly unique and cosmopolitan (with a particular emphasis on England) selection of home accessories, tableware, textiles, jewelry and clothing with nary a hint of stuffiness.
Address:
560 Jackson Street
San Francisco CA 94133
United States
Neighborhood: Embarcadero
Metro Area: San Francisco
Website: http://www.edenandeden.com
A good bit before Ikea wandered its way there, Erie Basin had already found a loyal following in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The one-of-a-kind shop scours the country near and far to find chic, moody, and yes a bit eerie examples of jewelry and objects from the 18th and early 19th centuries. More recently they've been adding modern collections that have the same Gothic feel as their antique finds.
We've been admiring the store from afar for well over a year, ogling their impeccably curated online shop. We finally had a chance to visit the shop for ourselves to add it to the New York shopping guide.
Ogle the online shop yourselves but, if you do get the opportunity, we encourage you to get out to Red Hook and see the real thing.
"Zsa Zsu is a feel good online vintage store for people with a vintage heart and a sense of humor." The Belgium online vintage store is the latest additon to our guide.
A Greek boutique with a penchant for Danish designers has a new fan in an American website and so goes the post-Internet, global fashion marketplace. Suggested to us a week or two ago, Nine Below distinguishes itself with a moody selection of dresses, knitwear, separates and accessories from smaller international designers, particularly Danish ones. Bruuns Bazaar, BZR and Day Birger et Milkkelsen were all new labels for us, but we're definitely liking what we're seeing right so far.
Before Totokaelo came Totokaelo.com the online shop and before that came Impulse the more casually minded sister store. The history of its rise runs parallel with the rise of a more fashion friendly Seattle. Now, in the gallery like space built out using reclaimed and salvaged materials the journey nears completion. On the long racks of clothing are represented several world-class avant-garde designers that are impossible to find in other Seattle boutiques. But name dropping is not Totokaelo's game. Each collection carried is boiled down to essential looks that are distinctive without looking overdone; that can worn to the point of being worn out. Neutral tones and subtly stylish silhouettes abound.
Address:
913 Western Avenue
Seattle WA 98103
United States
Neighborhood: Downtown
Metro Area: Seattle
Website: http://www.totokaelo.com
Bigger closets or a leaky roof rank high in reasons we would be compelled to move. Komakino in Vancouver dutifully moves every so often to stay true to its "guerrilla store" concept. Of course, moving a bunch of times is not enough. The shop also carries an astonishingly dead on assortment of men's clothing and accessories. European and Japanese avant-garde standard bearers form the foundation of the shop, while obscure labels just finding their niche add a bit of intrigue and restlessness.
If you can't seek out the physical store, Komakino displays all their inventory online and takes orders via e-mail.
By way of a a read suggestion Komakino is the latest shop in the guide.
Beyond the designers sending their creations down the London Fashion Week runways and getting tons of press are any number of talented designers that have yet to be widely recognized. Consider it Beyond The Valley's mission to foster and support these up and coming names. Clothing and accessories for women and men fill the bright, cheery store. The looks are more artful than avant-garde, with dresses and T-shirts using distinctive prints and jewelry made of unusual materials. Beyond The Valley's namesake label is not to be missed, offering pieces that are as fun and charming as we could have hoped.
Address:
2 Newburgh Street
London W1F 7RD
United States
Neighborhood: Carnaby
Metro Area: London
Website: http://www.beyondthevalley.com
Imagine a museum where patrons are able to pick up any piece they like straight of the wall. The Design Museum shop provides as close to this experience as possible. The museum features exhibitions around contemporary design, be it industrial design, textiles, architecture or typography. Be it that many of the exhibitions where made to be sold, the museum shop becomes an ever revolving emporium of good design. Watches and bags, tea towels and tableware, gadgets and kitchen tools will intrigue and delight.
Address:
28 Shad Thames
London SE1 2YD
United States
Neighborhood: Southwark
Metro Area: London
Website: http://www.designmuseumshop.com
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