Shopping in Victoria
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Manon Bis
Homewares that come with loads of French flair. The range takes in both traditional and contemporary tastes. It also stocks cult canvas plimsoles by Bensimon.
reviewed
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Provider
If the term ‘Air Max’ flips your burger, you’ll love this trainer temple that stocks Nike to New Balance and what’s known as street apparel.
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Eastern Market
Fashion maven territory with a deconstructed Euro-Tokyo edge. The space is itself an attraction; it’s a 19th-century chapel with the owner’s inimitable additions.
reviewed
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Kronan
Scando-style town-cycling fans delight, Kronan is here. Test drive one in your chosen colour or just marvel at the beautiful function-dictated design. Great for a bike-chat too.
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Chambermaid
An inspired retailer. High St, Armadale: once the place to shop for a chesterfield or bid at Sotheby's, picturesque High St's core demographic has recently got a whole lot hipper.
reviewed
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E
Greville Records
One of the last bastions of the ‘old’ Greville St, this fabulous music shop has such a loyal following that the great Neil Young invited the owners on stage during a Melbourne concert.
reviewed
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Shirts & Skirts Markets
Buy limited-run clothes and accessories from emerging designers, for both adults and kids. The Convent makes for leisurely outdoor browsing. Check the website for the regular stallholder details.
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Hill of Content
Old-fashioned bookshop with a wide range of general books as well as an extensive stock of arts, classics and poetry. It showcases covetable visual-arts titles from publisher Thames & Hudson.
reviewed
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Provider
If the term ‘Air Max’ flips your burger, you’ll love this trainer temple that stocks Nike to New Balance and what’s known as street apparel. There’s also a branch in the city centre
reviewed
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G
Alice Euphemia
Art-school cheek abounds in the labels sold here and jewellery similarly sways between the shocking and exquisitely pretty.
reviewed
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Made in Japan
This small shopfront of a national Japanese homewares importer has a few pieces of furniture but specialises in smaller pieces. Kokeshi dolls, kitchenware and vintage kimonos make perfect gifts.
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Counter
The retail arm of Craft Victoria, Counter showcases the handmade. Its range of jewellery, textiles, accessories, glass and ceramics bridges the art/craft divide and makes for some wonderful mementos of Melbourne.
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Vixen
Georgina Chapman’s hand-printed silks, velvets and knits are beloved by Melbourne women for their grown-up glamour and sensuous, figure-enhancing cuts. Her cushions are as covetable as her sarongs.
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K
St Luke Artist Colourmen
An inspiring artist’s supply shop for both professionals and Sunday painters, St Luke stocks journals, kits and all manner of materials. Some of its beautifully packaged materials are objects in themselves.
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Anna Thomas
Max Mara–alum Anna Thomas is known for her tailoring, perfect patterns and luxurious knits. Grown-up with just a hint of girly charm, her designs can go from a boardroom brunch to a picnic in the park.
reviewed
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M
King & Godfree
This cheerful wine shop and deli has been keeping Carlton cellars well stocked for years. It has a particularly good range of Victorian wines and also some stellar Italian drops. Staff are always happy to help.
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Avenue Books
Everyone needs a neighbourhood bookshop like this one, full of nooks and crannies to perch with literary fiction, cooking, gardening, art and children’s books. Cluey staff make spot-on recommendations too.
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O
Europa Cellars
The boys know their stuff here – they run a weekly schedule of tastings with proselytising zeal – and you can often score a bargain on one of the European drops that are gracing the smartest wine lists ’round town.
reviewed
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Bison
David Tunks creates beautifully tonal and tactile stoneware, which begs everyday use. The shop stocks the full range, including his signature milk bottles, plus some textiles and wooden kitchen and table implements.
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Little Salon
Part art gallery and part retail outlet, this little store is hipster heaven. Wearable art pieces, including bags woven from seat belts, knitted corsages and button bracelets, share space here with decorative items for your wall or shelf. Also a branch in Melbourne.
reviewed
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Nest
This light, bright homewares store stocks Spacecraft screen-printed textiles as well as Aesop skincare. It does its own range of cotton knit ‘comfort wear’ that’s way too nice to hide at home in.
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Glitzern
Moi Rogers’ horde of vintage accessories and jewellery fills this former storage-cupboard space. Pieces run from high-’70s camp to exquisite Deco Australiana. Roger’s own bold work also features.
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Sarti
Bespoke suits and shirts can be made by local tailors or whipped up by hand in Italy (‘su misura’). There’s also a range of snappy ready-to-wear pieces for both men and women that can be individually altered.
reviewed
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Luft
A neighbourhood favourite for big-name design stars like iittala, Hackman and Marimekko; it knows its lighting. Look for local Mark Pascal’s curvy woven shades that can be made to order in a range of colours and shapes.
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V
Polyester Books
Take kinky and rude and then go several steps beyond. This unapologetic shop specialises in literature, magazines and audiovisual materials on topics from satanic cult sex to underground comics, and everything in between.
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