Aunty Detective: Upmarket 1950s and 1960s Furniture

Hooray! Another question to rouse me from my sleepiness. From JS:

Hi Detective

I have just moved t Melbourne and am looking to buy some nice, restored fifties or sixties dining chairs to go with a beaut of a table I got for half price last weekend at a closing down sale.  Can you recommend some ‘top end of town’ mid 20th furniture dealers?

Well, if you’ve got the cash to splash, there are some pretty amazing furniture specialists around Melbourne.

The first thing to mention is Chapel St. Bazaar.  I know they can have truckloads of crap and it can get seriously overheated in there etc etc, but it’s ginormous, tends to focus on the era you’re interested in, and if you continue down Chapel St (towards Windsor, not towards the pounding techno music) there are many other interesting little boutiques.

Another top-end style place is on Elgin St, Carlton. It’s called Bbold 20th Century Furniture and Effects, and it’s right near the Shell service station. This place may be slightly overpriced – I know I’ve balked at the prices they charge for the small range of Lea Stein/Pavone/bakelite jewellery they stock, but there’s no denying they have some fabulous furniture, which dates from the 30s to the 70s. So if, Liza Minelli style, price is no object, this place could definitely be one to hit up.

Another place (or zone really) worth mentioning is the non-Acland-st (so towards Elwood and Balaclava) side of St. Kilda. There’s a well-known shop on the corner of Barkly St and Inkerman St called ‘The Bitch is Back’ which stocks loads of retro furniture goodness (lurid colours, shagpile, a million different types of plastic…those were the days). But that whole area seems to have a revolving door of retro-style shops, of varying degrees of quality, so it’s worth having a cruise around if you’re in the area anyway.

A final ‘top end’ style boutique is Geoffrey Hatty applied arts on Malvern Road in Prahran. This place has a whole lotta love for the best (and most extreme) in twentieth century design. It’s high on atmosphere and authenticity, so definitely worth a look.

Anyway, I’m off to mark about forty million essays, so I’ll throw this one open to the floor: where in Melbourne can you get the best mid-twentieth century furniture? Are there any dining chair specialists out there? We need your expertise…