Toronto’s best vintage furniture and decor right now

By Toronto Life | October 3, 2016

By Toronto Life | 10/03/2016

Blackbird Vintage Finds

11 Trinity St., 416-681-0558
In a city full of curio shops and second-hand stores, Paula DiRenzo’s Distillery space distinguishes itself with wonderful weirdness. DiRenzo travels the world to find all sorts of oddities and cast-offs. We found a vintage carnival knockdown dummy ($145), a giant arrow illuminated in white light bulbs ($2,200) and a Huron Street sign from the ’20s ($495).

GUFF

1 Davies Ave., 416-913-8025
John Jakeman spent years as a buyer for other stores along Queen Street East’s antique row before venturing out on his own. His store—whose name stands for Great Used Furniture Finds—contains a wide array of all things vintage, including handsome Danish teak and rosewood dressers. Prices are a good 10 to 30 percent cheaper than at most other spots in Leslieville. New finds are constantly being uploaded to the shop’s website.

Queen West Antique Centre

1605 Queen St. W., 416-588-2212
Perched at the corner of Queen and Roncesvalles, QWAC, as it’s known, stands out among the west-end vintage decor shops with a quality mix of industrial and Danish modern furniture. Finds from all eras—metal desks, Arne Jacobsen swan chairs, vintage medicine cabinets and ’50s settees—make it a favourite of the city’s prop stylists.

Smash

2880 Dundas St. W., 416-762-6113
Paul Mercer’s 4,300-square-foot Junction showroom contains a hodgepodge of vintage marquees, battered desks, custom light fixtures, salvaged stools and chairs, and quirky prints made in the basement workshop. The store also doubles as a creative hub, hosting design show parties, art gallery openings, pop-up shops and even the occasional wedding.

Mrs. Huizenga

28 Roncesvalles Ave., 416-533-2112
Those who love the thrill of the find will be drawn to the Roncesvalles vintage mecca operated by Catherine Huizenga since 2010 (it was previously located in the Junction, where it opened in 2005). She finds her eclectic mix of vintage and antique items at auction and from private buyers, and holds auctions of her own at the store on the third Thursday of the month.