Boston's best: Home design stores
Deck out your digs
Abodeon
Mixing classic mid-century modernism with the very latest design innovations, the husband-and-wife team behind Abodeon stocks this Cambridge shop with new and vintage home goods that walk the line between whimsical and practical. Located between Harvard and Porter Squares, Abodeon is home to both the Eames lounge ($4,800) and the fish hotel ($27), alongside the iconic PH5 pendant lamp ($675) and chalkboard decals ($19). It’s a curiosity shop of sorts where vintage barware, Danish textiles, colorful kitchen tools and '60s teak credenzas live happily side-by-side. Kids and adults alike will appreciate a selection of “pure fun” items like recycled crayons ($7) and make-your-own mobile sets ($12). For discerning audiophiles, there’s even a collection of LPs hidden away in a back room—just ask. 1731 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge (617-497-0137, abodeon.com)
Acquire
The North End may be known for great Italian, but between your steak pizzaiola and Mike’s cannoli, stop into Acquire for a design fix. The well-edited selection of gifts and home goods is handpicked by owner/interior designer Nikki Dalrymple who goes for a sophisticated mix of vintage and modern. Vintage finds are fixed up with new upholstery or a fresh coat of lacquer to mix seamlessly with the new. The store’s style and color palette changes quarterly with each of Dalrymple’s shopping trips. Right now, the story is about American craftsmanship—pieces with a rugged, industrial or machine-age feel. A refinished mid-century card catalogue ($700) from a closed Rhode Island library and 3-foot-tall antique terra cotta olive jars from Turkey ($275-$350) exemplify Acquire’s one-of-a-kind offerings. Other highlights include vases by Laura Zindel ($45-$75), a Vermont artist who screen-prints bold naturalist illustrations onto ceramics, and a great selection of vintage and modern barware. 61 Salem St, North End, Boston (857-362-7380, acquireboutique.com)
Cobwebs
Cobwebs in Jamaica Plain proves that antiquing doesn’t need to involve an exhaustive search through dust-laden junk. Rather, perusing the selection here feels more like a treasure hunt with a jewel at every turn. Like any good antique store, Cobwebs carries a selection of vintage jewelry, but interior-design types will be drawn to the hodgepodge of furniture and decorative objects. Heavy wood dressers, wardrobes and dining chairs fit in perfectly with the neighborhood’s many Victorian homes, and items like a Cobalt glass cream and sugar set ($65) and Roseville pottery jardinière ($195) hearken back to the days before Ikea. Then there are the novelties—collectible Royal Doulton figurines ($100-$225), plenty of vintage postcards ripe for hanging, and even a sterling silver wig curler from the 19th century. 703 Centre St, Jamaica Plain (617-983-0154, cobwebs.us)
Diseño
Inspired by the colors and textures of South American craftsmanship, Diseño’s owner travels to the region a few times a year to purchase treasures for his shop. It's a unique source for Latin design in the Boston area, and the wares incorporate a certain warmth and closeness to nature in their sophisticated styles. Vegetarians, be forewarned: the store is chock-full of furniture and throws made of supple leather and animal hides from the Argentinean plains. A cowhide cube ottoman ($399) in natural or dyed colors (like lime green!) is a playful addition to the living room, while the sleek Testa sofa ($3,999) offers contemporary seating in top-grain leather. Less animalistic are the recycled wood tables ($239-$499) made of 100-year-old pinotea wood reclaimed from old factories in Buenos Aires. Also suitable for herbivores is the wide selection of lighting and accessories, including colorfully glazed dishware ($10-$199), a Mexican Onyx table lamp ($400) and vintage wool textiles from the north of Argentina ($99-$300). 409 Harrison Ave, South End, Boston (617-423-2008, disenobos.com)
Garage Sale
You know that second-hand sofa you bought in college? The one with the cat hair and cigarette burns? Well, despite its name, Garage Sale carries nothing of the sort. This is a high-end home consignment shop, and everything here is in near-perfect condition. This is the place to find that Ligne Rosette sofa you always dreamed of or an antique console you can actually afford, not to mention a selection of wall art that runs the gamut from pastoral to pop. Like any garage sale, it’s all about the hunt. You may have to return to the store a few times before you find just the piece you are looking for, but there are always options that are sure to catch your eye. Current offerings include a tiger maple dining table by Windsor & Co. ($2,500), a Jonathan Adler sectional ($1,800) and a pair of Costa Rican vase lamps ($150). 55 Waltham St, South End, Boston (617-482-7044, garagesaleboston.com)
Lekker Unique Home Furnishings
This local company has a strong online presence, but there’s nothing like seeing its sleek wares on display in the light-filled space it calls home. The Dutch-born founder of Lekker named the store in her mother tongue, using a word that means alluring, enticing, attractive and tempting. It’s quite a name to live up to, but Lekker does so with a unique selection of goods that reflect the company’s European design heritage in their usefulness and minimalism. A sturdy oak dining table imported from Belgium ($1,500- $3,300) offers a canvas for colorful Thomas Paul plates ($40/set of 4), while ceiling lamps printed with birch trees ($585) illuminate a display of cozy Dwell Studio bedding. Add to that some very smart kitchen tools and sophisticated decorative objects, and it’s tough to leave Lekker empty-handed. 1317 Washington St, South End, Boston (617-542-6464, lekkerhome.com)
Reside
With enough teak, walnut and chrome to fill a Mad Men set, Reside is a mid-century Modernist’s dream. Located in the oft-overlooked neighborhood of Huron Village, visitors to Reside are sure to find collectors’ pieces by American and European masters like Milo Baughman, Arne Jacobsen and Hans Wegner. More distant continents are represented by items like an Ethiopian Wood Stool ($450) and a Chinese Ceramic Tile Side Table ($525). Looking for something in particular? Tell the helpful staff, and they’ll be sure to keep an eye out for you—they know just what to look for when it comes to spotting the real deal, whether it be a distinctive detail in craftsmanship or just the right stamp on the bottom of a chair. In addition to its vast furniture selection (which extends down to a winding basement and into an offsite warehouse), Reside carries mid-century accessories like ceramics, lamps, sculptures and even some Bakelite jewelry. Textiles round out the selection, with a full array of upholstery materials, custom flat-weave rugs by Linda Belden and African bark cloth from the Pygmy people of the Congo. 266 Concord Ave, Huron Village, Cambridge (617-547-2929, resideinc.com)
Tall Tree Guild
Tall Tree Guild sells art furniture at its finest. Focusing on craftsmanship and design, the store’s signature line mixes old materials with new, reinterpreting such various styles as Dutch Modern, Shaker, Mission and Classic Cape Cod. The result is eclectic, colorful and incredibly unique. Pieces like the Minimalist Coffee Table of hand-painted wood tiles ($1,775) and the one-piece welded Stainless Steel Settee ($15,750) are all made in Massachusetts by local artists. Plus, many products are customizable, from the color of chairs to the material of tabletops, letting you mix and match to your heart’s content. In addition to furniture, the Tall Tree Guild’s suburban showroom carries home accessories by local artists such as lamps, pottery, pillows and decorative objects. 185 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington (781-646-3009, talltreeguild.com)
Twelve Chairs
Across the Channel from Boston proper, a tight-knit design community has flourished in Fort Point. It's prompted the two women behind Twelve Chairs to open their whimsical home furnishings boutique in the 'hood. These design school friends named the store for the twelve women in their program at Cornell, but the number also corresponds to the twelve criteria they have established for sourcing products. Everything in the shop—from blankets to ceramics, mirrors to stationary—is designed and manufactured in North America using environmentally and socially responsible methods, and vendors must meet at least six of the twelve criteria for inclusion in Twelve Chairs. Products that meet these high standards include cheeseboards from Rhode Island’s O&G Studios ($32-48), hand-thrown thimble cups in unglazed porcelain ($34/set of four) and cozy herringbone throws by Brahms Mount ($225). 319 A St, Fort Point, Boston (617-701-3496, twelvechairsboston.com)
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