As much as I love my modern, minimalist boutiques with carefully-considered stock and refined aesthetic (A.P.C’s new flagship store on Dover Street is a great example), there’s something about the thrill of finding treasure in a real magpie’s nest, where the approach to visual merchandising errs towards the chaotic rather than the simple and streamlined. This is what you can expect to find at M.Goldstein, a small vintage shop on Hackney Road, just at the bottom of Columbia Road.
The name comes from the former 1930s owner, a newsagent who by all accounts was no stranger to East London’s shady underworld at the time. A jumble of antiques, paintings and the odd human skull, M.Goldstein is today the brainchild of Nathaniel Lee Jones and Pippa Brooks (formerly of Shop at Maison Bertaux in Soho – how we miss you so! But these days you can find Pippa blogging at Madame Says).
It’s not overly or self-consciously styled - in fact, Nathaniel describes it as a bit of a work in progress. There are old drums hanging from the ceiling and mid-century grocery boxes stacked on top of the cabinet, with a Victorian skull sitting on a Gothic stand in the corner.
Taking pride of place is a cabinet of curios, which on my visit was filled with a collection of tiny bird skulls, bird eggs and um, dead birds, as well as some really lovely vintage jewellery, hair combs and mantillas. It’s all rather like stepping into the old office of a mad, fashion-loving scientist.
I also found a seaside entertainer’s jacket form the ‘30s, some vintage straw hats in the style of Dior’s New Look, and a pair of Eley Kishimoto heels (from Pippa’s personal collection). Nathaniel and Pippa have also started to produce their own small run of garments, like some lovely shirt dresses as well as some screen-printed tees (like this lovely violet number featuring Quentin Crisp).
Fingers’ crossed there’s more on the way from this creative duo!
M.Goldstein
67 Hackney Road
London, E2.
Tel. 07905 325215
Nearest tube: Old Street
Click here for a Wee Birdy map.
Opening hours:
Thursday to Sunday 10am-6pm
Click here for more shops in East London.
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