Olde Good Things

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This vast, overflowing two-floor maze of antique furniture, lamps, and hardware had a humble beginning: church ladies selling old doorknobs on street corners and at flea markets. The vendors from the Church of Bible Understanding found an unexpected demand for such vintage hardware, and incorporated Olde Good Things in 1995. Now it has salesrooms around the country–as well as this alluring Chelsea outpost. Here, you weave past massive antique grandfather clocks, iron stoves and stained-glass windows with neck craned up to the shimmering ceiling of chandeliers. Smaller jewels abound, such as glass Deco lamps and hand-blown glass drawer pulls. The basement contains an astronomical number of doorknobs (from fluted glass from the early 1900s to brass, bronze or porcelain from the 1800s) and delightful odds and ends, like cue-balls and bottle stoppers. Olde Good Things is a favorite of the city’s top decorators (Calvin Klein buys store embellishments here, as does BCBG) and those who just want a piece of history. — Christine Lagorio

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Best of New York Awards

• Best Antique Fixtures (2005)
• Best Prewar Details (2003)

Featured In

• Expert Advice on Where to Scavenge for Thrift-Shop Treasures (10/15/07)