The Real Chicago

Top Menu

  • Home
  • E-newsletter
  • Contact

Main Menu

  • Home
  • The Big City Blog
  • General Features
  • Around Town
    • First Look – Reviews
    • Hidden Gems
    • Inside Scoop
  • Eat. Drink. Shop.
    • Good Eats
    • Signature Dishes
    • A Round of Drinks
    • Shop Around the Corner
  • The Local Angle
    • Chicago Insider
    • The Local Corner
    • My Chicago
  • Interviews
  • Forum
Sign in / Join
  • Home
  • E-newsletter
  • Contact

logo

Header Banner

The Real Chicago

  • Home
  • The Big City Blog
  • General Features
  • Around Town
    • First Look – Reviews
    • Hidden Gems
    • Inside Scoop
  • Eat. Drink. Shop.
    • Good Eats
    • Signature Dishes
    • A Round of Drinks
    • Shop Around the Corner
  • The Local Angle
    • Chicago Insider
    • The Local Corner
    • My Chicago
  • Interviews
  • Forum
Breaking News

Chicago’s hidden gems: Kiss Kiss Cabaret, Unabridged Bookstore, Lulu Belle’s Pancake House and TNT at The Annoyance

General Features
Home›featured-blogs›General Features›Gone antiquing: Find vintage items of years gone by on a tiny stretch of Belmont Avenue

Gone antiquing: Find vintage items of years gone by on a tiny stretch of Belmont Avenue

By TheRealChicagoOnline
June 2, 2015
1323
0
Share:

By Allyssa Campbell-Sawyer

Over the years, antique shops have become the best way to make old things new again. There are plenty of options in Chicago, and a number of them are within walking distancLazy Dog jewelry - webe of each other on a small stretch of Belmont Avenue in the Lakeview neighborhood.

Lazy Dog Antiques
1903 W. Belmont
www.LazyDogAntiques.com

Lazy Dog Antiques has various antique trinkets spread throughout the shop’s first floor and basement — old wooden furniture and dining sets, a treasure chest full of doorknobs, as well as an assortment of lamps and glass tea sets with gold trim. The most remarkable set of items in the sLazy Dog chair - webtore is the all the vintage jewelry behind the front counter: brooches, necklaces, earrings and more.

Rudy Piemonte has owned the shop with his wife Lisa for 10 years. Piemonte says his mother-in-law passed down her love of antiques to her daughter, and in turn, the antique bug eventually bit him as well. He cites a love of history as his reason for opening the Lazy Dog because antiques “give you a glimpse into what was going on” at a certain point in time.

Father Time Antiques
2108 W. Belmont
www.FatherTimeAntiques.com

Father Time watches - webFather Time, like its name might suggest, specializes in antique watches and clocks. A unique experience, as you walk in, is to hear the ticking of more than a dozen grandfather clocks in sync with one another. Father Time also has a collection of large wooden dining and bedroom sets, including dressers, mirrors and tables. You’d never guess the furniture was vintage considering how spotless all of it is — the items in the store are clearly kept in pristine condition. The most interesting thing I came across was a Victorian zither instrument with sheet music.

Co-owner Jim Reynolds, who has owned the shop for 37 years with his wife, Chandra, knew from the beginning how he would make it stand out. “We realized that everyone that was really successful had a specialty,” Reynolds says. He credits a “fascination with bygone time” as inspiration for opening his business, as well as an interest in the mechanics of timepieces.

Good Old Days
2138 W. BelmontGood Old Days - web
www.GoodOldDaysInc.com

Good Old Days has less furniture than the others mentioned here, but much more in the way of memorabilia. Vintage cans and bottles, old records and neon signs for alcoholic beverage companies are just some of the things lying around the two-floor establishment. There are also lots of vintage photographs of the Chicago Cubs and Bears and celebrities like Billie Holiday, Johnny Cash and Marlon Brando. The coolest thing I found in the store was a 1950s-era television.

Bruce Bailey has owned Good Old Days with his wife, Vivian, for 35 years and can recall how, back when his shop opened, there were about 20 antique shops on this stretch of Belmont. Now, only a handful remain.

Bailey did traveling antique shows for years, and after a rough financial time where he and his wife were forced to sell their old things to make money, his love of selling antiques began to flourish. It’s no surprise that antiques are Bailey’s life, as he says, “Everything in my house is old but the sofa!”

Other antique stores in the area worth checking out include:
Antique Resources at 1741 W. Belmont
Yoruk Rug Gallery at 2041 W. Belmont
Praha at 2201 W. Belmont

TagsAllyssa Campbell-SawyerChicago antique storesFather Time AntiquesGood Old DaysLazy Dog AntiquesThe Real Chicago
Previous Article

Foodie favorites, part two: We asked resident ...

Next Article

Spotlight on Trunk Club: Personal stylists, a ...

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

TheRealChicagoOnline

Related articles More from author

  • Inside Scoop

    Inside Scoop: The Chicago Riverwalk, summer film series, new Manet exhibit at the Art Institute and Navy Pier’s new rooftop ...

    June 19, 2019
    By TheRealChicagoOnline
  • General Features

    Dinosaur delight: Curator Peter Makovicky describes the Field Museum’s new exhibit about prehistoric Antarctica

    September 16, 2018
    By TheRealChicagoOnline
  • The Big City Blog

    The Big City Blog: Ramen in the summer? Absolutely, when it’s Furious Spoon in Wicker Park

    July 29, 2016
    By TheRealChicagoOnline
  • The Big City Blog

    The Big City Blog: Craft Beer competition, Speakeasy Sundays, comedy and arts festivals, mini golf in Maggie Daley Park and ...

    May 19, 2017
    By TheRealChicagoOnline
  • Good Eats

    Good Eats at Cantina Laredo: Modern, high-end Mexican food at its finest, don’t overlook brunch at this River North hotspot

    February 13, 2019
    By TheRealChicagoOnline
  • The Big City Blog

    The Big City Blog: Tips on where to watch the Chicago Marathon Oct. 7

    October 2, 2018
    By TheRealChicagoOnline

You might be interested

  • Around TownGeneral Features

    Throwing strikes: Cure your craving to bowl at these fun locations

  • Around TownGeneral Features

    Southport shopping spree: Plenty of unique stores on this quaint street

  • Around TownMy Chicago

    My Chicago: If you can only eat out once this spring, where are you going and what are you ordering?

Originally launched in 2006, The Real Chicago — as a glossy entertainment magazine, website and email newsletter — has consistently provided the very best insider information, features and reviews to help both tourists and active locals get the most out of exploring the greatest city on Earth.
© Copyright The Real Chicago. All rights reserved.

Login

Welcome! Login in to your account
Lost your password?

Lost Password

Back to login