Memorabilia on Smith
269 Smith St, Fitzroy
http://www.memorabiliaonsmith.com.au/
There are so many second hand/pre-loved/vintage stores in Fitzroy, so it takes a lot for one to stand out. This is one of those stores. Overflowing with fascinating trinkets from yesteryear (literally, spilling onto the footpath out the front and piled high in the store creating walk-ways so narrow I’m too scared to breath on my way through), this is chaos at its most fascinating.
While AFL (Australian Rules Football) memorabilia tends to dominate the stock, there is so much more you’ll notice once you start digging around. The hardest thing is to stop looking at it as one giant mess (which it totally is, and I say that with love because it’s a fantastic mess), and try to narrow your attention on one item at a time. You truly have no idea how difficult this is until you’ve visited.
What initially looks to be a display case of dirty old plastic reveals, upon closer inspection, 90s Pez dispensers, action figures that every child either had or begged their parents for, and vintage yoyos with old Coca Cola logos. The shelf that looks like a dusty old medicine cabinet reveals perfectly kept glass bottles and vials, old Arnott’s biscuit tins, gum ball machines and a giant old-fashioned Streets ice cream cone sign hovering above your head. It’s a beautiful, nostalgic 1980s and 1990s Aussie wonderland.
(documented) by jess 