Great stores for furniture shopping in Chelsea, NYC
This week I was so excited to find that two of my favorite online resources have opened actual stores in New York City. World Market is a go-to resource for fantastically priced furniture, accessories and pillows with a bit of a global feel. France & Son is a budget minded alternative to some of the high end designs we see around —and for those of us who cannot afford 15,000 for a designer chandelier, it’s nice to know that there are great-looking options available (until we can buy the genuine article!)
Like most of us,I love the convenience of shopping online- its a great way to look at a whole lot of things, and hopefully find the perfect match. but I also know there are times when you really want to see, feel,touch, or sit on the piece you might be buying. There's just something about seeing things in person that really helps you get a much better sense of how it might look and feel in your space. But the most fun part of looking in person is the sense of discovery when you stumble across something that surprises or delights you.
When I went to world market yesterday (I cannot tell you how excited I was about this!) I noticed this super painting - only 99 bucks!
Back at home I circled back to find it online so I could show it to a client, and it didn’t look as amazing…I probably wouldn’t have noticed it if it had just been an online search. And we all know the reverse is often true - things look great online and sometime are kind of disappointing in person.
Here’s my not-great iPhone picture:
and here’s the online picture:
Not that the iphone pic is so great, but I can see why the online pic wouldn't have grabbed me.
I also found this gilded piece which I fell in love with and am thinking of sneaking into my house…(will he notice??).
What the heck, I’ll just buy both. At $99 and $129 respectively If they don’t work I’ll bring them back to the store…no trip to the post office,no repacking things for shipping. --Another reason I like good old brick and mortar stores.
At France & Sons I got to see these great pieces in person:
and:
The Manhattan Chelsea neighborhood is becoming a great area for furniture shopping, in fact I’m doing most of my ‘offline’ shopping there. And walking down 18th street yesterday was amazing…From World Market, to West Elm, to Room and Board, to France & Sons, to Organic Modernism…not to even mention ABC Home, BoConcept and others.
So if you find yourself in the area, here’s my ‘walking tour’ of Chelsea stores to visit, in loose order of location from East to West:
888 Broadway, bet. 18th and 19th st.
935 Broadway at 22nd Street
World Market (and Bed Bath Beyond in the same building)
620 Sixth Avenue, bet. 18th and 19th st.
112 West 18th Street, bet. 6th and 7th
122 W 18th
124 W. 18th Street
236 West 18th Street, bet. 7th and 8th
And of course you can always click on the links above for a sneak peek or if you're not close by...
Happy Shopping!