(Stray Vintage)
Apr. 18, 2024 By Amanda Salazar
Spring isn’t just a time for cleaning — it’s also a time of fresh starts and renewal. If you’ve been considering redesigning your home, now is the perfect time to renew your space. Whether it’s as big as a complete overhaul of your home’s interior design or as small as getting a new lamp, there’s a small business in western Queens that can help you breathe new life into your space. Here are 10 local home décor and furniture stores to check out this spring.
Home Style Furniture of Astoria | 30-03 Broadway, Astoria
Home Style Furniture of Astoria is a classic furniture store that sells pieces for the living room, bedroom, and dining room. With a nearly five-star rating on Yelp and positive reviews saying the owner is extremely helpful and accommodating, this community store is a good spot for good deals. No matter what you’re looking for—ottomans, sectionals, dining tables, bed frames, and more—Home Style Furniture of Astoria has options. The store also offers packages for entire room sets, like bedroom and living room sets.
Stand Out Spaces | 31-21 Vernon Boulevard, Astoria
Like French style? Stand Out Spaces sells antique French furniture of all styles imported directly from Provence, France. The business’s mission is to offer furniture that is made to last but isn’t like what you can find in big box retailers. From 19th-century country chests of drawers to neoclassical directoire daybeds, Stand Out Spaces collects a range of unique pieces you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else. Pieces are sourced from “Old Europe” — France, Belgium, Bulgaria — and then hand refurbished as needed in the Astoria studio. Purchases come with a lifetime warranty, free shipping with no minimum charge, optional payment installment plans, and a 180-day return period.
Portmanteau New York | 34-01 38th Ave, Long Island City
Portmanteau is a vintage design shop that markets itself as “an exploration of thoughtful design from the past.” The shop sources antique and vintage art and décor that have absolutely no replicas in chain stores. Pieces can be purchased directly from the website, including detailed descriptions of each item, measurements, condition, and any known providence. Customers can also visit the in-person studio by appointment. You can view the collection firsthand at these appointments and receive a design consultation. The Portmanteau co-owners and designers also offer residential restoration and design projects.
Incasa | 31-88 37th Street, Astoria
Incasa may be the business for you if you’re interested in contemporary design. It’s a contemporary home décor and accessory shop focusing on style, quality, and sustainability. Shop categories include tableware, lighting, pillows, throws, table linens, candles, and wellness, and purchases can be made online or in person. Incasa also offers design services for customers who need help creating their spaces. For small bouts of advice, customers can book complimentary styling appointments to get help picking out a piece or two. If more help is needed, Incasa has interior styling services in which the design specialists entirely redesign a space. These projects include establishing a design concept and aesthetic, space planning, window treatments, accessories selection, and color scheme specification.
Luuma Home | 41-05 46th Street, Sunnyside
Luuma Home does more than just home décor; the store also sells clothing. With a focus on products made of fabric, Luuma mainly sells bedding, linens, towels, throws, and pillow covers. Whether you’re looking for a new linen set for your bedroom or a hand towel for the kitchen, the shop’s elegant designs are sure to rejuvenate your space. That’s where the clothing comes in. Because of the brand’s focus on fabric, it also sells robes, ponchos, and dresses meant for use at home and at the beach. Additionally, Luuma Home also has a line of enamel kitchen products, including fruit plates, mugs, and salad bowls, all decorated with bright pops of color and organic designs.
Stray Vintage | 48-09 Skillman Avenue, Sunnyside
If mid-century knick-knacks and trinkets are what you’re looking for, Stray Vintage is the store for you. This vintage shop sells furniture, clothing, décor, many vinyl records and even greeting cards. A scroll through the store’s Instagram reveals dozens of records, which can serve as both decoration and be used for their intended purpose. Stray Vintage also sells handmade goods from local artists. No matter what you’re searching for, if unique goods are what you’re on the market for, Stray has options for you.
Somerset House | 10-25 48th Avenue, Long Island City
Somerset House is a retail space and design studio that focuses on bringing together pieces from various design movements and time periods to create unique spaces. Styles represented include Italian and Danish modern, baroque, and even primitive, with the goal of mixing together styles that are not usually seen as complementary. Somerset House is open to the public on Fridays and only by appointment Monday through Thursday. The website displays some of Somerset’s past interior design projects if you’re looking for a big home upheaval — or you can look at individual pieces online.
Remix Market NYC | 5-38 46th Avenue, Long Island City
Remix Market may be the place to check out for those who like going thrifting. This resale store’s mission is to “rediscover, reimagine and repurpose” secondhand furniture and home décor to give it a new life and be kept out of landfills. The stock turns over quickly, meaning that there will be new products to discover each time you go. A portion of all profits go toward local charities, so your money goes to a good cause while you walk out with a new couch. There are also discounted and price negotiable sections.
Interior Decorating by E & J, Inc. | 49-29 30th Place, Floor 2, Long Island City
Interior Decorating by E & J, Inc. is a custom furniture studio where customers can place orders for handmade furniture, upholstery, or window treatments. For windows, E & J offers drapery, shades, roller shades, wood blinds, valances, swags, and jabots. They also do some bedding work, including bedspreads, duvets, canopies, coverlets, dust ruffles, pillow shams, bolsters, and decorative pillows. Customers can also place orders for custom furniture, with the ability to provide their own sketches and designs or to just let the craftsmen design it for them based on their vision.
Alberto Home Interiors | 40-08 22nd Street, Long Island City
Alberto Home Interiors is an upholstery shop specializing in custom upholstery, reupholstery, custom windows, wall panels, and drapery. Not only will Alberto Home design and create your project, but they will also install it in your home. Each piece is handcrafted and made to order, ensuring customers get exactly what they want, completed at the highest quality. Whether you need to reupholster your favorite recliner or want a custom project that will be unique to your home, Alberto Home Interiors can make it happen.
Also, check out Dream Organization, a full-service professional organizing company that helps people manage their spaces. Founded by owner Drea, the company adopts a holistic approach to transforming not just homes but lives by implementing thoughtful and intentional systems of organization. Their services extend beyond mere rearrangement of items to completely reimagining living spaces, enabling her clients to enjoy a decluttered environment and a decluttered mind. Whether it’s a newly decorated home or an office in need of a refresh, Dream Org is dedicated to crafting solutions that span every area of life, promoting a more serene and fulfilling lifestyle.
*This story first published in the April issue of BORO Magazine.
