Overview
Third Drawer Down is nothing if not bold. Its flagship Fitzroy store has a yellow rubber ducky out the front that's bigger than the doorway and now, its new Greville Street location is painted like a liquorice allsort. Though it opened just a matter of days ago, this enigmatic homewares, gift and novelty store is already hard to miss.
Like its exterior, the contents of this store have a penchant for the absurd. Enjoy a healthy bento lunch while day-dreaming about hamburgers. Organise your desk at work with some post-its that tell it how it is. Or slow down your schedule with a 365-day clock. For Christmas last year, I bought my dad an egg cup in the shape of a dachshund's head from the Fitzroy store. There's no rhyme or reason in truly excellent gift giving, and Third Drawer Down's new location will be a godsend for Southsiders come Secret Santa time.
However, as much as everyone loves novelty, the store also offers a curated selection of homewares and everyday items that are useful all-year round. With a vested interest in art and design, most offerings double up as artworks in and of themselves. For instance, a humble tea towel could turn into a reaffirming wall-piece from David Shrigley; your coffee mugs are also a canvas for Louise Bourgeois, and Ai Wei Wei's beautiful silk perspective scarf is almost too stunning to scrunch up and tie around your head.
When compared to its Northside counterpart, this new store in Prahran is a little smaller. It's lost the secret little nooks and crannies, and given way to an open-plan design characterised by purposeful displays and bright, vivid colours. However it also has a secret little artists' space in the adjoining room, and word on the street is that it'll be home to a series of bi-weekly workshops with creative types. No exact dates yet, but we hear it'll be a great chance to rub elbows with some beautiful artsy people while drinking wine, eating pizza and learning new skills (AKA all of our favourite things).
It seems the traditional North v. South rivalry may be drawing to a close. As long as we both have immediate access to giant paintbrushes, we can surely have a lasting peace.
The new Third Drawer Down store is located at 155 Greville Street, Prahran. It's open 11am - 5pm Monday - Saturday, and 11am - 4pm on Sundays.
