8 Best Shopping in Toronto, Ontario

This two-floor antique shop is a rummager's paradise, and a favorite of local set designers looking for period-authentic items. The shelves groan with everything from '50s salt-and-pepper shakers to Hudson's Bay blankets, and there are racks of vintage clothing (for both women and men) with pieces that date as far back as the 19th century. You can rifle through the scores of carefully labeled apothecary drawers to trawl through opera glasses, costume jewelry, and military patches, or peer into display cases at the vintage lunchboxes and handbags.

The 6,000 square feet of this shop provides ample opportunity for browsing among the cabinets, shelves, and bins overflowing with porcelain, silver tea sets, Majolica pottery, Lalique vases, collectibles, and antique maps. It's also Toronto's leading purveyor of vintage and estate jewelry, making it a popular stop for those seeking out engagement rings.

Indicative of a Queen West long gone, the most remarkable thing about Abraham's is that somehow it survives. Handwritten signs snarl "don't even think about it" amid a jumble of haphazardly piled rusty props and dusty "antiques" from doctor's bags and deer trophies to worn church doors, creepy clown shoes, and a sparkling collection of 1950s microphones. Purchasing anything will take some guts—few prices are marked, although everything, they say, is for sale.

Curios, from glass fishing floats to hand-beaded animal sculptures, are sold at this fascinating interiors shop. You'll also find an array of vintage jewelry, antique boxes made of materials ranging from marble to abalone, English campaign furniture, French architects' drafting tables, and all manner of furniture, light fixtures, and even handbags.

More than 50 artisans and purveyors display their wares in tiny spaces where vintage collections rub shoulders with mixed-media paintings, artisanal soaps, and jewelry.

Teak tables, chairs, and cabinets give this vintage shop the feel of a strangely cavernous 1970s bungalow. Organized racks are filled with Hawaiian and secondhand T-shirts, vintage 1970s dresses, and comfortably worn jeans, but you'll also find new styles, too.

This home decor shop is very romantic, and very turn-of-the-century. Everywhere you look, you'll see antiques, mid-century furniture, and home accessories piled so high that they scrape the chandeliers. There's an impressive array of French toiletries, as well as frilly frocks and fairy wings for children's flights of fancy.

Wagman carries a large selection of art deco pieces and lighting, along with Italian (and a few French) pieces from the ’40s, ’50s, and '60s. This is the place to find a showstopping glass-veneered sideboard or a Murano glass lamp. Depending on the piece, Wagman can ship to the United States and beyond.