
Chicago’s Best Vintage, Thrift, and Antique Shops
Published on January 31, 2025
Searching for the best resale shops in Chicago means venturing away from downtown. The Far North Side, in particular, has a reputation as a haven for antiques, vintage, and thrift stores. In Edgewater, the two-story Broadway Antique Market has merchandise from more than 75 vendors under one roof, with a collection that ranges from knick-knacks to jewelry to furniture. A block away is Green Element Resale, but similarly eclectic, even adding used electronics like TVs, stereos, and turntables.
By Dave Lifton (@daveeatschicago)
A similar everything-under-one-roof approach is found in Andersonville at The Brown Elephant, which also has stores in Northalsted and Oak Park. The shops are owned by Howard Brown Health, a provider of healthcare for the local LGBTQ+ community. Further north in Rogers Park is another Lost Eras, a massive repository for vintage clothes, costumes, and props.
Smaller, but equally browsable stores in the area are Fad2Fresh, Andersonville Antiques, Brownstone Antiques, and Andy’s Art, Antiques & Oddities. And fans of the macabre need to check out Woolly Mammoth, where they can find vintage taxidermy, medical implements, skeletons, and tools.
In 2024, three shops opened up within a block of each other in Edgewater: Rad Pop! Emporium, a combination vintage store/hair salon; Milk & Holly Home, which specializes in home décor; and Richard Alan EstateOptions, which operated as a pop-up for nearly three years before permanently leasing the space.
Remaining on the North Side, Lakeview offers many options. In addition to The Brown Elephant, Northalsted is the home of Out of the Closet, where 96 percent of the proceeds supports AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s HIV prevention and treatment services, and free HIV testing is available. Around the corner is Ragstock, a Minnesota-based chain that also has locations in Wicker Park and Water Tower Place on the Magnificent Mile.

But Roscoe Village has long been Lakeview’s home for resale, with six shops on a half-mile stretch of Belmont Ave. Antique Resources focuses on European furniture, lighting, and clocks. House 15 is known for jewelry, textiles, and home accessories. Head to Lazy Dog Antiques for Art Deco, Midcentury Modern, and 1950s collectibles. Father Time Antiques is known not just for buying and selling classic timepieces, but repairing and restoring them. Good Old Days is packed with sports photos, bar art like stained glass and neon beer signs, 1930s radios and Space Age TVs. The last store on the block is Praha, which specializes in Midcentury Modern home furnishings. Two blocks north, on Roscoe St. is Shangri-La Vintage, a retro clothing store.
If resale shops on the North Side are geared more towards antiques, the hip neighborhoods on the West Side cater more towards the fashion-conscious shopper. Lost Girls Vintage started in an RV and now has stores in West Town and Logan Square. Kokorokoko in Wicker Park deals in clothes from ‘80s and ‘90s, what it calls the “post-hip-hop, pre-Internet era.” Also in Wicker Park, Bodega Vintage features merchandise from a rotating cast of resellers. Logan Square’s Vintage Frills is divided into rooms based on the color of the item, and has been visited by Chicago Sky star Kamilla Cardoso. Monarch Thrift Shop in Avondale has earned praise for its program of providing job training and mentorship to at-risk individuals.
Lastly, men looking for classic styles should check Richard’s Fabulous Finds in Humboldt Park. Owner Richard Biasi is often hired to consult on the historical accuracy of costumes for movies and TV shows.
But the Milwaukee Ave. corridor isn’t entirely about clothes. Store B Vintage (Wicker Park), Dovetail (Noble Square), and Nice Twice Resale Shop (Ukrainian Village) have plenty of the type of housewares, accessories and gifts that you can find in Roscoe Village and Edgewater.
In Pilsen, Knee Deep is on the ground floor of Thalia Hall, one of the city’s best live music clubs, and its collection runs from World War II-era outfits to ‘90s T-shirts. Within a couple of blocks, one can find more clothing at Very Best Vintage and Pilsen Vintage.
In addition to these local businesses, there are outlets of regional and national resale shops throughout the city. Buffalo Exchange is in Andersonville and Wicker Park; Crossroads Trading is in Lincoln Park, Wicker Park, and Evanston; Ragstock is in Lakeview, Wicker Park, and Water Tower Place on the Magnificent Mile. Local chain Village Discount Outlet has nine locations throughout the city and two in the suburbs.
The author found a pair of retro Brewers batting helmet ice cream dishes at Broadway Antique Market for $2.50 each and gave them to a friend on a recent trip to Milwaukee.

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