Monday, November 12, 2012

Renovation at the Boroughs


We'll be closed Tuesday the 13th and Wednesday the 14th while we do the finishing touches on a little renovation we're doing at Five Boroughs.
There's a sign on the door and post on our Facebook page to let you good folks know that we'll be back on deck on Thursday the 15th looking refreshed and ready.
Looking forward to seeing you then



This picture is President Truman's renovation of the White House, 17 May 1950







Thursday, November 01, 2012

ET call home

We're very happy to report that our phone number has been restored - 9388 1618



Friday, October 26, 2012

Telephone problems

Here at the Five Boroughs we've unfortunately been without our telephone for two weeks.
We won't go into detail - it's boring and talking to telephone companies is like something out of a Kafka play.


If you've been trying call us you might have noticed the number rings out.
For the time being you can call us on 9388 9095.
Ver soon our old number will be restored - not long to wait now we're told.
Stay patient.

Friday, September 07, 2012

Quality

Our first post, as the title suggests is about objects of quality.

Our friend Jim Spencer is a man who understands this term well.
Over the years Jimmy has worked across many facets of the textile industry - mostly employed for his considerable organisational skills. 
This unfortunately belies his intuitive understanding of great design. Like all people with a keen eye for and an understanding of art and design it's immediately visible in his lived environment. Jim has collected some beautiful pieces of Mid Century furniture and artwork.

So it should be no surprise that Jim found a way to bring his vision to a wider public so that he could quit his day job.

Over the last seven years Jim has been quietly feeding and developing his passion for vintage eyewear.
What started as service to the film industry - sourcing period correct specs for film projects as diverse as Mr Spielberg's,  The Pacific to more recently Paper Giants has now flowed over to lucky folks like you and me.




Initially Jim found forgotten glasses and frames in the garages of retired opticians in Melbourne.
After some late nights in his attic he Googled up a connection with a French optical warehouse that had been closed for over 20 years. Selecta - manufactured frames and sunglasses from post war to the 1980's - most exported to one New York optician.
What a treasure trove he found.






When some of his favorite styles began to run out Jim saw the opportunity to use his considerable ingenuity and have copies produced in Italy to the highest quality standards - Italian acetate frames with German glass lenses.
These are beautiful reproductions of frame shapes that remind us of James Dean, Allen Ginsberg, Clark Kent and Senator McCarthy.



We're very happy to be one of the few stores that Jim has allowed to represent his vision and passion for superbly designed and manufactured eyewear.





Respect


We're finally making a start.

First we'd like to acknowledge the work that Steph and Kyle invested into developing Five Boroughs over the last 4 and half years. Evidence of their creative and skilled hands is visible wherever you look in the shop. Their vision and foresight in locating the store in what was (2007) a very unlikely location shows how ahead of the curve their thinking is. Add to this their ability to craft a store experience that has clarity around objects, and is uncluttered spaciousness, confirms their skills.

We wish them every success in future as a family and as artisans.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Hello & Goodbye

Hey, it's been a long while between posts here on the Five Boroughs blog, but here we are once again, this time however will be the last post from Steph & Kyle.
After nearly five years of business in Brunswick we've decided it time to move on.
We would like to extend a very big thank you to all our valued customers and suppliers and let them know that we have been overwhelmed by the continued support and enjoyment that we've felt since opening and running the shop.
The success of the shop has been thanks to such a wonderful community in and around Brunswick and we're now happy to introduce the new owners Alasdair MacKinnon and Justine Law. We wish them all the best and thank you for your support.