For Milan’s weird and wonderful, take a turn through Navigli, the city’s romantic riverside district, the last evidence that Milan, like Venice, was once built upon canals. Strolling alongside Naviglio Grande and Naviglio Pavese is where you’ll find Milan’s coolest girl gangs, scouring the ‘hood for the hottest vintage treasures, sipping natural wines at the canalside bars, and, once a month, foraging through the city’s biggest and most beautiful antique market. On the hunt for the perfect Pilea plant, antique Stilnovo lamp, or record by an old Italian maestro? Scroll this way, babe…
With its cool crowd, niche shops and laid-back atmosphere, Navigli is all about the off-beat and the undiscovered. Dischivolanti’s record store is no different, where stacks upon stacks of uncategorized vinyl are waiting to be sifted through, whether your jam is Italy’s iconic voices (Franco Battiato, Fabrizio De André), jazz (Miles Davis) or the great and the good (Ella Fitzgerald, Nirvana).
Ripa di Porta Ticinese, 47, Milano; Dischivolanti.net
While Navigli’s canalside streets host Milan’s best antique market on the last Sunday of every month, you can pop into the bonafide vintage mecca, Pourquoi Moi, any day of the week. This small but perfectly curated boutique draws in the boho babes for its frankly fantastic rotation of vintage dresses, from snappy 1970s styles to breezy retro 1980s silhouettes, with a healthy smattering of vintage YSL to boot. Why we love it? The fabulous Juliana, Pourquoi Moi’s British babe owner, has a natty eye for heart-pulsing print (just like someone else we know!)
Via Mario Fusetti, 7, Milano; @pourquoimoivintage
This tiny verdant paradise, stocking houseplants of all shapes and sizes, is so filled with sprawling vines and tropical leaves, it spills out into the cobbled street just a stone’s throw from the vibrant Naviglio Pavese. Not gifted with greenfingers? Silvia, the owner, not only has great taste but is an enthusiastic fountain of knowledge. Gift your next hostess a picolo Pilea, Marimo moss-ball or one of its huge selection of classy, glass vases and you’re guaranteed to be the VIP party guest.
Vicolo Privato Lavandai, 6, Milano; Ifiorinellarete.it
Calling all midcentury fiends: find the Danimarca sideboard and Arco lamp of your dreams in the city’s epicentre for 1950s and 1960s furniture design. Specializing in the widest selection of Scandinavian furniture designers in Milan, this trove also offers biomorphic Murano art glass, plus a lighting section brimming with Stilnovo and Catroccio pieces that rivals the city’s famous design museum, and so much more. Don’t miss the small but incredible clothing rail for vintage Moschino, YSL, Versace and Loro Piana.
Ripa di Porta Ticinese, 47, Milano; Maurobolognesi.com
