Baker & Shuhandler

I love vintage and antique inspired furniture when it is done well and not over played and over the top. Baker & Shuhandler have some amazing pieces of both antique and contemporary design but unfortunately there is simply too much going on in this store for you to appreciate the beauty of a single object.
Although I very much adore Louis the Xvi inspired furniture here everything is a bit too gold and silver, too kitschy and frou-​frou for my liking, but essentially it is a trove for an interior designer or someone with a love for decorating who will have the patience to carefully look through the mounds of gorgeous home wares and furniture. It’s still have fabulous place to look at but just a bit too busy.

First of all, I love the name of this gift, homewares and furniture store: it sounds as though a couple of ye olde merchants — a baker and a shoesmith — got together at the turn of last century and that the family business has been passed down and evolved into this. Not that you’ll find any pastry baking or shoe fixing here. I’m sure these are just surnames of the owners.
Baker & Shuhandler sell some of the most beautiful trinkets and furnishings I’ve seen on this side of town. I’ll often peruse their shelves for something unique for a friend’s birthday or anniversary gift, and have recently received lovely presents from people that I’m guessing have come from here.
Mind you, I have noticed one or two of their objet available in less prestigious outlets for far less cost, so they might want to check with their suppliers on issues of exclusivity (alright I’ll tell you what product: the huge New York and Paris bookends that double up as storage boxes have also been seen in Thingz… or was it the Reject Shop?).
Still, most of the wares in Baker & Shuhandler seem farely rare, but they do seem to OD a little on the bath salts and candles… Space on the shelves that could perhaps be filled with products of a more exclusive nature?

To give you an idea of the style of home this shop stocks for — standing in the window among the clutter of other gharish wares is a large, silver greyhound…
Flashy pieces in laqured red, slick black and white leather, all scream ’90 210′ or Joey Tribbiani-​90s-​Bachelor pad.
There is a dizzying amount of OTT chandelier lighting as well as an abundance of gaudy baroque mirrors, faux furs and Rococo accessories.
In isolation, the pieces would probably be quite appealing but the amount of metallic, reflective surfaces inside, is blurring.

Cultural flair appears to be an old faithful when in times of doubt for interior decorators. It certainly does add a touch of cosmopolitanism to one’s home, suggesting a regal disposition, a penchant for aesthetics and an air of worldliness. So if you’re after something which makes you appear equally as glamorous, as opulent and as plush as a Rococco mirror, a chaise lounge or a Queen Anne bedside table, Baker and Shuhandler is the place to go. It’s full of a wide variety of posh furniture and home wares. Not only do they do Parisian chic like nobody’s business, they’ve also loads of imported cushions, wall hangings and vases from Morocco, India, Portugal and Asia.
Don’t get me wrong — their stuff is beautiful. It’s extravagant, but hardly unique or individual. If you’re after a luxurious indulgence, this place is a wonderland. If you’re after something unconventional and unusual, there’s loads of other places in Mount Lawley to treat yourself.

If I had to pick my favourite place in Perth to spend hours upon hours just tinkering about it would be Baker & Shuhandler. I call it research time for when I am rich enough to decorate my house with the most luxurious furniture and home wares. The chandeliers are to die for. The arm chairs are regal. The desks, presidential. The vibe and atmosphere seeping from the pores of this store are exactly what I want from my future home.
How do I describe in words how I feel about this store? Well, I love it like a fat kid loves cake. Like Charlie Sheen loves drugs and women. The way I feel about Baker & Shuhandler is the way Holly Golightly feels about Tiffany’s. If I found a real life place that made me feel like Baker & Shuhandler well… well I’d buy some furniture and give the cat a name!
If you need a cute, little present for someone. Or if you are redecorating. Or you feel as though an extravagant purchase is in order, this is the perfect place.