Old VIDEOTON televisions, plastic egg cup sets from the GDR, wall carpets and paper antiquities can all be found in Retrohungary’s new store. Their headquarters remained in Paloma Udvar, but retro fans looking for something truly special can now browse through their diverse selection in another, larger unit. Let’s see the details!
A new chapter began in the life of Retrohungary in the first days of February. The special vintage store called to life by Judit Sebők and Tamás Borbély grew out the former tiny premises on the second floor of Paloma Udvar, Budapest. Epidemic or not, the duo decided it was time to move the treasures piled up over the years to a bigger space within Paloma Udvar. Thus, both the address and concept remained unchanged, with a richer and more diverse selection.
Since our last visit (we have already written about the birth of Retrohungary – the Ed.), Judit and Tamás haven’t changed a bit: both of them still have their favorite eras, and they keep hunting down the special ceramics and other retro objects with the same enthusiasm and commitment. On the day of reopening, we decided to visit them again to check out the latest treasures.
The greatest hit of the store is without doubt the VIDEOTON television standing on legs, a model dubbed “Jupiter”, with special, varnished wooden finishes and old-fashioned knobs and buttons: nowadays you really don’t get to see many of these. Now that they have more room, Judit can finally pursue an old hobby of hers, too: collecting various paper antiquities. In one corner there are old school notebooks, wire bound pocket books, faux leather bound (and empty!) calendars, and other stationery items, but one can also find pen stands, classic date stamps and even a pack of dominoes in the store.
Watchful customers can also discover another curiosity in a drawer under the cabinets: the postcards of László Réber, the illustrator of the Éva Janikovszky’s books, await their new owners here. Beyond all that, our hearts first skipped a beat when we noticed the old bonbon boxes and the larger paper box with the sign “Útipatika” on it. It skipped a beat for the second time when we discovered the genuine GDR egg cup set on one of the shelves across the room.
Tamás’s latest favorites are the chalices made by goldsmith Lajos Muharos, while Judit chose a rare porcelain horse figurine made by Miklós Veress as her favorite when we were there.
The new store cannot only fit more decorative and household objects: now there’s more room for works of visual art (for example, a canvas painting with a “Lakatos” signature on it), and home textiles have also been added to their selection, which, unlike ceramics items, pose a real challenge for committed collectors. These objects (wall carpets, moquettes, gobelins, curtains and especially old rugs) are more vulnerable to the ravages of time, their previous owners didn’t take very good care of them, and thus getting our hands on interior textiles produced in the sixties and the seventies in near-mint condition can be quite hard.
The shelves of Retrohungary have a lot more to offer, but we don’t want to spoil all the surprises: go and see for yourself!
Photos: Milán Rácmolnár
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