We're going to be in Melbourne again in August, and we're looking for something new. We really like the classic shopping streets in the suburbs, but we've "done" all the inner ones, like Fitzroy and Carlton and so on. We seek the mundane and the ordinary; not fine boutiques but the workaday shops of ordinary Australians. One of our favorites was Brunswick East, way, way up Lygon Street.

I'm thinking of places like Camberwell or Flemington. What are these like? There's a shop in Camberwell called "Fine Art Linens" that sells nothing but printed tea towels; that sounds PERFECT to me! Yes, we are nerds. Places with a preponderance of hairdressers unchanged since the early 1960s, or old-fashioned milk bars, or neighborhood used book shops, would be ideal.

If you can think of someplace you'd normally never direct a tourist, but which is in some way representative of ordinary Melbourne living, I'd love to hear about it.

Before you leave the city, if you haven't done Elizabeth Street from the Vic Market back down to Flinders you ought to, and seeing as you liked up Lygon Strret and by sounds of things have done Fitzroy and Carlton, did you head up the suburban end of Elizabeth St or Sydney Road as it's called, up past Carlton and Parkville.

But back down the city end, the blocks between Elizabeth, Swanston, Bourke and Flinders have a heap of smaller lanes if you have not explored them.

Heading in other directions and towards Camberwell, you could take the tram out along Bridge Road and along that stretch would have you possibly find a few places of interest as would Victoria Street heading out of town.

But Bridge Road trams will run around into Riversdale Rd. and take you to Camberwell Junction, there being a market of sorts there too.
Another way you could do it is to take the train to Camberwell and alighting there, you're basically on Burke Road at northern end of main shopping strip, the Junction near where market is a few hundred metres to the south.

Regardless of whether you go by tram or train, taking the train out two more stations and alighting at Cantebury will find you in a pretty upmarket but older village atmosphere of Maling street - http://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/melb...ls.php?id=4940 - probably somewhere you should not miss.

If using public transport, also look up the Swan Street tram and maybe one that runs down between MCG and Tennis Centre now to connect to Swan Street, for Swan Street Richmond is another older shopping strip, a Dimmeys store there which may be closing or already is, but I'm pretty sure that tram also runs out along Riversdale Road to CJ and you could head out one way and back the other.

And talking of junctions, there are also trams running along Bridge Road that'll take you up to Kew Junction and there's a smaller lot of shops about there but of older variety too.

A bit further south you have trams that run from the CBD down St. Kilda Rd a bit and via Park St. to Toorak Rd. and along a bit further to Commercial/Malvern Road next and then High Street, all with shopping strips about Chapel Street[also a busy street] and the Prahran Market there and it's either Malvern or High Streets that has quite a long strip out further heading up to Burke Road.

Of course you have Fitzroy Street St Kilda but that's more pubs/bars, cafes and restaurants but getting further out again you could stay bayside and have a poke around Dendy Street Brighton and inland along Balaclava Rd., Elsternwick area I think it is you'll also find an older shopping strip, possibly in vicinity of Glenferrie Rd which itself has a bit of a strip back up in the Riversdale road area.

Not too sure on Flemington though Footscray certainly has a long shopping strip but with migration, not sure on older type retailers as I think the area is popular with Vietnamese people as is Bridge Rd.

Another interesting trip that you may want to look into is there's a little ferry/tourism service that runs from Southbank over to Williamstown and that has older style shops about and a few nice pubs to possibly make it a lunch trip.

Williamstown Ferry - http://www.williamstownferries.com.au/

Had a crayfish for lunch in a Williamstown Pub about forty years back for the princely sum of about ten bob [$1], and might have to try that trip myself next time in Melbourne for a bit of nostalgia.

Hi fnarf, what an interesting question!

Melbourne is a fabulous place for shopping but after re reading your posts, unlike Bushranger,I'd most definitely not advise either Camberwell, or Canterbury, as the place for everyday "mundane" shopping. (I live close to them both).

Yes, Canterbury is a pretty, small village shopping area, but very upmarket and filled with gift shops, cafes and expensive clothing "boutiques". It is very touristy and has no real shops for the locals. There is no supermarket, or bank, or bakery for example...

Camberwell is a traditional strip shopping area in a middle class/upper middle class area close to a number of exclusive private schools. It's quite a crowded area and can be very busy after three o'clock in the afternoon when the (many) cafes fill with schoolkids, as it's quite the done thing to have coffee whilst waiting for the next tram to arrive!

There are a number of "normal" shops such as supermarkets, chemists etc but it is more up market than surrounding shopping areas and caters for people out for a browse as well as "regular Joes".Fine Art Linens is a small, old fashioned shop stocking linen goods, not funky in the least, (imagine kittens and daisies and you get the picture)and to be honest I've never seen a single soul in there and wonder how the owner survives!

Flemington used to be a real working class shopping area, but like much of Melbourne is being slowly gentrified. If you want "real" shopping though, this is a far better example than Canterbury which is so much a tourist spot as to have been named one of the first Tourist Shopping Destinations.

There aren't many shopping strips with unchanged hairdressers etc as you describe, but for a taste of vibrant multicultural "ordinary" shopping, Box Hill, further down tramline route 109 might be interesting, or you could try Essendon, or Moonee Ponds, on the same side of the city as Flemington.

Have a great time in Melbourne, it's such a wonderful city!

Mundane, Maling Road is not but it has always been one of those streets that caught my eye driving past when living in Melbourne myself but I never got have a close up inspection and did not even realise it rated for tourism - http://www.101victoria.com.au/must-d...anterbury.html .

Opportunities to sample the scene changed since my daughter has moved into the area, within walking distance and whilst it does not have your modern type supermarket, there is the corner store variety and my daughter and SIL head to Maling Road for Saturday morning breakfasts on occasion and I have been myself on a few occasions of late.

Each to their own tastes but with book/bricabrac and quite a few interesting shops, not all necessarily what I'd call boutique I'd still rate it worth a drop in if you're in the area, no hordes of tourists when I've been there and still I suspect plenty of locals enjoying what they have locally.

Camberwell is as Libretto says more your traditional strip with development of supermarkets and yes is a busy strip and of the areas I've mentioned some are busier than others and I think therein lies some danger in seeking out something too mundane for if not popular enough you could even find a few or more vacant shops.
It seems to be the way that popular areas do attract cafes etc.

Another area on the mundane side I suppose could be Clarendon Street South Melbourne, a market there too, at least one supermarket but still a reasonable strip of shops and you may even find some vacant.
Last time I was there, I found an old bootmakers shop but he was retiring and shop just being closed up the very next week, no one interested in continuing on and that's what happens in some of the less busy, perhaps more mundane areas you could say.

Looking at the opposite compass point, you might as well check out North Melbourne too and from memory it may be Queensberry Street but look for the townhall and thereabouts.

the Vietnamese area in Richmond is Victoria St not Bridge Road-the latter has many outlet stores.

Hey, these are great suggestions. We've walked a few of these, but many new ideas here. Thanks you all.

Your description of Fine Art Linens sounds like paradise to me, Libretto! I've had enough "funky" for a while, and I'd like to be boring for a change. Yes, I'm a weirdo.

Thanks northie, I always tend to get the two mixed in the head a bit.

Another couple of not so close/outer suburban opportunities that could interest fnarf and you could do them by rail, would be on Dandenong line, try Oakleigh as going back 50 years it had a resonably prosperous shopping centre and no doubt Chadstone [mega SC] would have had an impact but the few times in recent years I've done the Warrigal Road overpass at Oakleigh, still an impression of some activity and the overpass will have reduced traffic.
And then Dandenong itself, a quite expansive shopping area and though changing over the years, I'd not be surprised at surprises to be found, especially on the railway station side of the Princess Hwy. [again, through traffic reduced because of freeways]

Also on the Belgrave Line, Belgrave right at the end had a very typical older stretch, though likely a bit of development since last there but I'd also reckon it's the kind of place where development is not too rapid, Puffing Billy station adjacent and Sherbrooke Forest not too far away for great easy walking if inclined.

On that line there's Box Hill mentioned by Libretto, kind of spread out sprawly with Whitehorse Road a very wide treed median strip splitter, bit like Dandenong but a lot smaller and then for a couple more of note there's Ringwood with an old strip on Maroondah Hwy., narrower than but Whitehorse Road continuation [quite a bit of development about] and then you have some smaller shopping strips at Boronia and Ferntree Gully but hardly worth the time as so many major SCs about kill the smaller places a bit if they ain't got much to offer.

Have you visited the factory outlet areas in Bridge Road, Richmond? There are also some factory outlets in Swan Street, Richmond but Bridge Road is THE place.
The linen place you refer in Camberwell (and I'm never seen any customers in there either) is almost opposite the train station. There is a market in Camberwell but it is food only.
As a suggestion for a day out, why not visit Camberwell first (lots of nice coffee shops), then take the train to Canterbury - Maling Road is a great place for lunch and a wander along a very pretty street (there is a small supermarket and a bakery). Then back to Camberwell and take the tram to Bridge Road for some serious shopping.

Head for Southland on the Nepean Highway at Cheltenham. One of the most mundane shopping malls in the world! google Southland shopping centre for how to get there.