Downtown Riverside has many attractions: vintage stores, restaurants and indie bookstores, all complete with incredible architecture. As a result, many students from the University of California, Riverside (UCR), don’t tend to venture past this hub of exploration. After all, there is seemingly not much worth seeing past downtown.
Following this unfortunate line of thinking will cause you to miss out on many gorgeous shops and attractions that can be found past this area of Riverside. Forget Me Not Antiques, found on Elizabeth Street, just off Magnolia Street and a seven minute drive away from downtown, is one of these hidden gems.
This antique shop has a treasure trove of items waiting to be discovered and carried to their new home. When you first walk into this shop, you’ll notice the immediate festive theme as they have started decorating for the holiday season. Ornaments and small Christmas trees decorated with ribbons are scattered throughout the store bringing about that festive spirit. The immediate decorations give way to the store’s unapologetically authentic charm as you walk further into the shop.
Beautiful dining sets are artistically arranged at the front, with neat tags labeling the price, from the table to the glass centerpiece. Turning away from these sets, there is a long table bisecting the room in two, with chairs and wreaths sitting on top while velvet armchairs and chaise lounges surround the bottom.
Each side of the room is then divided into small nooks. Each nook has its own personality and is filled with baubles, room decor and clothing. Mirrors of all shapes and sizes line the walls, accompanied by artwork of various subjects as well as books organized on the floor. From lamps and small ceramic statues to fabric pumpkins and gorgeous vintage jewelry, Forget Me Not Antiques has an incredible variety in decor to fulfill your maximalist dreams.
Clothes can be found on racks throughout the store, but there is one section dedicated to outerwear. Vintage and modern coexist here in a beautiful dance. Each piece seems to hold a story that you can’t wait to uncover. Some things I was surprised to find at this store was a Levi jean jacket for $45, a Zara leather trench coat for $47 and a Giorgio Armani leather jacket for $90. Incredibly good prices for how expensive these brands can be. I’m sure if I had looked even deeper, I would have been able to find more incredible pieces for stellar prices.
Speaking of costs, everything in the store seemed reasonably priced, though at times there was no clear pattern for what garnered low and high values. Chairs might be $40, but a golden filigreed mirror could be $75. Jean jackets could be anywhere from $20 to $120, though this was likely more a factor of the brand that produced them. With a keen eye and a nose for bargains, you will be able to find the items of your dreams for nearly a fourth of the price of their original productions.
Forget Me Not Antiques is a delightful shop full of incredible objects and intriguing clothes. It is completely worth the trip out to see everything the store has to offer. I know that when I start decorating my house, this will be the place I go to for all my decor needs. It’s a good shop to visit if you want new aesthetic and maximalist pieces for your dorm, apartment or house for a more reasonable price than a regular furniture store. There won’t be nearly as much character in pieces from a different store than the ones you can find at Forget Me Not Antiques.
