Original Finish

Located in an old baker's shop which once produced 10,000 loaves a day, Original Finish is an antique restoration shop. The owners live above the shop and are gradually restoring it - some of this involves mindboggling tasks like replacing enormous supporting beams which have been eaten by white ants. It's an enormous property, rooms opening into bigger rooms, in a quiet back street, with a beautiful courtyard suffused with the smell of jasmine and illuminated by sunshine on the artfully flaking paintwork. Little treasures abound: a collection of shoemakers' lasts, numerous ancient and handsome tables, wonderful mirrors, the old and the new in tasteful harmony. 105 Wilson Street, Newtown.