Labotika

(© Saskia Vanderstichele)

In student areas you’re most likely to find a lot of bars, cheap (and tasty) eateries, and small convenience shops. But every now and then, you might bump into a nice surprise. Such as Labotika for instance, a small shop that mixes vintage with new furniture and objects.

The place is run by the charming Lao, a fashion designer originally from Madagascar. After many creative years in Paris, during which he had his own fashion label, he came to Brussels in 2008. It was a fresh start, with a new business. Labotika first saw daylight about a year ago, and Lao chose the VUB university simply because he lives around the corner and he knows that people looking for vintage treasures will travel the distance. The name means “The Boutique” with a Madagascan twist. Step inside and discover Lao’s carefully selected pieces of furniture and artwork. The wooden and metal high tables look sleek and minimal, and it’s very hard to imagine they once belonged to a hospital. They’re adjustable in height, which makes them perfect as a bedside table, coffee table, or even as a TV dinner table (if you’re into that). Lao seeks high and low for the best pieces, and spent months collecting vases to make a set. Some are Scandinavian, some Italian, it all works. There’s even some Piet Stockmans ceramics on sale as well. Vintage items go back to as early as the 1960s, of which the chair by the Italian designer Giancarlo Piretti is an excellent example. Spruce up your interior with some paintings, we loved the reproduction of Josef Albers and the black and white two-faced poem. If you’re not sure how to redecorate, keep an eye on Lao’s Tumblr page, packed with inspiration. He’s also planning weekend coffee sessions, to gather all deco lovers in Brussels.

LABOTIKA ●●●
Jaargetijdenlaan 17 avenue des Saisons, Elsene/Ixelles, www.labotika.be,
wo/me/We > za/sa/Sa 11 > 14.00 & 15 > 18.00