I have lived in the area for years on years, but I have never stopped in. I was talking a walk once with a friend, and we wanted to stop in. And wow, this place is truly a hidden gem. You could spend hours on hours in this store looking at costumes and antique items. My favorite is the jewelry. One of the managers told me that a lot of it is old because they get it from estate sales. Even I can tell by the quality and design that they are a bit older. My friend got a beautiful, layered pearl necklace. I got one of those 90s beaded bracelets and necklaces. The jewelry itself has a great variety. Not cheap- but it is quality. I will definetely be returning once I save up a bit more. Go with a friend and just explore :) We were there for about an our and still did not see the entire place. There is a basement FYI. Cannot wait to go back soon. read more

"Lost Eras" is a combination of a costume shop, a thrift store, and an antiques shop. The store is pretty disorganized, but if you've got a good amount of time, browsing it will be delightful. The first floor has some organization, with furniture and various knick knacks spread around at the front with jewelry. Most Halloween/theater costumes are further back on the first floor. There is a pretty good selection of the usual...flappers, pirates, princesses, etc. My first time here, I found a few 80s dresses and ended up buying one for a party. The basement has more general, vintage clothes along with all sorts of weird junk - old, creepy-looking dolls, rusty machines, a unicycle, old travel trunks and suitcases, etc. In my second time here, I found an awesome 70s dress in the basement while my friend got matching 70s-themed plaid pants and a tie. I also found a vintage coat that I would totally wear on a regular basis, and I plan on going back to buy it later. It's easily a coat that I would probably otherwise buy at some hip, vintage Web site for $50 and up, but it is probably super cheap at "Lost Eras." I say "probably" because pricing is one of the downsides to this store. A lot of the items do not have price tags, and it seems that the only person qualified to price them is the woman who owns "Lost Eras." When, for example, I tried buying items from a young man behind the counter during my second trip here, I was told that I'd have to wait for the owner to come back. Maybe that usually doesn't happen, but it was still slightly inconvenient. Also, since the store is disorganized, you can end up spending hours browsing the items while being distracted by everything else. Sure, i came in looking for 70s clothing, but wait...are those swords over there? On my second trip, my friend was mesmerized by the collection of bunny suits in the basement. (By the way, if you're interested, you can rent those bunny suits on a daily rate.) And it took me a long time to find my 70s gear; the clothing racks in the basement are tough to sort through. Still, overall, this store rocks compared to the other thrift/costume shops I've been to in Chicago. I've always found "Ragstock" to be just alright, and I actually went to "Brown Elephant" on Clark right after my second trip to "Lost Eras." For all the hype that I've heard about "Brown Elephant," I was just not very impressed after spending almost two hours at "Lost Eras." "Brown Elephant" seems to sell mostly just regular, just resold old GAP clothes. Boring. Finding a parking meter around "Lost Eras" seems pretty easy. They also buy costumes. Go give this store some love. read more

What a dump ... but what a glorious dump if you can deal with the eccentric owner and her give a shit attitude on whether or not you like the price she arbitrarily throws at you .. Honey Badger don't give a shit ... People bitch and moan about digging through all of the shit that's piled everywhere, but hey, isn't that part of the fun? Finding a diamond in the rough? Unfortunately the rusty dirty crap is priced like it's been displayed at Urban Remains ... Honey Badger don't give a shit ... Deal with it people cause Honey Badger has been there since 1969, She know that she's got the stuff you want and Honey Badger don't give a shit. read more

This place can be a bit expensive for a second hand type store, and for an allergy sufferer it can also be a painful nightmare. But, as an artist who can get lost amongst stuff, especially old stuff, this place is an absolute stuffed playground! Hours can be lost here. read more

There is no other place in Chicago that has this kind of assortment of odds and ends. It is paradise for the conceptual photographer looking for a prop or if you need a halloween costume of ANY KIND. They are really nice. Granted, some items can be overpriced, and parts of the store a little musky (what antique store isn't?) but this is all cancelled out by the fact that they have saved me more than a few times when I needed something very specific. read more

They have a lot of stuff, I'll give them that. But that was the last time I'll ever go there. After searching for a while I find some items only to be told that they are not for sale... just rentals, but nothing was marked. And they are such jerks, I mean really rude and unwelcoming. I'm pretty sure that they don't want or need our business. read more

Great place for Halloween shopping!! They have tons of costumes and decorations. It's a little far north but totally worth the trip!!

this place is chock full of awesome stuff. the problem is the owner. examples - a year ago, i found some 45's and wanted to pay for them at the register. the owner wanted to look them up online and then she would call me back with prices. hmm.. that already is unusual... i agreed though and after leaving repeated messages, she never called back. i stopped by and she had misplaced them. okay fine. a couple weeks ago, i spent a few hours digging through the mostly thrift store quality records in the basement and was expecting to pay the same general prices for the records that she charged me for a few weeks prior. ($7 for an album and $1/$2 for singles). By the time i came back up, she had left and had instructed her staff to call her and then text her photos of the records so she could price them remotely. after 20 minutes of waiting, that fell through and she said to leave my records and she would call with prices. I haven't heard from her. What really sucks is that I go through all the work of digging through crappy records, find a few i want and that may have some worth. She takes them and then puts them online (which she has said she does). So pretty much, i do her work for her with the knowledge i've gained over the years, for nothing. And get i no records. Unbelievable. If you buy records and have a modicum of self-respect, do not shop here. It's not worth the effort and you will be treated like garbage. read more

Ugh. I really don't like this place. It's always the go-to place for Halloween costumes, and rightfully so, as it is enormous and stacked with seemingly endless costume possibilities. However, because it's so stacked it is really hard to get around. You always need help getting what you need, either because you can't find it or you can't reach it, and there's usually 2, maybe 3 people working. Also, they have SO MUCH STUFF, but I feel like the buyers don't know how to filter through the good and the bad -- so much stuff is just junk. And it's junk that's dirty and not in good shape. The basement is the scariest. My roommate was in search of some specific item that I can't recall anymore, and as she was looking for it I wandered around and stumbled upon some shoes (my favorite!). As I was looking, I found one interesting, super old pair, but when I picked them up to inspect, I saw they were moldy because of the gross leaky conditions of the basement, which further goes to shoe that the workers don't check up on their merchandise. Once I saw that I hightailed it out of there. Also, I had some issues with their service policies. I think a lot of their stuff is overpriced, but the upside is they offer the option to rent, which is really convenient considering most of their stuff people only want for a limited time anyway. I was in need of a gorilla costume for a show I was working on, and they had a bunch, so I picked one up and rented it for $80. They have a policy that you cannot get any money back when you rent an item. When I showed the director of the show the suit, she said "no we only need the mask". Because I had a limited budget, I wanted to see if I could find an exception in that policy. No way. Even though it had been less than 24 hours since I had rented the suit, I couldn't get any money back. I still gave the suit part back and kept the mask, so essentially I rented the mask for $80. I understand that policies should be upheld, but I truly don't understand why they could not have made this exception. It would have benefited them in the long run because I would have continued to give them my business and given them a higher rating on Yelp. read more

By Far the BEST place in Chicago for a DIY Halloween Costume. Large store and basement with everything from astronaut to scuba diver gear available. Almost any piece of clothing is available for renting so you don't get stuck with something you will only wear once forever. read more

I went there for Tea Cups and walked out with a lot than just a couple tea cups. They have just about anything you could think of!

Fantastic place to find all sorts of strange costumes and unique antiques.

Costume wise this is a great shop. As a goth chick, this place carries some of the best romanti-uber-goth stuff; by which I mean you can buy a victorian dress. However, when buying a victorian dress, expect to pay for a victorian dress. They also will rent costumes for plays. It's sort of a year round halloween shop/ the discarded remnants of an old theater. It used to be extremely disorganized, but over the last four months has drastically improved. read more

Having not been before, I didn't know what to expect but was so pleased to see the huge collection at the shop. Don't be intimated by the size, everything is organized well. I intended to spend an hour here, but spent nearly 2.5 wandering, and left feeling really relieved that I had found most of what I was looking for to re create an 1890s saloon for the Chicago Athletic Association hotel. read more

Eclectic, cool place. The sheer amount of THINGS can be overwhelming, but just let them know what you're looking for and they'll find you some great treasures. A word to the wise: embrace the fine art of haggling. read more

Great selection and huge inventory. The service however was confounding. 10-15 minutes before closing I approached the service counter. The woman behind the counter (the owner) informed us that she was closed. I politely asked if I could purchase an item (book) in the case under the counter. I was told that she had closed and had someplace she needed to be. When I pointed out that it was not yet 6, she glared, sighed and begrudgingly stated that she would "reopen" the register (which took all of 30 seconds). Mind you there are still other customers in the store. I asked about a book and she curtly replied that it was a FIRST edition. I naively took her at her word, did not closely review the book (it was wrapped in plastic), paid her what she asked for, and even purchased 2 additional items to make it worth her while. I recognize that I am clearly at fault for not closely inspecting the book. She clearly wanted me to leave and I guess I gave her the benefit of the doubt. Just got home. The book is NOT a first edition. In addition she also charged me 400% more than the price on the well concealed sticker. I asked her not to bother wrapping the item but she insisted. Now I know why. She even had the nerve to tell me that she generously paid for the tax out of her own pocket. The other negative reviews on Yelp are spot on. We will not return. I advise you to avoid this establishment like the plague. Although there is a substantial collection of icky porn in the basement if you don't mind getting your hands dirty. read more

So much fun and not just for Halloween. I mosied past on my way somewhere else I love brick a brack but didnt tease myself by goiong in because I knew in that area the proces would be out of my league. Well on my return trip I couldnt help but ti stop in pretend like I could affors to shop there I help my head high and walked in like I had a million bucks so many sculptures and jewelry and stuff I could buy. I crossed my fingers and hoped I could treat myself to the brass disk link chain I had in my hand. When I got to the counter the sweet lady said "is that all for you" "yes" I replied with the five dollars in my hand(they only take cash) hoping she didnt say it was more than that. "How about a couple bucks" "oh please take the whole five" " oh dont worry about it you'll need your change"...I put my necklace on even thought it didnt match my out fit thinkng about the perfect earrings I had at home to match it...and sure enough I needed my change when I passed my car I noticed my meter had expired and I wasnt done shopping... read more

The first time I went to Lost Eras I was amazed to say the least. It's a fucking wonderland of trinkets, oddities, costumes, furniture, books... I mean the list goes on and on. It's a place you have to experience and I'm so happy I know about it. I play in the local band Redemer, and before every show (at least for the last couple of ones) I've been stopping there to stock up on supplies. Lost Eras makes me look good and play like a pimp when I hit the stage. And the staff has always been the nicest to me. Much love :) read more

This store is Unbelievable!!! Charolet has outdone herself....You can spend hours and hours in here. Highly recommend it. Come one come all!

this is the best store in chicago! the staff is really cool and i love that you can bargain with them. i'm hoping someday they would open a store on the south side. read more