Dirty Pretty Things

Dirty Pretty Things is Sydney’s newest little shopping secret for those looking for that certain je-ne-sais-quoi. Nestled at the quaint Five-Ways intersection in Sydney’s designer shopping district of Paddington, Dirty Pretty Things is a designer lingerie boutique with a hint of burlesque and a twist of old fashioned glamour.

Not your typical lingerie store, Dirty Pretty Things provides a luxurious, yet comfortable haven for women to shop for their most intimate apparel. With every attention to detail given by proprietress Melissa Gallagher, the store is fitted out like an old-world Parisian Boudoir, complete with chaise lounge, chandelier and vintage champagne glasses, from which you’ll sip a drop of bubbly as you browse the DPT wares.

Whether you’re looking for something cute as pie, or something a tad more saucy, style is de rigeuer at Dirty Pretty Things. Labels sourced from around the world include Madame V (UK), Roberta Glass (Aus), Buttress & Snatch (UK), Chantal Thomas (France), Guia La Bruna (Italy), Damaris (UK), Kit Willow (Aus), Gonzales (Spain), Side Show Design (Aus) and Bela’s Dead (UK).

In addition to lingerie, the boutique also stocks a range of cute and quirky accessories and gifts, from love notes to vintage gloves, ostrich fans, seamed stockings and diamante suspenders, every item has been hand selected to get budding burlesque beauties on the road to stardom!

Dirty Pretty Things prides itself on good old fashioned service - something that Proprietress Melissa Gallagher believes is almost extinct in today’s shopping mall culture.

“If you’re a woman shopping for herself, you can be guaranteed impeccable service, complete with a personal fitting to ensure that you unleash your femininity in the utmost comfort”, she said. “And if you’re a man looking to spoil his leading lady, don’t be shy! We’ll help you find that perfect something, guaranteed to make your Mrs or even your mistress (!) gasp and swoon at your impeccable taste grand romantic gesture!”

about melissa

Self described as a “hopeless romantic”, Dirty Pretty Things proprietress Melissa Gallagher has had a passion for old-fashioned glamour since she was a little girl learning to tap dance, clad in all things feathery and glittery.

After finishing school, Melissa spent the best part of a decade working as a florist, travelling and working around the globe, from India to San Francisco, Rome and London. It was while working at a flower stall in Covent Garden in 1997 that she fell madly in love with a new lingerie store Agent Provocateur, which was to trigger a lifelong obsession with lingerie.
It was when Melissa found herself in the emergency room following a serious car accident in 2001, watching doctors about to cut her out of her clothes and feeling primarily concerned with the preservation of her lingerie, that Melissa realised her obsession had reached lofty proportions.

It was this life changing-experience that made Melissa realise that life was too short. Melissa started to dream about one day owning her very own little lingerie boutique that would provide a haven for women to come and browse gorgeous, feminine, designer lingerie pieces, with a little bit of old school sass.

After spending time researching the history of lingerie and burlesque, Melissa finally bit the bullet and decided to make her dream a reality, embarking on a European buying trip in 2006 to source a range of quirky, designer boutique lingerie labels. In March 2007, Dirty Pretty Things opened for trading at the quintessential Five-ways intersection in Sydney’s designer shopping district, Paddington.

Having designed and fitted out the space herself, Dirty Pretty Things brings a decadent slice of Parisian Boudoir to Paddington, and provides a luxurious, yet comfortable place for women to shop for their most intimate apparel.

Whether they’re looking for something cute as pie or perhaps a tad more saucy, Dirty Pretty Things provides an old fashioned shopping experience, almost extinct in today’s shopping mall culture. When not working in the boutique, Melissa is constantly sourcing the finest lingerie labels and lines from Australia and around the world. She insists that she was a 1940s musical starlet in a past life.