Steph Tribe, of Greystones Antiques, had looked to sell items that could be easily shipped when this year's restrictions limited her walk-in customers.

"But I just love it, so the store's half clothes now," she said.

With the help of various contacts and overseas auction houses, Miss Tribe stocked, for example, couture designer dresses from the 1960s and 1970s.

"They're hard to find," she said.

"I wasn't sure if they'd sell but they just flew off the racks, so I need to get some more."

IN OTHER NEWS:

Regional visitors are now returning to the Myrtle Street shop and Myrtleford's inclusion in the border bubble made an immediate difference with the arrival of Albury shoppers.

"Not having people in town, you really notice the difference, there's no life blood coming in," Miss Tribe said.

"There's a steady stream of people now; people are still being cautious but coming out occasionally so that's been a huge change, it's really helpful."

Greystones Antiques opened in September 2019 after renovations that aimed to recapture the original look of the 19th century building.

Once a general store run by the Rothery family, the site was most recently a motorcycle business, something of a contrast to antiques.

Customers have responded well to the change, making positive comments about the store's visual impact on the street.

Miss Tribe had worked in the industry in Melbourne and previously visited Myrtleford before deciding to make a permanent move.

She thinks her love of antiques probably came from her parents.

"I don't remember having a new piece of furniture in the house growing up," she said. "It was kind of a job I fell into after school, and you just continue to do it.

"I loved it, every day is different, everything is new, it's really fun finding out where things came from and seeing things I haven't seen before."

Continually stocking one-of-a-kind pieces is labour-intensive and the owner did toy with items that could be more easily replaced.

"I've put them on our website and it just feels wrong, and I'll feel dirty, almost, and I'll just get rid of it," Miss Tribe said.

"It's not what I want to do, I want to promote reusing things.

"I just hate the sort of thing that's made just to be thrown away within about 12 months.

"So I just think, 'I'm never going to do that' and because I've decided that, I have to do the hard work.

"I enjoy it as well, so it's not a horrible task; it's hard, but I love it."