Travel to Shopping Heaven – Scottsdale
Posted in Adventure, Arizona, Art, Cowboy Show, Native American, Scottsdale, Shopping, Travel | By Shelley Gillespie | Tags: Arizona, Scenery, Scottsdale Arizona, Shopping, Southwest
If you love to shop, Scottsdale is the mecca. Everything from high-end couture to kitsch is yours for the price. The shopping areas are reminiscent of everything from the old west to modern America to an Italian courtyard. Let’s start with “Old Town” –
Horses and the Wild West are still very much part of Old Scottsdale
Get your cowboy on
Visit Old Town Scottsdale and you almost feel like you should be purchasing a cowboy hat and boots. The theme is horses and the Wild West. Native American shops also show some really gorgeous craft items from pottery to jewelry.
Even the street signs are western in Old Town
Next door to Old Town you’ll see 5th Avenue Shops. The streets remind you of Boca and Palm Beach with many small, unique shops and eateries that pride themselves on having the right vibes to attract the crowds of Scottsdale.
Fifth Avenue Shops
More shops in Fifth Avenue
Nearby, you’ll also find the several blocks of the Scottsdale Arts District, with galleries waiting to tout the newest artiste.
Hop in your vehicle and head up the road
Travel up Scottsdale Road and your “shop ‘til you drop adventure” really begins. Scottsdale’s Fashion Square is the location for Nordstrom’s, Anthropologie, an array of other stores, both on the street and inside the mall.
Marquis for Scottsdale Fashion Square
If you’ve never been in an Anthropologie, it is a very unusual store that features clothing, but also has dishes, cookbooks and other eclectic gadgets. The floors are rough wood and some of the displays are hard to describe, so I won’t. I didn’t dare take a photo, because I got the distinct feeling that it wouldn’t have been appreciated! The owner/buyer, I read in an article, travels the world to find the items for the stores and he does snag some of the most unusual finds.
A courtyard at The Borgata
An arcade at The Borgata
Next up, several miles up the street, stop at The Borgata. Fountains splashing and a courtyard that makes you want to explore all the nooks and crannies leads you to probably my favorite shop of the day: Two Plates Full. A gift shop, Two Plates Full has a colorful array of gift items. And, color is the operative word here! Such a profusion of colorful gadgets, doodads and gift items is a joy! My special favorites were the funny mugs equating the months of the year with Jewish food, like a Chinese calendar (the Year of the Ram, etc.) but with bagels, knishes, and the like! Hilarious! Cards, fused glass, woven items, pottery, you name it! I had to restrain myself or I would have bought out the place. Terri, the owner has a real eye for the special and irresistible. Twoplatesfull.com
Two Plates Full - a great gift shop
(The above was an unpaid endorsement – I just viscerally loved that shop!)
Come back next week and we’ll finish our short shopping tour of Scottsdale.
Tags: Arizona, Scenery, Scottsdale Arizona, Shopping, Southwest