Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - What are your favorite things to shop for in Europe?

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What are your favorite things to shop for in Europe?

I thought I'd ask everyone what they shopped for on their trip(s). What is the best buy or souvenier you bought? What are the best things to buy in each city/country/region? Are there any great stores or markets that must not be missed? Where is the best place to buy perfume in Paris; country clothes in London; shoes and leather in Italy; watches in Switzerland? I know this is a rather "general" question, but I am really interested to hear from everyone. >^..^<

I know it is cliche but I did buy a watch at Bucherer in Switzerland and love it. I have since shopped their web site for Christmas gifts and have nothing but good words for their craftsmanship and delivery. I got Spy prints in England (made for Vanity Fair covers and are barristers and other professionals done by a man who signed himself "Spy". I still have my heavy glass beer mug from Munich's Hofbrau, garnets from Prague, amber from Krakow, crystal from Budapest, prints from Paris, leather products from Florence.

one of my favourite purchases was a very large "plate" that I got from a pottery store in Portugal. We really thought long and hard about buying it as we knew it would be a bugger to get home but finally decided to buy it and carry it on the plane. That was 10 years ago and it is still on my living room wall and I absolutely love it.

Wine. Typically a dozen bottles or so, and I almost always wonder why I didn't buy more. After that, anything small - - since that's all I have room left for! Best wishes, Rex

In Italy,I look for wonderful bed and table linens, in Paris, kitchen gadgets at M.O.R.A. and dehillerin, in England I satisfy my craving for 19th cen, glass and English silver at the many antique shops. And EVERYWHERE I hit every grocery store and food hall, and stock up on all sorts of goodies that I can't get at home. This year in Paris I am going to Bon Marche, as on an earier thread allthe ladies were talking about their silk lingerie and fabulous nightdresses! Usually come home with a watercolor or engraving or 2 on each trip!

Fa men's spray deodorant. I can't find it anywhere but in Germany. It smells so good that the yellow jackets chase me all over my yard.

I always try to buy a tea cup and saucer made in whichever country I visit. Brings back fond memories whenever I use them. Also, I buy fridge magnets from the different countries...a red telephone from London, a doll from Russia, a viking from Sweden, a cuckoo clock from Germany, etc. Small reminders of wonderful times and seeing them everyday puts a spring in my step.:)

The biggest bargain I have found in Europe is this eye cream I use due to a problem with irregular corneas. When in France I bring back a similar cream that works just fine and costs a fraction. I actually wrote a piece that is elsewhere online about the best souvenir I ever came back with--a boat model of the ship that carried my great-grandmother and grandmother to the US. The whole thing happened by accident. The story can be found here: http://www.folksonline.com/folks/fam.../vaterland.htm Please note to the anti-advertising enforcers: I was paid a flat rate for this story (and not much). I do not get paid for hits. So, if you read the story, I do not get A PENNY. With the listing of all the boat records on the ellisislandrecords.org site, I bet the guy who makes those little models is going to get a lot of orders. lyv, I do have a story about 3 Italian pottery pieces that I schlepped all over Italy on a bus tour. They cost very little, but the largest of the bowls was the item I chose to design my dining room around when it was repapered. Everyone always asks where I got that bowl and I get to answer "Sorrento" and hope they are suitably impressed. LOL. The problem is that I love pottery and always end up schlepping something enwieldy. I do have to exercise better control and limit myself to easily packable items (but no Eiffel Towers with thermometers on them).

Ireland: wool fabric and yarn; Belleek and crystal (look for Christmas ornaments); cookbook. London: at Harrod's food court, coffee (Jamaican Blue Mountain, saints be praised), tea, lemon curd; Harrod's book shop for the latest British mysteries and Michelin guidebooks/maps not easily found in the U.S. and at better prices; in Covent Garden, there's a shop (I call it the Teapot Shop because that's what's in the window, damned if I know the real name) for all sorts of porcelain doo-dads, and a kitchen shop (finally found a knife block that's a reasonable size); Tower of London gift shop (it's outside the Tower) for a poster of the royal family tree - how else can this Yank keep all those Edwards straight? - and primitive water color prints of the Thames. Paris: Galeries Lafayette food shop for wine, foie gras, coffee, preserves, oils (one-stop, whirlwind shopping); Monoprix has food shops in some of their stores, too, and found all sorts of nifty canned and jarred stuff; both stores for kitchen stuff like ramekins and peppermills; BHV for outrageous drawer pulls, coathooks, and those little blue numbers for outside your house - and the little white signs for bad dog and no smoking; Viaduct des Artistes for a shop called M.O. for wonderous dried flowers and seeds and handmade papers and scrapbooks; Goumanyat for spices and seasalt (and a full dissertation by the owner on saffron); Louvre Museum shop (outside the museum) for prints, postcards, jigsaw puzzles, repros, and incredible stuff for kids; any department store for glorious socks and gorgeously patterned pantyhose. Brussels: lace, of course, but look for wearable art like collars and blouses - the handmade stuff is veeeerrrry expensive; chocolates; good-looking knit skirts and cotton knit dresses (that was a few years ago, so I don't remember the names of the stores); and a sweatshirt with a drawing of a drenched dog under which is printed "It always rains in Belgium" - from a shop just down the street from the infamous statue. Italy: shoes (if you can't find a shop, ask your seeing eye dog to look); olive oil; wine; olives; peppers; leather-bound photo albums, diaries, journals; in Venice, glassware and masks. In every country and city, go to hardware stores and kitchen departments for cooking stuff, tea towels, placemats, salt and pepper shakers, demitasse spoons, coffee mugs, pretty bottles, recipe books and cookbooks. In England I've found wonderful Christmas cards (in France, too, but they are in French); in Paris, I found cool crafts stuff in the department stores, like masks, feathers, miniatures, stickers, paint, and paper. Bring a fold up duffel bag or buy one (I've had to do that twice); pack the heavy and breakable stuff in your good suitcase (wrap clothes around the stuff for padding) and use the duffel for what's left. So far, I've only broken a $4 plate from a flea market (but the lamp made it home in one piece; $2 worth of Home Depot hardware and it's rewired).

Elvira, you have the definitive list (aside from the ship models and the eye cream). Do you have one of those imitation tapestries that they sell in France? I have 2 (small ones) that remind me of Europe every time I look at them. One is a scene from the Bayeux Tapestry; the other is sort of a page from the book of hours. I think they are machine embroideries and not tapestries but I love them. I have a couple of dolls, golfing marionette and a large Steiff teddy bear holding a Coca Cola bottle--and, of course, tons of wonderful books.

Although I live in Brussels and go to Paris at least once a month, my favorite shopping city is Vienna, hands down. I love the clothes (modern and updated traditional, not old style clothing), the bedlinens, the cookware, and even the jewelry I find there. I just got back from a week there and am planning a trip for the fall/winter basically just for shopping. The only thing I like shopping for better in Paris is the skin care (and also desserts; the famous Sacher torte is too dry in my opinion, and so are many other Viennese cakes). In my perfect life, I'd live in Paris (the 16th), eat French or northern Italian food (with occasional sushi forays), drive a German or Swedish car, have a Japanese garden, Belgian furniture, and Austrian clothing. BTilke

15 years ago my husband and I visited Florence, Italy and purchased a special souvenir..a mosaic picture made of different colored marbles, lapis and other semi-precious stones. No grout lines or texture, just a smooth surface with the pieces so beautifully done that until you look closely, it looks to be a painting. They are done by various artists and of different subject matter - ours is a Florentine skyline. When we returned last month, it took us some searching, but again found several shops specializing in this across the street from the Pitti Palace. We bought a second piece and found, or so they said, this is an art form first introduced by the Medicis. I have not seen anything like these gorgeous pieces in the States. It felt like a much more special souvenir than a leather jacket or a bottle of wine or the many other things we could have easily purchased at home for the same price, or less, than can be found in Italy.

These are great! To the top

Leslie, I'm sure what you are describing is pietra dura work. Next time you are in London go to the Gilbert collection at somerset house, they have a totalling amazing assemblage of this work

Chocolate! Lindt in Switzerland, Leonidas in Belgium, Ritters in Germany, just for starters. Wedgwood from London. Hummel figurines and cuckoo clocks from Germany. (The clock was fun to carry home.) My hands are small, and I found leather gloves that fit in Florence.

We have on our family room wall two old engravings (of Versailles and the Place Vendome) we bought at a stall along the Seine. (The framing was MUCH more expensive that the engravings!) Hanging in the kitchen is a tile we bought in Siena. We also try to find something to use as a Christmas tree ornament everywhere we go.

As long as you mean shop and not buy (Women go shopping, Men go buying). Germany - Women Italy - Women Hungary - Women Czech Rep - Women Switzerland - Women Austria - Women Sweden - Women Norway - Women Holland - Women England - Women USA(all 50) - Women Lichtenstein - Women France - Croissants

My favorite things to shop for in Europe are dolls. I have a collection of dolls from all different parts of the world. Whenever I'm in europe I like to look for the most authentic doll of that specific country.