140 Best Places to Shop in USA

This is a wonderful place to find meaningful souvenirs of Maine. Made by dozens of Maine artisans, the finely hand-crafted pieces include jewelry, pottery, paintings, fine photography, clothing, skincare products, preserves, and household items.

Pop into the Maine State Prison Showroom for handcrafted wooden items ranging from beautiful cutting boards to furniture offered at very modest prices. Since 1824, prison inmates participating in the skills-building industries program have created wooden goods to be sold to the public; the proceeds fund the program. The store contains hundreds of items. Some, like ship models, have a nautical theme. Other items include toys, bowls, jewelry boxes, birdhouses, bureaus, and tables. They also sell metal firepits.

Millions of trees in the Green Mountains make Vermont a wood-carver's dreamscape. The saws, planes, and scrapers of the woodshop here turn out a range of handsome household goods, plus a wide selection of pieces and parts for DIY fans.

In an old five-and-dime building, A Mano stocks colorful crafts and home decor, some by local makers, at a variety of prices. Look for jewelry, glass, pottery, cards, and wearable art, as well as some contemporary furniture and lighting. One section has pajamas and robes. 

Contemporary fine crafts, including jewelry, sculptural glass, ceramics, and fiber arts can be found at this longtime Albuquerque gallery. In town since 1974, a smart and changing selection of high-quality wares by local artisans has been a constant. Special exhibits focus on established artists (such as extraordinary mixed-media metalwork by Cynthia Cook and provocative pieces by collagist Suzanne Sbarge) and worthy newcomers.

Head upstairs from the Keams Canyon Restaurant to peruse first-rate, high-quality Hopi crafts such as handcrafted jewelry, pottery, beautiful carvings, basketry, and artwork.

Baskets, moccasins, beaded hair ornaments, and carved bone pendants, all handmade by American Indians, are available for purchase at the Mohawk Indian Craft Shop at Kanatsiohareke, a traditional Mohawk community and education center about 10 mi west of Amsterdam. The selection of books for adults and children is large; you'll also find American Indian–style cotton shirts and dresses adorned with flowing ribbons.

A small downtown shop, this arts and crafts co-op has locally made folk art like dolls, clay flowers, silk sarongs, and children's items. The shop also carries rotating original art by more than 100 Molokai artists and giclée prints, as well as jewelry, locally produced music, and Saint Damien keepsakes.

Owned by the prestigious Nedra Matteucci Galleries, this is a veritable museum of Native American art. An adobe shaded by a huge cottonwood tree houses antique basketry, pre-1940 Navajo silver jewelry, Northwest Coast Native American carvings, Navajo weavings, and art of the Plains Indians. Prices and quality span the spectrum, making this a great stop for both new and experienced collectors.

Needlepointers, knitters, quilters, and crochet enthusiasts from miles around flock to this fantastic little shop to find patterns, yarn, thread, and instruction.

The New York Folklore Society sells one-of-a-kind items made by New York folk artists: carved birds and walking sticks, quilts, hand-knitted children's sweaters, American Indian jewelry, baskets, and Ukrainian pysanky (decorated eggs).

This store specializing in Navajo rugs has the largest collection in the area. There are also handmade baskets, beadwork, pottery, and jewelry. If you stop in the free museum you can see relics of the Old West.

Across from the Tucson Museum of Art, the Old Town Artisans complex of adobe buildings dating back to the 1850s has a large selection of Southwestern wares and locally made art, including Native American jewelry, baskets, Mexican handicrafts, pottery, and textiles. You'll also find regional specialty foods, beer and wine, a record shop, and LaCo Tucson, a pleasant outdoor restaurant and bar.

The local artists and craftspeople of the guild established this nonprofit organizaton in the late 1940s, and sell their artwork in this converted old house. Here they host juried art shows, antiques and craft shows, and an annual holiday open house with children's programs and classes.

The Alaska Native–owned cooperative Oomingmak sells items made of qiviut, the ultra-soft and warm undercoat of musk ox, from inside one of the few small houses remaining in Downtown. Scarves, shawls, hats, and tunics are knitted in traditional patterns by women in villages across Alaska.

On South Congress Avenue, in the epicenter of Austin’s weird culture, this nondiscreet store offers tokens of the city from local designers. Yes, you'll find typical souvenirs like Texas-branded tees and tote bags, but then you’ll discover the rest of the store. Local artists design everything from the huge collection of screen-printed gig posters to the fabulous leather goods; the variety is incredible. Whatever the type of souvenir or handcrafted artisan creation you're looking to take from the capital city, this is the place to get it.

The flagship shop of 10 locations across Pennsylvania, this nonprofit gallery funded by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts showcases crafts made by artisans statewide. Finely crafted woodwork, ceramics, textiles, and more are on offer.

Contemporary and traditional works from 350 craftspeople fill this gallery and shop in Winston-Salem's arty hub. The organization has held an annual fair in November since 1963.

The building is a fixture in Greenport—a wharfside ship's chandlery dating from 1880—and Preston's continues the nautical theme with its inventory of marine supplies and clothing. Giftware includes scrimshaw, jewelry, sailing books, and all things nautical for the boat and home.

Pueblo Trading Post dates back "only" to 1980 but is housed in a 1920s carved sandstone building that was once a more traditional trading post and has earned a solid reputation for the quality of its silver and pottery, which is all made by Zuni, Navajo, and Hopi craftspeople from the surrounding region.

This gallery of hand-crafted artwork and gifts represents 200 local and regional artisans. Ceramics, jewelry, paintings, and other arty items are all one-of-a-kind, excellent as souvenirs of your Lititz visit. 

Handmade quilts and quilting materials fill Quilters Corner, Etc., in the historic Larabie Brothers Bank building, the first Deer Lodge bank.

You can't miss the giant sculpture of Betsy the lobster in front of this eclectic spot. Set in a tropical garden of shady trees, native shrubs, and orchids, the crafts village has shops selling the work of local and national artists, as well as resident artists who sell work from their own studios.

Established in 1945, this colorful, if touristy, shop does business in an old, rambling adobe complex, part of which dates from before the 1680 Pueblo Revolt and also served as offices for the Manhattan Project. The shop carries early Navajo, Mexican, and Chimayó textiles, along with photographs, a breathtaking collection of vintage pawn and Mexican jewelry, Day of the Dead figures, Oaxacan folk animals, New Mexican folk art, kachinas, and contemporary jewelry from local artists. The friendly staff possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of the art here.

This gallery stocks hand-stitched clothing, giftware, and jewelry, in addition to works of art by watercolorists C. D. Clarke and Julie Joyce and painters Luther Hall, Stephen Left, Tim Borski, and Jorge Martinez, among others. Proceeds benefit cystic fibrosis research. It's in the Morada Way Arts and Cultural District.

A gorgeous coffeehouse and gallery–gift shop, Resurrect is located inside a 1932 church. The ambience and the views from the old choir loft are reason enough to stop by. This is a good place to get great coffee, enjoy fresh pastries, and find Alaskan-made gifts—mostly made by local artists and craftspeople, so they aren't mass-produced.

More than 60 artists, craftspeople, and entrepreneurs in ceramics, painting, textiles, woodworking, and jewelry work in this complex of studios and galleries in the River Arts District. Several of the artists offer classes, and there's lots of free parking.

Several artisan shops, including Roycroft Antiques, the Copper Shop, and Roycroft Potters, occupy space in the Roycroft Campus buildings. Buy art, jewelry, Arts and Crafts furniture, and home accessories.

Tucked down a driveway beside the trail to the Giant's Stairs, this tiny cottage is packed with carefully selected, Maine-made items created by nearly 100 artisans. The paintings, jewelry, soaps, clothing, textiles, and other wares make the perfect gifts or souvenirs.