Attractions ~ Hawk's Guide to Vermont Shopping
Vermont means more than just peace and quiet, healthy exercise and magnificent vistas. The Green Mountains offer the gift of a long-standing tradition for handmade crafts, antiques and art - and shopping that's wrapped in a perfect setting of historic villages and handsome downtowns. The items you'll find are the antithesis of mass-produced mall offerings.
Start with our more than 1,500 craftspeople whose works capture the beauty of the countryside and embody Vermont's reputation for hand-made quality and detail. Their visions are as whimsical as clay whistles and as substantial as cherry cabinets and hand-painted armoires, and as varied as glass sculpture, pewter, hand-woven rugs and woodcut prints. These distinctive works are available at more than a hundred major crafts fairs each year, four state crafts centers in Middlebury, Windsor, Manchester and Burlington, and at craft stores and artisans' studios.
Then there's our antique stores, where you'll never know what you'll find - which is part of the fun. From Victorian dresses to old clocks, folk art to Tiffany lamps, pedestal sinks to dry sinks - not to mention odd Vermontania - it's out there somewhere for you to discover and take home. As for our galleries, you'll discover posters, pastels, watercolors, statues and sculptures for the home or office, lawn or garden.
Of course, Vermonters are practical folks, so no visit is complete unless you check out our amazing, one-of-a-kind country stores and eclectic food emporiums. They feature Vermont-made products, baskets, kitchenware, wrought iron - you name it. You'll find essential things you never knew existed, along with stuff like pickle barrels, penny candy, great baked goods and cider donuts.
We've got lots of restored, 19th-century red brick mills and converted downtown buildings too, where you can browse in unique shops or watch craftsmen and buy their handiwork. Of course, we feature the best apparel outlet stores too, and special theme stores filled with teddy bears or cow items, and fine eateries and cafes that beckon for espresso and sweets, afternoon tea or a cozy lunch.
Overall, the Vermont shopping experience is definitely a gift worth giving yourself.
See Also
Antiques And Furniture
Arts And Crafts
Clothing
Foodstuffs
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