Baltimanual :: Shopping

Baltimore used to be exclusively a thrift-score town, but in the last few years serious boutiques finally arrived. The days of having to go to the counties to get new clothes or, you know, underwear, are over. The city still lacks a bona fide shopping district, but it does have shopping hubs. There are plenty of treasures to be found in other areas, too, so it's worth exploring. Also, keep in mind that store hours vary and shops may be closed at times that are frankly absurd.

Top: Whimsy/Reason; Left: Squidfire

It's hard to beat Federal Hill for walking around shopping, but be prepared-parking sucks and you will get panhandled. This neighborhood south of the Inner Harbor is home to Baltimore's only American Apparel store (1125 Light St., [410] 244-7260, americanapparel.net), where you can grab basics in an environment that will make you feel not cool enough to wear them. Babe (910 S. Charles St., [410] 244-5114, babeaboutique.com) offers flirty dresses, embellished tops, and designer jeans. The French Connection-heavy selection of swingy dresses and ruffly tops at Whimsy (1033 S. Charles St., [410] 234-0204, whimsyreason.com) is aspirational and upstairs Reason focuses on men, a rarity in Baltimore's boutiques.

Take care of your skin at SoBotanical (1130 S. Charles St., [410] 234-0333, sobotanical.com), a local company that makes delicious soaps and lotions. Massive Shofer's Furniture (930 S. Charles St., [410] 752-4212, shofers.com) offers story after story of housewares. (Prices can be steep, though, so keep the clearance center across the street in mind.) Book Escape (805 Light St., [410] 504-1902, thebookescape.com) is a short hike from the rest of these shops, but is one of the best used bookstores in the city.

Near the water but not as touristy as the Inner Harbor, Fells Point is a neighborhood where tourists and locals blend. Su Casa (901 S. Bond St., [410] 522-7735, esucasa.com) on Thames Street (rhymes with "names") is full of furniture appropriate to the size and aesthetic of Baltimore rowhouses. Corduroy Button (1625 Thames St., [410] 276-5437) offers a collection of cool rather than cutesy baby clothes, toys, and furniture. Trixie's Palace (1704 Thames St., [410] 558-2195, trixiespalace.com) is a funky boutique with stylish but affordable dresses, tops, and bags and cute, kitschy accessories. Cupcake on Broadway (813 S. Broadway, [410] 522-0941, cupcake-shop.com) also features women's clothing but more high end, while Poppy and Stella (728 S. Broadway, [410] 522-1970, poppyandstella.com) has drool-worthy shoes.

Off the main Broadway drag, you can grab graphic T-shirts and sneakers from Free Soulz Boutique (536 S. Ann St., [410] 558-0208, freesoulz.com) or check out the well-organized used duds at Fashion Attic (1926 Fleet St., [410] 276-0817, thefashionattic.com). For a taste of old-school Baltimore, stop into Hi's Variety (1727 Fleet St.), a small general store that magically seems to have whatever you need. There are plenty of great antique/junk shops in Fells, too. Try Another Period in Time (1708 Fleet St., [410] 675-4776, anotherperiod.com), which has tons of collectibles and an enormous bargain area, and the Antique Man (1806 Fleet St., [410] 732-0932, theantiquemanltd.com), which is only open to the public weekends but combines an overwhelming array of beautiful furniture with bizarre knickknacks and a carnival vibe-don't miss the two-headed giant.

Harbor East is Baltimore's newest hot spot. Besides having one of the only two Whole Foods (1001 Fleet St., [410] 528-1640, wholefoodsmarket.com) in the city, it's also home to Bin 604 (604 S. Exeter St., [410] 576-0444, bin604.com), a fantastic wine store with a friendly, helpful staff. South Moon Under (815 Aliceanna St., [410] 685-7820, southmoonunder.com) and Urban Chic (811 Aliceanna St., [410] 685-1601, urbanchiconline.com) feature clothes for the young and fashionable. Benjamin Lovell (618 S. Exeter St., [410] 244-5359, benjaminlovell.com) has shoes that combine comfort and style. And Arhaus (660 S. Exeter St., [410] 244-6376, arhaus.com) is the place to go if you want seating made from driftwood, along with some seriously posh-looking furniture.

Mostly home to chain stores, the Inner Harbor is more a useful shopping destination than an exciting one. Locals tend to steer clear because of the crowds and the fact that you generally have to pay for parking. It has, however, the area's first Urban Outfitters (301 Light St. # 2540, [410] 685-3115, urbn.com) and The Gallery (200 E. Pratt St., [410] 332-4191, harborplace.com), which is small for a mall, but has a little bit of something for everyone. There's also a massive Filene's Basement (600 E. Pratt St., [410] 685-2637, filenesbasement.com) and Barnes and Noble (601 E. Pratt St., [410] 385-1709, barnesandnoble.com) near the Power Plant area. For something local, you can get a suit or business casualwear at Joseph A. Banks (100 E. Pratt St., [410] 547-1700, josabanks.com). It's a national retail chain, but it started in Baltimore.

Mount Vernon's stores are a bit more spread out than in some of the other shopping areas, but on a nice day, strolling the historic neighborhood is a pleasure. For pretty women's clothing hovering around $100 or more, check out Londons Boutique (318 N. Charles St., [410] 244-1288, myspace.com/boutiquelondon) and Doll House (525 N. Charles St., [443] 874-7900, dollhouseboutique.com). You can also get your fashion-forward girly on at Blu Vintage (823 N. Charles St., [410] 547-9335, bluvintage.com) and Katwalk (243 W. Read St., [410] 728-9255, myspace.com/katwalkboutique) for somewhat lower prices.

A People United (516 N. Charles St., [410] 727-4471, apeopleunited.com) brings together clothes with Indian, African, and Asian influences and furniture from similar styles. The Women's Industrial Exchange (333 N. Charles St., [410] 685-4388, womansindustrialexchange.org) was formed after the Civil War to help women sell their handmade crafts, and still follows that model today with toys, clothes, and tchotchkes. The Zone (813 N. Charles St., [410] 539-2817) provides thriftscores in both clothes and accessories for men and women.

For mid to high-end men's wear, heavy on Italian labels, stop in Gian Marco Menswear (517 N. Charles St., [410] 347-7974, gianmarcomenswear.com). Gentei (1010 Morton St., [410] 244-8961, shopgentei.com) offers streetwear that seems more from New York or Tokyo than Baltimore. Ted's Musicians Shop (11 E. Centre St., [410] 685-4198) has been selling and repairing musical instruments for the Peabody crowd since 1931. Not-so-august fetish shop Chained Desires (136 W. Read St. [410] 528-8441, chaineddesires.com) boasts its own notary public as well as bondage gear. And Red Emma's Bookstore and Coffee (800 Saint Paul St., [410] 230-0450, redemmas.org) is a perfect home base for your revolution of choice.

Hampden, once the land of antique/junk shops and not much else, now boasts some of the best shopping in the city, and the fact that all the stores are clustered around four blocks of "The Avenue" (36th Street) makes it an easy place to walk around and browse. There are three main women's clothing stores in the neighborhood, all of which sell incredibly cool clothes and accessories at varying price tags. DoubleDutch (3616 Falls Road, [410] 554-0055, doubledutchboutique.com) is the cheapest, followed by Shine (1007 W. 36th St., [410] 366-6100, shopshinecollective.com), and then Form (1115 W. 36th St., [410] 889-3116, formtheboutique.com). Get shoes to match your new outfits (and gourmet chocolate, too) at Ma Petite Shoe (832 W. 36th St., [410] 235-3442, mapetiteshoe.com). Local label Squidfire (1100 W. 36th St., [410] 554-3737, squidfire.com) sells T-shirts and hoodies with designs that put the quirk in quirky; the baby clothes are killer.

For second-hand fashion try 9th Life (833 W. 36th St., [410] 534-9999, 9th-life.com), Dreamland (845 W. 36th St., [410] 467-1582, myspace.com/dreamlandclothing), or the Minás Gallery (815 W. 36th St., [410] 732-4258, minasgalleryandboutique). There are plenty of antiques and used goods to be had at the massive Avenue Antiques (901 W. 36th St., [410] 467-0329), deco treasuretrove Paradiso (1015 W. 36th St., [410] 243-1317), the self-deprecatingly named Hampden Junque (1006 W. 36th St., [410] 889-6453, hampdenjunque.com), and others.

The furniture and housewares at Red Tree (921 W. 36th St., [410] 366-3456, redtreebaltimore.com) are impressive. Atomic Books (3620 Falls Road, [410] 662-4444, atomicbooks.com) offers a wide variety of books, comics, and toys for the "mutated mind," while Sugar (927 W. 36th St. [410] 467-2632, sugartheshop.com), tucked behind the block, carries an impressive array of sex toys and tomes.

Mondawmin Mall (2401 Liberty Heights Ave., [410] 523-1534, mondawmin.com) in Northwest Baltimore is also noteworthy. Besides sitting across from the only full service MVA (marylandmva.com) in the city, it also has a much-needed Target (target.com) and the mall itself is airy and bright. If you're hoping for a Gap, you'll be disappointed, but if you are looking for clothes by Rocawear, G-Unit, and Ed Hardy, you'll be in heaven. Mondawmin also features the largest, best maintained Forever 21 (forever21.com) we've ever seen.