The Prettiest Shops in the Bay

All shops were not created equal.  Sure, there are shops that have what you need, shops that are cool, shops that are historic…but what about mercantile meccas that make your heart feel good?

If you don’t like shopping, first of all: you’re wrong.

You love shopping.

You love worshiping at the feet of the God Capitalism and He has judged you for your wallet.  So if you have to go out into the hilariously depressing world of Bay Area pricing, you better pick places that make you feel better.  Here are some of the prettiest places to shop in San Francisco and its beautiful neighbors in the East Bay.

Miette
449 Octavia St, SF

Courtesy of Circa Happy

Oh, do you also have a mild fetish for brightly colored things organized in many jars? Great, me too. I also enjoy pastel-colored wonderlands that sell candies like it’s the 1800’s.

Tigerlily
973 Valencia St, SF

Courtesy of Travelshopa

Vintage furniture, feminine oasis, always pleasant and never overwhelming, and there are often events with booze.

General Store
4035 Judah St, SF

Courtesy of SF Shop Girl

Plenty of stores go for that California-meets-Norway vibe but few do it as well as General Store. Also, the backyard though.

Little Paper Planes
855 Valencia St, SF

Courtesy of Got a Girl Crush

Being in the LPP shop is like being in your really cool artist-friend’s apartment, where you wonder where she got all this stuff and start feeling an acquisitive lust come over you.

The Gardener
1836 Fourth St, Berkeley

Courtesy of Fleuropean

It’s a garden-themed home goods store in a particularly nice part of Berkeley, what else could possibly convince you to go?

Alchemy Bottle Shop
3256 Grand Ave, Oakland

Courtesy of La Nina del Mezcal

If my liver died and went to heaven, this is what it would look like. And there’s tastings on Saturday, guys…tastings. In case I wasn’t clear, they sell alcohol. But jesus, look at it.

Esqueleto
482A 49th St Suite A, Oakland

Courtesy of Aliya Armorer of Aesthetic.Li blog

Esqueleto’s shop is a lot like its jewelry: funky, delicate, bright and a good way to taunt the inner demon in you that says “hey, I can probably just buy this $5000 ring…right?”

Flora Grubb
1634 Jerrold Ave, SF

Courtesy of Accidentally Jetset

It’s straight-up full of plants, y’all. Beautiful, well-tended plants and plant accessories. The kind of place you want to just hang out in for hours. And because there’s a cafe, you can.

Owl & Company Bookshop
3941 Piedmont Ave

Courtesy of Shopikon

If you ever imagined the kind of small, antique bookshop where you might inadvertently stumble upon a book that sucks you into a magical journey that changes your life, it probably looked a lot like this one.