SHOPPING WE WILL GO
Stores in Sharon and Sewickley beckon browsers and buyers
Two hours, one hour, a half-hour: When the weather is nice, or when you just feel like getting out of town for the day, forget about that goodfor-you hike, bike, kayak or canoe trip. Go shopping! For people who love the hunt, here are two destinations that are worth the drive from Pittsburgh: Sharon, in Mercer County, and Sewickley. They’re completely different, but they have something for every kind of shopaholic.
SEWICKLEY
The borough of Sewickley is one of the Pittsburgh region’s wealthiest municipalities, but it possesses a village-y feel like no other. Of course, it’s not much of a drive if you live nearby, but if you haven’t visited in a while, a couple of boutiques have just opened that are worth checking out amid a shopping scene here that has really come into its own: In a four-block radius around Beaver and Broad streets, there are 15 women’s clothing boutiques, five jewelry stores (costume, estate and the fancy stuff), a men’s store, a children’s store, a book store, a toy store, a fine linen store, six gift and floral stores, four furniture and decorative home accessory stores, a vintage candy store and a comic book store. Also: two antiques and collectibles stores, a paint-your-own pottery studio, a cigar store, a yarn store, a needlepoint shop, a specialty tea and chocolate shop, a stationery shop and four art studios.
It was impossible to get to them all in an afternoon, but think of the possibilities on a Saturday, when virtually all the stores are open. Many are closed on Sundays and Mondays. Here are four stores, new or unique or both:
J. McLAUGHLIN: An upscale national chain of women’s and men’s clothing with a preppy/modern vibe, tends to open its stores in affluent locations — from Georgetown in Washington, D.C., to Palm Beach, Fla., to Newport Beach, R.I. It took a while to get to Pittsburgh — the region’s demographics may not have been right for it until now. But it’s here, finally, at 449 Beaver St.
Take that, Saks Fifth Avenue!
Pros: Color, color, color, with tropical-colored print dresses, handbags, men’s shirts and ties, and scarves.
Cons: The store is tiny, with limited inventory. J. McLaughlin’s store is online, but it’s fun to see the stuff up close.
PENDLETON: This store, at 424 Beaver St., has been a Sewickley staple for years, selling traditional men’s and women’s sportswear, but the real lure is the incredible Pendleton blankets, mostly found on the store’s second floor, in glorious patterns that seem to vibrate with color. They’re still made at some of the last woolen mills in the U.S. today, in Oregon and Washington, by the same company that initially manufactured trading and ceremonial blankets for Native American tribes. Pros: The blankets! Cons: A little pricey at $235 each. But worth it: They’ll last forever.
WILSON & WEIR: At 421 Broad St., the store is full of pretty objects guaranteed to brighten a home and celebrate the good life: unusual lamps, cashmere ponchos that can be ordered in any color, chic throw pillows, decoupage, pajamas and whimsical needlepoint slippers.
BARBERRY HANDMADE: Just a few doors away, at 429 Broad St., this shop sells jewelry, accessories, gifts and home goods but with a twist: They’re made by skilled artisans from Pittsburgh to Afghanistan. Finally, woven baskets are a standout, but every object is remarkable.
Pros: If you love color, these stores are for you. Handwoven silk-and-cotton scarves at Barberry are available in every shade, from raspberry to blueberry to kiwi, and beginning at $30. Wilson & Weir has samples in every size of its $198 needlepoint slippers, which must be ordered, but it’s a quick ship.
Cons: These little stores are a bit out of the way — blink and you’ll miss them — because Broad Street doesn’t get as much foot traffic as Beaver Street. Keep your eyes open!
SHARON
The town, an hour and 12 minutes from Downtown Pittsburgh on Interstate 79, saw its steel industry collapse in the 1980s and has spent decades trying to rebrand itself as a bargain shopping mecca, home to the “world’s largest” off-price fashion store, shoe store and candy store.
THE WINNER: “Are you nervous, honey?” Rochelle Dutt asked her daughter Abby one sunny afternoon recently as they walked along Main Street toward The Winner, which calls itself the world’s largest off-price fashion store.
Abby, 18, shook her head, but her mother seemed a little wistful. The two had made a 75-mile trip from Doylestown, Ohio, to comb through racks and racks of foamy, fluffy, candy-colored dresses for Abby’s senior prom, which is May 2 at Kingsway Christian High School. This was Ms. Dutt’s third trip to The Winner to buy a prom dress. “I’ve been here with my two older daughters. It’s a rite of passage,” she said before they disappeared into clouds of pink tulle.
The Winner is probably worth the drive for teens who want their prom dresses big or blingy. The store was founded by Jim Winner, inventor of the auto-theft security device The Club, who died in a car crash in 2010.
At The Winner, there’s bridal, sportswear and other special occasion clothing, too, but this being prom season, the three-story outlet was filled with mothers and daughters, bickering and giggling.
The Winner may be an off-price store, but many of the dresses, most bagged in plastic, had price tags between $300 and $500.
Pros: Big billowy dresses for the Disney princess, lots of inventory.
Cons: Dim fluorescent lighting makes it hard to see the colors (which are nonetheless very bright).
REYER’S: Catty-cornered across the street in a strip mall is Reyer’s, which bills itself as the world’s largest shoe store. Level Shoe District in Dubai makes the same claim, but never mind: Reyer’s has a whole wall dedicated to glittery golden slippers and heels, the perfect footwear to go with that Disney Cinderella dress you just bought across the street.
There are high-end brands such as Merrell, Uggs, Rieker and Ecco, along with shopping mall stalwarts Nine West and Aerosoles, but for a store that claims to carry 100,000 shoes, the selection in the front display area seemed limited, although more shoes are stored in the back, and there’s a discounted “Rack Room” where every shoe seemed to cost $59.95.
Pros: That great glittery gold shoe display.
Cons: A wide range of brands but not a very deep selection.
DAFFIN’S: If you need a sugar fix, hop in the car and head up the hill from The Winner and Reyer’s to Daffin’s Candies on 496 East State St. — again, another “world’s largest” store. The shop is busy every day — customers at the chocolate counter have to take a number. On the Wednesday before Easter, the pretzel Easter eggs were flying out the door.
Pros: The chocolates are fresh and full-flavored.
Cons: The cream-filled assortment tasted artificially flavored.