Now that Spring has officially arrived, it makes me eager to get out and around our unusual and special town of Siloam Springs, in the comfortable air and the beautiful surroundings of the parks and private lawns. I am enjoying the shops in the downtown area, as well as around other areas of our town.
The Vintage Accents shop on Broadway Street, operated by Johnny Gray, a former fireman on our local force, is an interesting shop with older items of interest. I have found a few things there to purchase and bring home for display in our home, reminders of what I call a "gentler time."
We also discovered Honeysuckle, which is located where the former Bible Bookstore was, and found a lovely old sign proclaiming "Music, Song of the Soul," to hang above my piano. I liked the offerings there and will return on occasion to check out their inventory.
Of course, the Occasions shop on University Street gives us shoppers lots of choices for gifts or home decor for any "occasion." It is full of newer items and is surely a place to visit when one is thinking of gift items for any occasion. You will find candles, glassware and knickknacks.
The Mommy and Me shop, back on Broadway Street, is a retail shop for pregnancy and beyond and will be a great place to find baby items for baby showers, new births, birthdays or any time one wants to observe a special baby-centered event.
Of course, it is easy to love the Siloam Flowers shop on Broadway because flowers are easy to love. After this, I might want to walk across the street to get some pizza at Fratelli's, with a great Italian-style pizza with a thin crust. We always order the Three Little Pigs, well-done, which means the crust will be very brown but nice and crispy.
When we order it, they know it is the Mullikins there; we are such plain folk that we don't want anything exotic or unusual! Then some Italian sorbet is a tasty conclusion.
Next door, the 2 Gals' Junk shop offers plenty of older consigned things, like window frames, small furniture items, figurines, lawn ornaments, and on and on. I like that kind of shop occasionally and I think you will, too.
The Creative Corner shop offers hand-work like embroidery and hand-made things. Particularly fun to visit on a spring or summer day.
Joli's is a tiny shop next to the Ash & Ember tobacco shop along Mount Olive on the back side of the former furniture store on Broadway.
Heather Hill's is another little shop toward the north end of Broadway, and is worth a peak inside. Across the street is Cafe on Broadway, a popular spot for a sandwich and drink/specialty coffee or tea. It is a very pleasant place to stop in for a quick bite and/or drink.
Cari's Closet is around the south end corner of Broadway, on Main Street, and offers consigned items of clothing. And that reminds me, Formal Evenings back on University, near Occasions, is a place where you can find formal wear and lovely items.
So that's a quick overview of the downtown area, mentioning a lot of the places that we have found to be filled with interesting items for sale. I know, I have taken you on a haphazard tour, skipping all over the downtown area, but you can find your way if you just keep your eyes open as you walk or drive! I trust that, if I have overlooked any, and I probably have, I will be forgiven and people can find the overlooked shops anyway.
When I began to spend time in the downtown area, some 20 years ago, it had a very different feel than today, so I am encouraged by all the work and investments that individuals have put into that area. I'm sure the Main Street Siloam Springs people have played a part and are to be congratulated. I have always believed in the vibrancy of the downtown area -- it is the hub of retail in any town and people should pay attention to it. Let's all support our local retail shops, wherever they are located.
See you downtown!
-- Jan Mullikin is a Siloam Springs resident and former employee of the Herald-Leader. She can be reached at [email protected]. The opinions expressed are those of the author.
Sports on 03/25/2015