Stores, Malls or Markets in Boston

Forget the fancy malls and the designer shops. If you want real bargains - and I'm talking about a couple of dollars max - head down to the Hadassah Thrift Shop in Allston. For all you squeamish people out there, try it once and you'll be hooked. This place does not sell junk. Boston is full of wealthy people who buy stuff and never use it. The store is packed with good-quality clothing, housewares, furniture, children's toys, etc. - some of it with the price tags still on. The prices are dirt cheap, and if the salesladies (volunteers) take a liking to you, they'll give you a wink and lop off the price even more. And remember, whatever you do pay goes to charity.

This is a particularly good place for students looking for a cheap way to furnish their rented apartments. This place has got everything - sofas, desks, mirrors, linens, dishes - all going for a pittance.

Having said all this, remember that luck has a lot to do with it. People are constantly bringing in carloads of stuff, so if you don't do well one day, try another. When my daughter was small, for example, I happened to be there when someone came in with a Fisher-Price doll house filled with little furniture and dolls, which I grabbed for something like $3. You wouldn't want to know what it cost in a toy store...

The shop is closed on Saturdays.

2007 update: Sad to say, I heard the place recently closed down. Boston won't be the same without it.

1. Newbury Street, Back Bay- Designer strip with lots of boutiques. good places to lunch when you take a break too. It has both Chanel and Urban Outfitters, though, so the price tags here vary a lot. Nice galleries as well.

2. Harvard Square- More a collection of funky little shops, but the highlight are the great book stores. You can find wind up dolls, rubber boots, and first edition books in this area.

3. Beacon Street, Beacon Hill - High end boutiques. Not a lot for guys here. Windows are full of dresses and bags, the style is very New England throughout. Conservative, elegant, damn pricey.

4. Downtown Crossing- to get to all the department stores. Not a nice area to look at - very urban and in the center of the city, but I list this because if you are looking for Macys, Barnes and Noble, and other chains, they are located here.

Well, I know it's a corporation, but I have to say, I don't know what I would have done without Walgreens, especially when touring the USA with a band. Handy for all toiletries. medicines, cheap make-up and stationery etc, you can often find a bargain for the home in here too.

When pulling into town, after a couple of days on a tour bus through the desert, Wallgreen was most definitely the place place I'd head for!

What to buy: Make - up
Toiletries
Medicines and Health products.
Hosuehold stuff.
Kids Toys etc

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Beacon Hill Chocolates offers locally produced chocolates as well as imported items. The store is a quaint closet of a space with many yummy offerings. Proprietor Paula Noia-Barth is very knowledgeable and is very willing to answer any questions you might have. You will be hard pressed to walk out of there without purchasing something!

What to buy: Chocolates! I recommend some of the locally produced truffles.

What to pay: Varies

I honestly don't know if this store even exists in Boston anymore, but it was so much fun to walk around that I had to mention it. You guessed it, this store sells everything Warner Brothers from Bugs Bunny to Daffy Duck to Elmer Fud. I brought Vanessa, Beth and Heath here to pass some time until supper and Vanessa just didn't want to leave. I think this was her second favorite store with FAO Swartz coming in a distant first.

What to buy: Warner Brother memorabilia

What to pay: ????

I always manage to find myself in a Macy's, why not? They have everything and anything you can ever need. I love their cosmetic and fragrance counters and their lingerie department.

I stopped by the Coach and Dooney & Bourke counters (I have a hand bag fetish) and scoped out the newest bags for the fall season. I've already got my eye on the new "Signature Stripe Reversable Bag" by Coach. I also stopped by the fragrance counter to pick up one of my favorite perfumes "Allure" by Channel.

What to buy: What are you looking for? Cosmetics, men, women and children's clothing and accessories, fantastic designer shoes, handbags and cosmetics.

You can also find household furnishings, bedsheets and comforters, towels, electronics, and even an optical place.

The great thing about this multi-level music and video store is that if that don't have it, they'll find it for you and mail it to you. Everytime I have ever wanted to locate a hard to find or out of date cd, the staff at Tower Records has helped me find it. The have a wide selection of music and movie genre's. So wide that you'll always find something new that you will want to buy.

Store hours are:
Sunday-Thursday 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Friday-Saturday 10 a.m. - Midnight

Tower Records also hosts numerous live performances in it's store and also plays host to many CD release parties. Check out their site for a schedule of these events.

What to buy: Books, CDs, Videos

What to pay: ?????????

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The Garment District is a two story warehouse. On the first floor are shoes and clothes, piles and piles of clothes in the back on the floor. At first I thought; "No way will I find anything here." All I can say is something took over; call it my inner shopping demon. But soon after I had casually picked up a t-shirt, I was digging through mounds of clothes. This place is addictive. The first time you grab a Liz Claiborne or Eileen Fisher or Ann Taylor or Calvin and realize (MY GAWD) it's really a dollar a pound, you are HOOKED! Yes, the clothes are worn but ever so gently. I got a pair of Gortex snow boots on my first visit. The second time around, I went upstairs. It was Saturday and a clerk told me everything on Saturdays is half price. "Oh geez, you're kidding right!!!!" She wasn't kidding. Instead of paying the tourists sucker price for all those Harvard t-shirts come and get them here for $.50. Sweatshirts are a buck. The day I visited, there must have been twenty in the bin with the Harvard logo. I walked away with a linen jacket (Bloomingdale's) which had never been worn. Upstairs, the clothes are not a dollar a pound but the regular prices are also unbelievable and way below retail. The jacket was $9. I also got an Adrienne Vittadini purse for $3.50

What to buy: The Garment District has a huge selection of everything from punk rock, glam to prairie home companion and Cape Cod cool; men's women's clothing, shoes, accessories and vintage. You will find what has just appeared in the Globe Sunday Magazine as the hottest on the street right here and not pay ridiculous retail prices. A designer label lovers paradise. Apparently the BackBay Nouveau Rich' love wearing it once and getting rid of it.

What to pay: You could replace your entire wardrobe for under $50 in this place. I'm not exaggerating.