photo by Jana Birchum
Hosting one of the shrewdest and grandest selections of rare reads in the city, Alienated Majesty Books puts literary poseurs to shame. The outstanding and zany curation of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, comics, and translated books does what a bookstore ought to do – expose you to what you likely wouldn’t have discovered on your own. Their shelves hold various treasures, ranging from a devastating book of poems to the lewdest zine you can imagine. Don’t fret if it sounds intimidating, as their staff of savants and friendly punks are enthusiastic to serve as your Sherpa.
Alienated Majesty Books
613 W. 29th
512/243-6679
www.alienatedmajestybooks.com
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A story, so as to demonstrate why Cousin Kenny’s deserves this award: It is a Friday in August 2022, and Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson broke up. Naturally, we’re all devastated. Next day, Saturday, all those showing up to the Little Gay Shop’s annual Austin Pride market are gobsmacked to find baseball hats displaying tiny embroidered tombstones reading “Kim + Pete” for sale not a day after the relationship ended – made in a flurry of creative inspiration by the embroidery empresario himself, aka Kenny. Thirteen years in the clothing and accessory decoration business gave him the skills, but it’s that keen sense of what’s cool that sets Cousin Kenny’s above the rest.
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photo by James Scott
photo by Kevin Curtin
This zero-proof liquor store with a boutique feel provides a welcome, non-triggering shopping experience for people who live an alcohol-free lifestyle, but still like to sip interesting drinks. Opened as a food truck in early 2023 by couple Grace Vroom and Joe Patterson, the community around it soon necessitated a brick-and-mortar upgrade. Dear Dry’s selection of NA distilled spirits, bitters, aperitifs, mixers, and bottled cocktails (like a Phony Negroni by St. Agrestis) will open your eyes to a growing market of booze-free cocktail products. The homey Cesar Chavez space, containing a comfy little nook for reading or listening to 8-tracks, also has a cooler full of nonalcoholic beers and spritzers, plus a solid selection of non-inebriating wines and various THC-infused drinks.
Dear Dry Drinkery
2226 E. Cesar Chavez
www.deardrydrinkery.com
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When it comes to jewelry, why stop at adorning your body? Metalsmith and lifelong Austinite Leah Maren Daniel makes metalworks to dress up your lighter, your window, your plant, you name it. Each of her pieces is handmade with recycled materials. Custom creations can go in any direction, but her designs frequently feature Ouija boards, snakes, skeletal hands, celestial bodies, and all things witchy.
www.instagram.com/lm_adornment
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courtesy of Leah Maren Daniel
photo by Soafara Harison
Of all the convenience stores in Austin, Wok ’N Express possesses perhaps the most prestigious inventory. While the aesthetic stays true to that of the typical c-store, this establishment is distinguished by its emphasis on East Asian snacks you won't find at your basic supermarket chain. At a notably affordable price, find treats like Japanese plum wine, matcha Kit Kats, and Thai tea – each accompanied by the more recognizable beverage and snack brands. Adding to its distinctiveness, the space has also served as a great and inexpensive Chinese takeout option since 2012.
Wok ’N Express
4413 Guadalupe
512/459-7055
www.woknexpress.com
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As pickers mourned the closing of the Austin Antique Mall, a smaller, more curated, but still plenty wanderable multi-vendor option popped up in South Austin. Opened in May, Potluck Vintage packs two stories of covetable goodies under under the discerning eye of owner Katie Vincent McClure, of South Lamar’s Show and Tell Vintage & Art. Looping in a supersquad of local resellers, the shop invites SRK Designs, Modern Arc, Amelia Tarbet, and many more to hold down the checkerboard of furniture and home goods. Passport, Jello Mom, Poorbaby, and La Ropa contribute clothing, plus rows of cowboy boots.
Potluck Vintage
2208 S. Lamar
www.instagram.com/potluckvintageaustin
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via Instagram
via Instagram
Plaid bell bottoms, acid-green dresses, suede Oxfords, psychedelic ties: Identical twins Emma and Grace, known as the Psych Sisters, first grew an online following for their synergetic Sixties and Seventies outfits. Of course, their statewide vintage sleuthing eventually led to a wardrobe surplus. The duo’s retro sales lived online until last March, when the San Marcos sibs opened a brick-and-mortar in the previous Full Circle Vintage location, catty-corner from the Ballroom at Spider House. The shop stocks pieces from the Fifties through early 2000s in all shades of the rainbow.
Vintage Hideout
2815 Fruth St.
www.instagram.com/psych_sisters
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Since 2006, Vinca has operated out of Austin’s Eastside, designing kitschy, fun, sometimes-weird-but-always-cute jewelry. Their highly covetable statement pieces are handmade, and never boring – think: grackles, bats, narwhals, rubber duckies, the moon, aliens, and chef’s knives. Catch them at the Blue Genie Art Bazaar, or visit them at their East Fourth storefront and gaze at the custom pet portraits that serve as in-house art installations, and maybe pet the real-life store cat if you’re lucky.
Vinca
1800 E. Fourth #173
www.vincausa.com
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We didn’t know we needed a lighter shaped like a farm-fresh brown egg until happening upon Lian Soy’s table at an Asian American Resource Center market. Turns out we did. Aptly described as “objects that make you gasp a little gasp,” the designs of local artist Lian C. generally have a smiling face on them, and are often delightfully minified. There’s bok choy earrings, french fry hair clips, and a dragon print reading “Ni Howdy!” – all ideal for never-seen-on-Amazon gift-giving. The Parsons School of Design graduate also offers adorable custom hand-drawn portraits (ideally of you and/or your pet), both online and live at her pop-ups around Austin.
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With thousands of global delights and Texas-local treats at this Hyde Park one-stop shop – the second location, following SoCo’s flagship – you can fulfill your totally random shopping list and fill your belly, too. Steph and Co. provide friendly, knowledgeable service with sustainability and ethical production kept top of mind. Located in the former Speedway post office and sharing space with on-site French bistro Bureau de Poste, Tiny Grocer’s shelves teem with delectable deli items and artisanal goods. Consider: Farmhouse Delivery’s grab-n-go muffuletta, Bouldin Food Forest arugula, Fox Pots ceramics, Two Hives raw honey, fancy soap, dreamy candles, and a sommelier-level wine list. Walk away feeling good.
Tiny Grocer
1718 S. Congress
4300 Speedway #101, 512/375-3320
www.tinygrocer.com
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photo by Zeke Barbaro
photo by Kimberley Jones
This New Braunfels goat farm specializes in everything goat, from soap to milk to cheese and even semen, if you’re looking to expand your own goat family. A Grade A dairy and creamery, Goatilicious sets up shop at the Texas Farmers' Market at Mueller every Sunday; swing by to shake the hands of the folks making the outta-this-world fig and black pepper goat cheese – the GOAT in every sense of the word.
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Sundays from noon to 6, enter a wonderland of vintage clothing, handcrafted jewelry, and technically legal marijuana products. Sponsored by sister vintage stores Pavement and Leopard Lounge, the market hosts dozens of local vendors in the parking lots of the Houston-based chains and local favorite Antone’s record store. Every week offers new selections and old favorites: one weekend, create a classic Italian charm bracelet piece by piece; another weekend, hand-soldered metal jewelry and crystals. What treasures await next weekend? Only one way to find out.
Guad Vintage Market
2932 Guadalupe
www.instagram.com/guadvintageatx
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