Stuttgart - Shopping for the Fun of It – Wearable Art, Whimsical Sculptures, and Wonderful Buttons. Though I had only two days to make my discoveries I can honestly say Stuttgart offers many rewarding possibilities for those who partake in the pleasure of shopping. 

I recently returned from Baden-Württemberg region of southwestern Germany where I had a few days in Stuttgart. During my time there I listened to fascinating descriptions of the region’s traditional Christmas markets each with its own local personality and traditions. What’s not to like about classic carols or Baroque melodies, cinnamon-spiced Glühwein (mulled wine), tempting gingerbread and stalls loaded with unique items crafted by artisans.  

Stuttgart is definitely a promising destination for a mother/daughter shopping spree. The city has an energizing atmosphere. There is shop variety, uniqueness, and as an added bonus - cozy cafes and eateries. There are dozens of shops to be sure but the ones on my list of favorites deliver on a “sense of place” offering creativity combined with exceptional quality, delightful relaxed ambience, and pleasant sales staff.

 
The best place to begin any day of shopping is at the historic Markethalle (Market Hall) in Old Town. The Jugenstil style (art nouveau) hall is an engaging spot with great ambiance. The ground floor is populated with vendors selling delicacies from all over the world including delightful pastries, aromatic teas, and freshly brewed coffee. Bonus points: The food hall market is framed by a mezzanine of shops selling artful, fashion accessories and beautiful hand-crafted items for the home and garden. Checkout Kasse for accessories and Mertz & Benzing for awesome home wares.

Out on the street it becomes even more rewarding. I have three favorites who deliver creativity, uniqueness, style and service.

   
Atelier Simone Mertz - Sim1, Kunst & Design – Best Ever, Whimsical Garden Art. Just look for the silhouette of a fox slinking along the outside of the building and you will find the entrance. This inspirational gallery-shop opens on two streets and conveys a welcoming atmosphere with clever items placed at every turn. Call it art with a sense of humor. While the street is not quaint or even quiet, Sim1 is a jewel of natural tranquility offering unusual and artful garden décor, silhouette sculptures of wild animals, whimsical pigs with feathers, elegant tree fairies, colorful origami birds, delightful window fairies, garden bunnies, and tiny flying pigs. Wait for it! If for some reason you do not see anything that is just perfect or you desire the silhouette of the family pet, Simone can be commissioned to create and they ship anywhere on the planet. (Katharinenstrasse 39 70182. Stuttgart +49 (0)711/ 236 5946 or www.simone-mertz.de/galerie.html) 

Goldenkopf Couture – Wonderdful Buttons. This cozy shop features Knopfe, Boren, and Bander accessories and Mode nach MaB. While the accessories are lovely and tempting, and the fabrics deluxe, the real reason to stop at this shop is the awesome collection of buttons. You can expect to find rose carved buttons, artisan-painted shells, and intricately fashioned flower buttons. Bonus points: Just a few steps from the storefront is Grand Café Planie loaded with retro glamour. The pastries including rhubarb kuken, carrot cake, and tempting tortes are artful and luscious and the coffee rich with flavor. (Charlottenplatz 17 70173 Stuttgart +49 (0)711 297314 or www.goldenkopf.net)  

Ganesh – Wearable Art. Clothing as art is the theme of my favorite shop in Stuttgart. This cozy corner shop features earth-friendly designers based in Germany and has an attentive, collaborative sale staff. You will find sculptured woolen skirts, textured woolen jackets, linen/felt ensembles, quirky head coverings, and awesome felt necklaces by Zuza Bart (Zuzanna Bartecka). Also at Ganesh you will find some of the best pieces created by Barbara Spear, a designer from Nois, who is known for her line of soft organic cotton and or crumpled jersey knitwear, trousers, caps, and shawls combining various textures. She produces comfortable clothing which wears like art. Bonus points: The shop is just a five minute walk from Alte Kanzlei Restaurant (Old Chancellery), an excellent choice for scrumptious contemporary Swabian fare. I say go for the spätzle (spaetzle) and a bottle of Trollinger mit Lemberger – a local red wine. (Neue Brücke 2, 70173 Stuttgart +49 (0) 771 220 089 36)

 
I would be remiss if I did not mention that Stuttgart has a lively pedestrianized central shopping street – Königstrasse which runs for more than 1 km (0.6 mile) from the central train station. The street is lined with the most popular stores.  Stuttgart is also the home of Breuninger - a department store with up-scale fashionable clothing and premium household wares. In the shadow of Breuninger on Marketstrasse is a promising toy store - Elwaren Kurtz, and Kardast Kids is not far away. Also in the area great shoes and boots may be found at Sigun Woehr. On my list for a return visit is Der Vegane Vegetarier loaded with tempting vegetarian products including jams, sauces, mustards, and bread and cake mixes.

Porche & Mercedes Benz are both based in the Baden-Württemberg region. I had the opportunity to browse two awesome automotive museums during my trip and of course I spent a bit of time in the associated shops. 

Porsche Design Shop. The Porsche Museum presents the history of Porsche in a   most artful, new-age way in an award-winning building well-suited for viewing autos as art. To take a bit of the art home look for the gift shop adjacent to the lobby entrance. Though it is small it is populated with design-inspired sportswear, road music CDs, caps, gloves, and chocolate race cars plus high-performance running gear and accessories with logos of course. Wait for it! You can purchase a bottle of Porsche labeled Bourdeaux wine for 25 euro. (Porsche Design at Porsche Niederlassung, Porscheplatz 9, 70435 Stuttgart or +49 (0)711 9112 4813)

Mercedes-Benz Shop. The Mercedes-Benz Museum conveys a sense of place time and place featuring a local story with a world-class ending. So it is not surprising that the gift shop would be a compliment. The Mercedes-Benz atmosphere is elegantly contemporary and the selection of accessories, clothing and gifts extensive. From caps and clothing with logos to miniature cars, pen lights, key chains, books, and wine, the shop delivers the quality of Mercedes-Benz. Bonus points: Gift items may be engrave and wrapped to go. (Mercedesstraße 137/1, Bad Cannstatt or +49 (0)711-17 30 000)

Tax free details: Non European Union residents have the opportunity to receive tax refunds on goods purchased in Stuttgart’s shops. For more information on the steps which need to be followed, look out for the tax free shopping signs within shops.

Make it happen. For more details and vacation information go to www.Stuttgart-tourist.de