Photography By Kirsten Beckerman
Wild Things
No one knows the Chesapeake like David Harp, owner and creative genius behind Chesapeake Photos. The Bay’s most celebrated contemporary environmental photographer, Harp has spent the past thirty years traversing every tributary between the Rappahannock and Susquehanna in search of the ultimate Bay snap. In addition to the framed images on the walls, Harp has an estimated one million shots in his archives for your perusal—and purchase. 432 Race St. 410-901-1300 or http://www.chesapeakephotos.com.
Joy to the World
You should see the size of the ‘skeeters in Cambridge! Among the assortment of beaded, shell, and pearl jewelry at the contemporary gift gallery Joie de Vivre are oversized, bejeweled butterflies, lizards, and mosquitoes designed by Londoner Susan Horth. Arts and crafters will warm to owner Joy Staniforth’s handmade sweaters, but our personal favorite is Victor Abarca’s abstract paintings, which incorporate wax, credit cards, map clippings—even cigarette filters. This fall, check out an exhibit of primitive works by Cambridge folk artist John Root Hopkins. 410 Race St. 410-228-7000.
Wine & Cheese, Please
The gourmet shop, A Few of My Favorite Things, has an impressive wine selection, with more than one hundred wines from the likes of Chile, Spain, and Australia. Edible offerings include pâtés and English cheeses. And if you’re in need of a pick-me-up on your shopping outing, try a cappuccino and a few caramels from the wide assortment of chocolates. 414 Race St. 410-221-1960.
Garden Greats
The spirit of the English countryside is alive and well at Pear Tree South. Check out its stock of garden-themed home accessories: toile file folders, April Cornell linens, and framed botanical prints. Our favorite finds set the foundation for a romantic fall dinner party: a nesting set of hammered silver bowls and oval robin’s egg-blue dinner plates. 412 Race St. 410-221-1777.
Righteous Recycling
At Wm. G. Willikers, antique addicts can get their fix of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century period furniture as well as architectural elements, silver, art, and nautical treasures. Our favorite discovery? A wool Scalamandre blanket adorned with a black, gray, and red Navajo motif. Not sure how to tell a Scalamandre from a scatter rug? Catch one of owner Dennis Napolitan’s fall classes on how to discern fakes from finds. Call for dates and times. 448 Race St. 410-228-1640.
Super Fly
Dragonfly Boutique remains one of the Shore’s best-kept shopping secrets. And while the fashion-forward store may have recently undergone a name change (formerly Total Image), it still carries the same hip, happenin’ clothing from Sigrid Olsen, Weston Wear, !it Jeans, and Free People. (We ogled the tailored, graphic-print button-downs from Robert Graham and the elegantly playful tulle skirts by CoVelo.) And, yes, tanners can still get their fill of faux rays in the four booths in the back. 406 Race St. 410-228-6825 or http://www.dragonfly-boutique.biz.
