Whether you’re a studied music head or you’re in need of schooling, Uncle Tony will not lead you astray. The vinyl pickers at this boutique record store finally got a permanent shop for their groovy collection of rare and hard-to-find discs that basically define what tasteful music is. Flip through their racks, which range from psych to jazz to funk to soul, and you’ll see immediately that these aren’t the same old bins that’ve been kicking up dust in the area for ages.
Wander into the Lovely in Audubon Park and you will see where it gets its name. It’s set up in booths where different collectors present their rustic, vintage or kitschy wares. Find unique treasures to bring your environment into that delicate balance that everyone’s internal decorator seeks: reconciling the past with the present in a way that’s stylishly familiar.
Artegon’s new top-tier comic and toy store, Gods & Monsters, is the second-largest of its kind in the country and offers pretty much whatever you’re looking for in terms of action figures, statues and collected editions of your favorite comics. But tucked along the back wall in the Offworld Lounge are themed tabletop gaming booths – some sci-fi themed and decked out in faux metal branded with Weyland-Yutani logos, others looking like the VIP booth at a Westerosi tavern – that invite you to step in, sit down and start a session of your favorite game or try out a new one for free. Keep an eye on their calendar for upcoming special guests, themed nights and competitions.
Give those old Vans that were on their way to the yard-sale table new life with a custom paint job (or, wotthehell, spring for brand-newbies): Cruise through artist Jaime “Kittens of Industry” Torraco’s Facebook gallery and within reason, if you see it there, she can make it happen on your feet. Choose one of her characters, or, more fun, discuss design modifications that make it more “you.” Price is negotiable depending on the amount of work, but the nifty pair here cost $60.
Sometimes things get a little tense in Baldwin Park, as evidenced by the Publix punch-up earlier this month. If only those three had stopped at the de-stress nirvana of East Coast Floats instead of the crowded supermarket, things might not have gotten so ugly. East Coast Floats books 60- and 90-minute sessions in their high-tech gleaming-white pods, each filled with 150 gallons of water in which 1,000 pounds of Epsom salts are dissolved – guests bob gently in a soothing environment, all weight taken off muscles and joints, and minds free to roam. Not only will your brain be scrubbed clean when you emerge, your skin will be dolphin-slick.
The artisan wonderland we used to have to trek down Semoran Boulevard for opened up a smaller space that’s just as special in Winter Park Village, calling upon seasoned local vendors new to the Adjectives way of life (like much-loved vintage and handmade shop Etoile Boutique) to create an extremely appealing showroom of oddities, antiques and handcrafted goods. There’s no better way to kill time before, say, a matinee or gorging yourself at Cheesecake Factory, with plenty of spectacles and feasts for your eyes in their attentively curated collections to rival those more typical plaza draws.
One of the biggest reasons people give their pets up is, sadly, due to expense. And when pets are relinquished to shelters, it’s not just the animals or the people who suffer – the community that has to absorb the costs of so many homeless animals pays the price, too. So we’ve got to give big props to the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando, which operates a lower-cost clinic that offers many of the basic services pet owners need (spay/neuter, bloodwork, deworming, vaccines, X-rays and more) for a discount. It’s still not going to be cheap to care for your pet, but it’ll hurt a little less, and they accept CareCredit financing, too.
Orlando Meats is in the most unlikely of places. It’s a tiny hole in the wall in a bland strip mall just above Narcoosee Road on Goldenrod. It doesn’t have a huge selection, and most of what’s on sale is frozen, but (and this is a big but) it’s dedicated to selling grass-fed, locally raised beef, as well as pastured pork, chicken, goat and more, from the Florida Fresh Meat Company in Ocala. You can purchase by the piece, or order a whole butchered animal, priced by the pound. It’ll cost you more than what you pay at Publix, but if your conscience is telling you that factory-farmed meats are not just environmentally, but also ethically, unsustainable, you’ll soon find yourself forking over a few more bucks a pound for peace of mind.
Look, we get that you don’t have time to go to the library these days (although, if you don’t go, it’s your loss, as it’s kind of an amazing oasis of analog in a distressingly digital culture), but if you’re a member of the Orange County Library System, you don’t actually have to go there. At all. You can apply for your library card online, fill in your info and have a card sent to you by mail. Once you have your card, use the ID number to sign into OverDrive, Freading or Axis360 and browse the impressive selection of free e-books available through the library.
The Orlando Science Center just got an impressive remodel and the large, airy Morse Museum shop is a great bet for gift-shopping of the scarf/vase/enameled brooch variety, but we never skip a stop into the tiny nook at Rollins College’s Cornell Fine Arts Museum. It’s not large enough to have much in the way of gift and ornaments, but the walls are stuffed with a serious collection of art books – many, but not all, related to past and current exhibitions – making it our favorite place to search for titles on all types of visual culture. And speaking of gifts, the two volumes of Art for Rollins, which explore the growing Alfond Collection of Contemporary Art, make a thoughtful gift for any local art lover.
