Wow! What a great and unique gift shop. Rustic Roots has furniture, home decor, custom signs,…read morecandles, jewelry, accessories, gifts and much more. What surprised me most is that it's located in a small town in IL. This normally is the type of gift shop that you'd find in a trendy neighborhood in a big city. I was blown away by the selection of candles from two companies; Milkhouse and Malicious Women. If I had not already bought all of my holiday candles, I would have gone crazy with the scents they had to offer. When I need to re-stock my candles, it will be no internet ordering for me. I'll head down to RR and shop local. Being a foodie and one who enjoys cooking, I love a good cotton/flour sack dish towel. Especially those that have witty saying on them and I hit the jackpot here. So many to choose from. I had to stop myself at three. It also had an amazing collection of ornaments. They had a Grinch ornament that was extremely popular and they sold out it right before I arrived. It had a 2020 theme saying, it Stink, Stank, Stunk. However, I found two to add to my tree this year, so I was a happy shopper. The variety of merchandise goes on and on. They had treat jars for pets, caps, signs, soaps, birdhouses and much much more. Best of all, the majority is created by local artist. So when shopping here, you truly are supporting local.

Went to this venue for a baby and the place is amazing. Look throughout the store and I love just…read moreabout everything she had.

If you need a unique gift, Honeybee is where you need to shop. It's a good mixture of new and…read morevintage merchandise. It is a great addition to E Broadway (Downtown Alton). I'll admit, I haven't bought a gift here. However, I have bought myself several new pairs of socks, a couple of Christmas ornaments and a candle or two. As you can see, any of those items would make a nice one. I apologize for no pictures, but was I so impressed while I shopped I just forgot. I'll go back and add photos at a later date. I also enjoyed talking with the owner, she is so bubbly and pro Alton.

Love this locally owned boutique! They have work from lots of local makers, it's beautifully laid…read moreout with a selection great for browsing. You'll spend more than 20min here. They have fancy chocolate, local food, dishes & silverware and ceramics. There's art for sale by local artists. They have plenty of jewelry to browse through. There's clothes and antiques too. Great spot!

Once again, The Grapevine helped me find a perfect gift for a little person. I had a cousin…read morecelebrating his second birthday and he loves airplanes. When I shared that information with the owner, she knew exactly what I needed. She showed me a cute t-shirt that had an airplane on it with the caption, "Take To The Sky". It was perfect. Now I just had to find out what size to buy. The owner remained patient as I texted the grandma, so I purchased the right size. The t-shirt was considered a summer items and all summer fashions were on sale for 20% off. So I got a great gift at a discount. (Original price was good, too). I paired this t-shirt with a couple of Hot Wings toys from Funky Planet Toys, a fabulous locally owned toy store about a half block down the street. Alton is lucky to have these two children's stores in their downtown. As a bonus, both are women owned.

I found the perfect gift for a two year old boy who is obsessed with planes. Right before a b-day…read moreparty for my little cousin, who is twice removed, I found out his new focus was on airplanes. So I headed to, Funky Planet to see if they had anything appropriate. OMG! David one of the owners, assisted me in finding the absolute perfect gift. He showed me some die-cast planes called, Hot Wings. Yep, they're just like Hot Wheels, except they are all different airplanes. Each plane comes with a piece of runway. So the more you buy, the longer your runway gets. The prices of Hot Wings, is reasonable so you will not break the bank while building your fleet. You can even get a control tower for your future pilot. When my little cousin opened my gift, he stopped opening the remainder of his gifts and had to fly his new planes around the room. All the other guest then started asking me where I found such a cool gift. I ended up sounding like a commercial for Funky Planet. Hopefully, my cuz will be getting more planes in the near future. In addition to the two planes, I got my little cousin an airplane themed t-shirt from Grapevine. Grapevine is a children's boutique about a half block down the street. Alton is lucky to have both of these locally owned stores.

Such a treasure right in downtown Alton. I stopped here for Christmas gifts and got something for…read moreeveryone in the family. All kinds of toys, puzzles, games, and more. The prices are super reasonable, and you'll find things you can't get anywhere else, which makes it pretty special. You can even buy yarn, and the owner knits plushies you can buy. Kids will love this place, but as an adult I was just as taken with it.

This is such a charming shop on Main Street. I'm so glad I stopped in to look around. It is a…read morelocally-owned, women-owned business. She creates many of the items herself. There are a wide range of items, including shirts/sweatshirts, Christmas ornaments, coffee mugs, magnets, stickers, keychains, candles, so many cute things! We greatly enjoyed chatting with the employee, Daurie, who took time to share more about the business.

Sweet little spot no wonder they called it cozy it even had a fire place going. Sweet owner/cashier…read morewith so much great information on the individual items. With homemade or created locally. We found a cute sign for my boyfriends dad her and a sticker for my car. A lot of personality in here representing st.louis.

Had a great visit to this one after eating next door. We grabbed some fudge and my wife was able to…read morefind some fun thing for the front of the house going into fall :) Pretty sure we were talking to the owner, she was super nice! We will be back to this one again as well. Near laid out store, lots of seating upstairs with tons of outdoor stuff or things for around the house. Worth a visit :)

Just visited 1904 General Store for the first time…read more I visited downtown Alton yesterday -- for the first time in years. Decided to check out the general store as soon as I saw it -- it's a cool, welcoming old building. The first floor is full of candy, chocolate, fudge, ice cream, and other treats. I picked out some candy and sampled some delicious Belgian chocolate bars. I bought one for me, but I'll be back in a few months for friends' birthdays, and to try the fudge myself. The ice cream flavors (about 8) were all unique -- you aren't getting a simple chocolate or vanilla here. The most common of the flavors available was a rainbow sorbet. I think some of the other flavors were Shipwreck, Pirate's Bounty, and Superman, though I may not be recalling the names accurately. The upstairs is full of home decor items, including a wall decorated to look like someone's front porch. The styles are cute, though not my speed, as I am something of a minimalist. You can read all about their business and the building's Worlds Fair history over on their facebook page. Hope to visit again soon.

We love stopping by every time we visit Grafton, it's our favorite store. We always find something…read morenew, and we always add more rocks/minerals to our collection!

Really enjoyed popping in this store while in Grafton. Had A LOT of jewelry, and other very nice…read moreNative American themed items. I bought a few coasters for my office.

Such a cute boutique. They have a great selection of home accents and gifts. You are greeted with…read moreamazing smells and the aesthetics are so warm and cozy as you walk inside. If you are looking for something out of the ordinary for a gift or for yourself, The Personal Gifting Co is the place to stop and shop!