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| - I first became aware of Ten Thousand Villages via an advert in Pittsburgh Magazine. The one item that was depicted in the small feature happened to be perfect for my brother-in-law for Christmas, so I decided this would be my target location for purchase on "small business Saturday," and it did not disappoint.
My shopping experience was excellent. The volunteer ladies working in the store were very helpful and polite. The shop is pretty big but is filled to the brim with cohesively themed collections of items every few feet.
The wares are various and largely decorative, with a lot of accessories (so much jewelry, scarves, purses, etc.), photo frames, decorative dinnerware, Christmas ornaments, children's items, baskets, and really such a wide array of treasures that you can be carried off for some time just marveling at them. Each item has a tag that indicates the origin of the product and each piece I saw seemed unique. In many cases it appeared that items were made of materials repurposed into tasteful new forms or from sustainable products. Prices vary widely, and while you can find some small gifts for under $10, I saw prices go up through a few hundred for some of the fancier pieces. Importantly, the prices seemed fair.
This shop supports a great cause by providing a market for sustainably made goods from artisans that live in the poorer regions of the world, and their selection of unique items is excellent. I will definitely be headed back to Ten Thousand Villages for more gifts in the future.
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