The Downtown Shops of Bedford, PA

 

We had the pleasure of meeting up with my sister's family in Bedford, PA this past weekend.  I was amazed at how much the downtown has changed over the past decade.  There are so many unique shops and eateries, cafes and holistic medicine establishments, and wineries and antique stores.  This doesn't even touch on the numerous historic sites from the Revolutionary War or any of the interesting places to visit surrounding the borough.  My children's favorite shop was Bedford Candies.  Their store is full of their own handmade chocolates plus ice cream, other non-chocolate treats, and a gazillion different flavors of gourmet popcorn that they also make themselves.  I behaved myself and only purchased 5 very small chocolate truffles of various flavors.

 

There were many stores we didn't get to patronize due to heavy downpours off and on throughout the afternoon, but the Briar Valley Winery and Cove Creek Outfitters were two shops I really wanted to visit. 

 

We girls did spend quite a bit of time in this 1758 Co. Fair Trade

store.  There was so much to look at, and I was amazed to find this shop in a town so small.  Since our grandson's nursery is filled with elephants, I had to go home with something from there because the place was filled with African pieces of art.  Every purchase helps those developing nations, and the artistic items are made from recycled materials or natural resources (believe it or not, elephant dung was one of those resources.)

 

I chose the wooden mama elephant and her baby for the nursery.  It's actually a puzzle and a keepsake box made from wood in Africa by an African artisan.  The cinnamon popcorn was one of many purchases from the Bedford Candies shop mentioned earlier.

 

We spent a lot of time inside and outside of Founders Crossing because it is so big.  Filled with antiques, home decor, products made by local artisans, and plenty of things to eat, we easily could have spent a couple of hours in there looking at everything.  

 

But some of us simply chose to hang out on the sidewalk and people watch.

 

And nibble on the treats from the candy shop.

 

And shoot the breeze.

 

We were really just getting started when the sky got darker, and as we looked back at the mountain, we could see ominous sheets of rain coming.  A few of us got in one more store.  Juli's Wearable Art had the most beautiful artisan handcrafted jewelry along with clothing and all kinds of upscale accessories.  They had a big sale on quite a bit of Vera Bradley bags and other products the day we were there.

 

So I bought our daughter the above quilted plaid lunch bag for starting her new high school this fall.  I'm a sucker for plaid, you know, and I just might use it myself on the days I substitute teach.

We hurried and walked briskly back to the hotel as we left behind the teenagers in HeBrews Coffee Company because our daughter "needed" a frappuccino.  I tried to take a picture, but by then I was running past the establishment and my photo was blurry.  We got to the parking lot as the rains came gushing down on six of us with only one umbrella.

 

But it was all good because the best part of the whole day was that I got to spend time with my younger (and much more svelte) sister.  We're thinking of going back again for a weekend and staying at the renovated Bedford Springs Hotel---now known as the Omni Bedford Springs Resort.