Shopping in Carpinteria

Museum Quality Framing deploys an advanced giclée printing process and thousands of custom-framing moulding and mat options to enhance and preserve photos and artwork. Owner James Brent and his staff can manipulate photos of family outings, sporting events, or pedestrians with extremely funny hairdos with watercolor- or oil-painting effects. Currently starring in the shop's cast of ever-advancing technologies, an Epson UltraChrome K3 printer pops 2880x1440 dots per square inch on premium papers and canvases. Though printing costs vary depending on the size of the print and the materials used, an online print calculator can tally rough estimates.

Museum Quality Framing also encapsulates vibrant prints with thousands of variations in moulding size, shape, and stain and mat texture, color, and finish. In-studio virtual framing gives customers a preview of the finished product and allows for digital trial and error, eliminating expensive reframing if a neon-pink 5-inch moulding fails to bring out the color in Great Grandpa's eyes.

Kitchen appliances, ornate candelabras, and other charming home essentials fill the many shelves of Marigold Houseware’s cozy boutique and online store. Imperial tea glasses and flower-dappled teapots team up with blue-tinged glass fruit bowls and platters from Walther to curate refined tablescapes. Soft-grip garlic presses squeeze out cloves in silhouettes of Julia Child, and pots of stainless steel heat colorful sauces to paint on fine china plates. Marigold Houseware's Judaica collection presents an artful take on religious wares, pairing elegant menorahs with Seder plates, Kiddush cups, and other Jewish table trappings.

Whether browsing New York Speed’s online catalog or brick-and-mortar store, shoppers sift through an extensive selection of men’s and women’s apparel and accessories. The collection primarily features the urban-inspired fashions of G-Star and Diesel, though it also includes Affliction’s graphic tees and True Religion jeans. In addition to belts, buckles, and unique accessories such as body chains, shoppers can hunt through a large clearance section to pick up a few extra items and simultaneously satisfy their wallets’ goal of moving down a weight class at their boxing club.

More than 30 world-class designers have helped Em & Co fill its shelves, clothe its mannequins, and wiggle its way into various print and online publications. Among the dashing pickings here are pieces from Vivienne Westwood, JC de Castelbajac, Stella McCartney, and Missoni. Em & Co is dedicated to fashion as art—on the walls, artwork catches any eye that's not fixated on the gallery's apparel, accessories, and très chic eye charts. The space also hosts monthly exhibits and various events featuring local talent.

The florists at Boulevard Florist Wholesale Market outfit patrons with tropical flowers, hanging baskets, and floral equipment to beautify their dwellings. Their boston ferns and caladium plants impress visitors with their fecund green leaves, and purple chrysanthemums or roses add color to kitchens not already covered in tomato sauce. The staffers also deliver blooms, and impart their green-thumbing knowledge during floral-design classes held across two weekend days or 90 minutes.

Beyond bright red doors lined in delicate lace curtains, Enid and Edgar Vintage peppers its plentiful boutique with a collection of dresses, blouses, boots, and bags plucked from closets and bureaus of the '50s, '60s, and '70s. Clothing racks crafted from tree limbs dangle from the ceiling on hemp cord, leaving room along the shop's wood-paneled walls for eclectic artwork and decorations. On select nights, Enid and Edgar Vintage opens its shop to musical performances, letting local folk acts take the stage while patrons hum along and sentient boots stomp in syncopated rhythm.