Shopping in Dearborn Heights

English Gardens began as a single, family-owned nursery in 1954, and has since blossomed into a full-service landscaping and garden center with multiple locations, all owned and operated by second-generation family members. Each location facilitates both indoor and outdoor gardening projects with a large selection of gardening tools, seed packets, and transplant-ready plants extracted from their original soil by renowned surgeons. Garden accents such as bird feeders, patio furnishings, and lounge chairs dress up outside spaces with comfort and design, and the florist department brings the outdoor flourish inside by arranging fresh-cut floral bouquets and gift baskets for all manner of occasions. Workshops and in-store presentations also allow the green-thumbed experts to impart advice on common gardening and decorating topics such as building a kitchen herb garden or housetraining a dogwood tree.

In 1955, the world saw many famous firsts: President Eisenhower hosted the first televised presidential news conference, Gunsmoke began its legendary run, and Fortney Eyecare Associates opened its first practice. Today, a quintet of locations hosts board-certified doctors of optometry ready to keep Detroit peepers healthy and focused. After thorough exams, patients can decamp to Fortney’s frame shops, which house designer eyewear from labels including Ray-Ban, Prada, Nike, and Versace.

In addition to general eyewear, the practice also specializes in safety eyewear, working with businesses to supply and repair the type of industrial eyewear that's best for each workplace or astigmatic traffic cones. The national administrator of General Motors' prescription safety eyewear program since 1992, Fortney was hailed GM’s Supplier of the Year for its no-nonsense professional chops.

A mom-and-son owned shop, Danny's Flowers & Gifts employs professional florists that arrange eye-catching bouquets from fresh-cut flowers such as blossoming lilies, roses, and tulips. The staff works with customers to craft sprays and arrangements for a variety of occasions, including birthdays, first dates, and exorcising a possessed toaster. Customers can also obtain bouquets crafted by world-renowned design houses, such as stunning white and off-white arrangements by Vera Wang. Danny’s Flowers & Gifts has all its bouquets available in-store, delivers to surrounding areas, and offers shipping through UPS and FedEx. The store also displays assorted Godiva chocolates and gift baskets brimming with fruits and candies, which are a great way to surprise a loved one or to say "I'm sorry about the time I delivered a pony to your office."

Originally conceived as a website dedicated to sharing information on rock climbing and mountain biking, Trail's Edge Cyclery opened its first storefront in 2003; a second followed in 2010. The shop's experienced mechanics and sales associates are all cyclists themselves, channeling their love of peddle-based transportation into comprehensive bike-repair, -rental, and -hypnotizing services. Biking gear and climbing gear from Surly, Cannondale, and other leading brands are sold online and at both analog locations in Plymouth and Milford.

Visitors of all ages can find something to entertain them at My Hobby Place & Toys, where the inventory ranges from toys that foster education and development to hobby supplies for older children and adults. The store stocks products from more than 40 name brands, including Lego Star Wars and dinosaur sets and the Fisher-Price corn-popper push toy that kids must demonstrate mastery of to graduate kindergarten. Baby Einstein's Discovery cards teach toddlers to recognize animals and master basic vocabulary, and art supplies by Crayola and Melissa & Doug stimulate artistic impulses more easily than séances with Michelangelo. The Celestron travel telescope kit fits a telescope, a tripod, and two different eyepieces into a backpack-style carrying case, and the Model T rock tumbler polishes up to 3 pounds of stones using a 115-volt motor and four grades of polishing abrasives. Grownups can play trivia and humor-based board games or wrestle with jigsaw puzzles of Elvis and Marilyn Monroe.

The cycle savants behind Town N Country Bikes take pride in their vast collective knowledge of all things velocipede. In addition to carrying a full array of bikes and products from lines such as Specialized, Fuji, Diamondback, Haro, and Redline, they offer upkeep and repair services to keep two-wheeled companions in excellent condition, as well as rent bikes. The staffers help riders of all stripes find their ideal bikes and accessories based on individual experience level and the number of buses they're able to jump over at once.

Town N Country Bikes also caters to wintertime sports. Technicians keep skis and snowboards in gear with waxing services, to let alpine adventurers plummet down slopes at maximum velocity, and edge sharpening, to help them carve deep into the snow, control their speed, and swerve around displaced Bavarian yodelers.