Shopping in Erie

With an enormous inventory of instruments, a dependable technician, and friendly instructors, The Guitar Factory is the kind of store that performers come to count on over the course of their musical evolution. Here, musicians can browse from simple-starter electric guitars from Ibanez to high-end acoustics from Martin. Keyboards, percussion, amps, basses, and other gear are also available. When wear and tear strikes, the shop’s in-house repairman, Charles J. Quagliana, can nurse instruments back to functionality. Charles has honed his handiwork by working for superstars such as Mary J. Blige, Prince, The Beach Boys, and the Mos Eisley Cantina band.

In the studio’s 10 air-conditioned lesson rooms, a team of teachers with more than 30 years’ experience teach guitar, drums, bass, keyboard, and other instruments. Joe Shanahan, who teaches bass, guitar, vocal, keyboards, and drums, was inducted into the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame with his band, Only Humen, and guitarist/singer/teacher Tommy Z has performed for the U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. Instructors tailor each lesson to student’s individual needs; with a current student pool ranging from ages 4 to 70, instructors are comfortable working with a wide range of skill sets.

After years sewing funky, girly clothing for her young daughter, Lisa Jamieson began to sell her creations online, founding the business that would become Tutu Girls Boutik & Kids Spa. Colorful leg warmers, flowered headbands, and the boutique's namesake tutus line shelves and fill racks throughout the boutique's pink and zebra-striped space inside the Boulevard Mall. A licensed cosmetologist, Jamieson also makes over petite patrons' hair, faces, and nails alongside staff in the spa, forgoing techniques such as cuticle trimming that might be unsafe for tiny digits. A make-your-own-lip-gloss station grants visitors the chance to craft their own sparkly solutions, and a pink catwalk mural encourages two-dimensional guests to work the runway.:

For more than 10 years, Buffalo Fleece & Outerwear has specialized in both utility and fashion, monitoring runway trends as well as the latest innovations of outerwear brands. Raincoats and activewear designed by companies such as Patagonia and Dansko keep bodies comfortable indoors or out, and SmartWool socks protect hikers' and floor keyboardists' feet from blisters. Alongside outdoor wear, the boutique also stocks business attire and formalwear for adults and playwear for adventuresome kids.

Brandon Tallau and Samantha Tagliarino founded OffBeat Emporium to give new character to vintage furniture pieces that would otherwise be taking up space in a landfill. Tallau and Tagliarino along with their crew of artists, restore furniture and home accessories back to the original quality or transform it into an offbeat piece with bold colors and patterns.

Lisa Keating, who founded Leelee after the birth of her daughter in 1998, glides across the shop's amber hardwood floors, casting an experienced eye over proud mannequins draped in threads by Tracy Reese and Trina Turk. Lisa peruses offerings by brands including Nicole Miller, Hard Tail Forever, and Autumn Cashmere to curate brimming alabaster racks in the boutique. At-home wardrobe assessments and personal-shopping services let professionally selected items leap into ensembles to add class.

When they were hairstylists, Lisa and David Robinson spent years listening to their clients complain about the difficulty of finding a lingerie shop whose bras came in a wide range of sizes and styles. Inspired, they decided to remedy this with their own boutique: My Top Drawer. The shop stocks bras in band sizes from 28 to 54 and cup sizes from A to M. Its professional fitters help customers find creations from brands such as Chantelle, Freya, PrimaDonna, and Goddess that are more comfortable than traditional corsets made from chainmail. If customers can’t find the right seamless, molded, pushup, or nursing style and fit in the store, the experts will custom order bras and mail them at no extra charge.

The shop’s wide range of supportive upperwear pairs with panties in thong, bikini, and brief cuts from Hanky Panky and Minerva. Additionally, customers can pick up both romantic lingerie and everyday sleepwear that keeps them warm when they go outside to count sheep in the pasture before nodding off. Spanx and Body Wrap shapewear smooth silhouettes, and the shop’s swimwear includes suits that accommodate full busts with larger cup sizes and supportive underwire.