Apparel in Florissant

The Glass Workbench?a stained-glass and glass-making specialty store?began as a family-owned enterprise in 1975. Back then, owners Glen and Joanne Bishop chose an old-style building on South Main Street to create their shrine to the age-old art of glassmaking. Now on the National Register of Historic Places, the building's 2-foot-thick Burlington limestone walls enclose the shop's inventory of supplies and books about glass arts. They also house mosaic stained-glass artworks by Julie Bishop Day, Glen and Joanne's daughter, who developed the stepping-stone technique for glass decoration. Local crafters take advantage of glassmaking workshops and admire the work of the staff's resident artisans, whose custom stained-glass pieces portray nature imagery and legendary moments in history such as when Ben Franklin invented Windex.

CODI Jewelry is high-fashion jewelry hand-made by 32 year-old designer, COurtney DIane Hopson. She started the business 12 years ago making jewelry for herself as a hobby. She couldn't go anywhere without someone stopping her and asking where she got her jewelry. Now 12 years, 3 kids and 2 stores later, CODI continues...!

Clothes and furniture find new life at Red Racks Thrift Stores. Through donations, the staffers at the store's 13 locations fill their racks and shelves with thousands of second-hand items for kids and adults, including name-brand garments from the likes of Tommy Hilfiger, Levi’s, The Loft, and Donna Karan New York. They also stock furniture and other miscellaneous goods, such as books and home décor. And something odd happens when these items arrive at checkout—the register doesn't ring up any sales tax. That's because Red Racks is a nonprofit organization, and all proceeds go to benefit the Disabled American Veterans, an organization that has advocated on behalf of veterans for more than nine decades. Red Racks' altruistic mission has proved successful so far—the inventory of each store typically turns over every 3–4 weeks.

Blue Moon Activewear, which Alive Magazine rated 2010’s "Best Place to Buy Workout Gear,” stocks more than 30 top brands of practical, comfortable, stylish clothes—clothes meant to gracefully accommodate every day’s activities, be they yoga, cycling, running, or running to catch a yoga class, not to be imprisoned in a the back corner of a closet alongside the half-finished jigsaw puzzle “for tomorrow.” Some of Blue Moon Activewear’s most popular lines of tanks, pants, and pullovers include Beyond Yoga, Ion Actif, prAna, Pure Karma, Rese Pilates and Calvin Klein Performance. The boutique’s exclusive Falke line adjusts to movement and temperature as bodies bound, using European ergonomically designed technology to achieve maximum flexibility. Exercisers with an eye for color can try the Ion Actif workout jean pant in chocolate ($72) or the contrast pant in snake ($65).

Established in 1961 by master hand-engraver Richard Neustaedter, Neustaedter's Fine Jewelers glamorously frosts patrons with a dazzling cove of diamonds and pearls. Sterling hoop earrings oscillate gracefully from lobes ($188+), and mask- and tribal-themed African neckwear ($88+) connects clavicles to spirits of good fortune, prosperity, and future winning lottery numbers. Like Emerald City trapeze artists, green quartz pendants twirl rhythmically from rhodium-plated sterling-silver necklaces ($179+), and Signature Collection color stone rings ($465+) envelop fingers in a luxurious embrace.

Originally opened by owner Hillary Dutcher in Columbus, Ohio, Ivy Hill Boutique packs its cozy shop with women’s jewelry, apparel, and accessories from both well-known and emerging designers. Shoppers of every primping preference can adorn themselves in Idylle novelty tees ($48), fend off winged monkeys with a Tolani scarf ($78), and store their valuable Confederate scrip in Delux wallets ($26). Otherwise, wrap yourself in finery from Trina Turk and Susana Monaco (both starting at $70) to draw admiring stares from every passerby and envious stares from every naked passerby. Jewelry lovers, meanwhile, can bedazzle themselves with agate rings ($28), Viv and Ingrid birthstone stud earrings ($18), and David Aubrey initial necklaces ($48). One quick wallop from a Big Buddha handbag ($70 and up) is enough to dispatch up to seven shoplifters at a time, after which you can wash your hands of the whole affair with Gianna Rose soaps ($12 and up) and light a sage candle ($26 and up) in memory of your favorite Star Wars stormtrooper.