Shopping in Worcester

Today's side deal gets a lush Christmas tree into your house while simultaneously getting your family out of it. For $38, you get a pre-cut Christmas tree, up to eight feet tall, from Smolak Farms (up to a $75 value). Located just 45 minutes outside of Boston, this picturesque 300-year-old New England farm lets you and your family enjoy the Christmas tradition of taking your pick of hundreds of pre-cut trees. Because purchasing a Christmas tree after Christmas is considered something of a faux pas, this side deal understandably expires on Christmas Eve. This deal covers the tree only—rope is not included.

Providence Optical beautifies the shelves of its optical boutique with a wide selection of vintage and contemporary frames from hard-to-find local and overseas brands. After detecting the font-size inconsistencies on the optometrist's chart during an eye exam ($60), customers can peruse the vision center's collection of fashions from popular international designers including Bruno Chaussignand, Strada Del Sole, and Swissflex. The experienced staff at Providence Optical can work with customers to customize frames while thwarting attempts to make squinting fashionable.

Unlike a tuxedo fitting, getting fitted for a custom driver provides valuable feedback that pertains to more than how smooth your hips are. TaylorMade's physics-friendly experts place reflective markers on key points of your body, then capture your swing across nine high-speed cameras to reproduce a 3-D animation to take home on CD. In around an hour, you'll know more about your golf club than most married couples know about each other's font preferences; you'll receive statistics for over 25 aspects of your swing including launch angle, wrist-cocking angle, and the computed distance of carry and roll.

Since 1968, Jerry’s Artarama has stocked shelves with multitudes of tools and supplies and helped artists show off finished work with custom framing. The comprehensive inventory fulfills artists’ every need, featuring everything from acid-free blank stretched canvases to Lukas oil colors, which have been transmitting images to paper since 1862. Although prices vary depending on matting and glass choices, a custom frame can protect and showcase a diploma, favorite 8”x10,” or beloved box of cereal.

Concrete Wave brings a slice of California style to the Northeast. For more than 20 years, the shop's primary focus has been skateboarding. In addition to stocking decks and boards from makers such as Alien Workshop, Zero, and Original Longboards, Concrete Wave sells skate shoes and clothes from Nike, DC, Vans, and Volcom, among others.

Despite the emphasis on skating—which extended to the opening of a partner skate park in 2008—the shop is also as passionate about powder as an enthusiastic makeup artist. Technicians in the board shop tune up snowboards in preparation for the winter snow season and also sell boards, boots, bindings, and apparel from brands such as Salomon, Vans, DC, and Dakine.

Owners Jed and Jessica Leach established Opt Eyewear Boutique in 2010, and set out to bring luxury sunglasses, frames, and lenses from all corners of the globe back to their Providence shop. Their ever-growing stock includes eyewear from renowned brand names—such as Prada, Lafont, and Ted Baker—as well as the latest styles from independent manufacturers. Most recently, they’ve shifted their focus back onto regional soil, carrying products crafted by local students and startup companies such as Arborglass. They help shoppers navigate the selection inside their newly renovated store, decorated with sleek wood floors and mod white furnishings that recall boutiques found sprinkled across London and the inside of Martha Stewart’s mind.