McKinney, TX: Patina Green & Smitten

This past Thursday, I had my very first day off to spend all to myself in over 27 months (yes, that is how old Stella is).  I got my iced coffee and headed to McKinney, TX, once a tiny farm town that my stepfather grew up in and where streets are still named after his family.  Now the town is booming but the historic downtown square maintains it's charm.  I make this pilgrimage once a year to visit the shops and never leave empty-handed.  This time, I was on a mission!  My friend, Kimberly, at Quatrine had told me to hurry to the new Patina Green Home and Market store.  I loved their booth when they were at White Elephant Antiques (and even saved their business card because it was so pretty) and was happy to hear they were now in McKinney.  I love when you walk into a store and it's a complete experience...this is one of those places.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in was this amazing

wall, covered in Nina Campbell paper.  

Kaci Lyford told me it was a dream of she and her husband, Robert, to work together.  So she with her design background, and he being a chef, opened the space in a 120 year-old building along with Kaci's mom, Luann Van Winckel.  I had Robert's Tinga Tacos for lunch, which were amazing, and later the complimentary blueberry & white chocolate chip cookie. 

 

I sat next to Joe & Sue, tweeting away..

And then I roamed around the market and bought a jar of local Jalapeno Pepper Jelly, something I've never cared for but was sold once I sampled it there on top of bread with a slice of white cheddar...

The back of the store has wonderful antiques and finds...

Do you see those tiny boxes of chalk on the middle shelf? 

I bought those to put on top of children's presents..

Even la toilette is in character...

Oh, wait...did I mention the flowers?

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From there, I headed to Smitten where my mom buys her French velvet ribbon.  Owner, Karen Dawkins also has an amazing selection of German glass glitter and seam binding,

which I love to use to wrap small gifts or attach tags.  Here are some pictures from her shop.  I'll need to go back once Stella gets her big girls bed because they have cute bedding, too! 

There are other wonderful shops around the square, such as Homepieces, and various antique shops and places to eat.  But I do recommend going around Christmas time when you can stroll around with HOT coffee in hand.