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The Proctor Metropolitan Market was a pleasant surprise when it was first built, and continues to be a pleasant surprise to this day. Finding a store that has organic food as well as nutritional...
The Proctor Metropolitan Market was a pleasant surprise when it was first built, and continues to be a pleasant surprise to this day. Finding a store that has organic food as well as nutritional supplements and nature-friendly cleaning supplies is very rare. Metropolitan's prices aren't bad either!
The store itself is lit with warm, earth-toned lighting that gives a relaxed, calm atmosphere that can't be found in other grocery stores. The nutritional supplement section has items that are hard to find - I was amazed and delighted to find the special herbal that my dad needs that can usually only be found online.
If the outside of the store gives the impression that the prices might be somewhat upscale, actually the prices seem to be comparable to other grocery stores, as well.... even a little cheaper sometimes.
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The 38th Street Goodwill is usually cheerfully busy and has a wide variety of items. I have found some excellent bargains, although prices do seem to be creeping higher these days. There is often a...
The 38th Street Goodwill is usually cheerfully busy and has a wide variety of items. I have found some excellent bargains, although prices do seem to be creeping higher these days. There is often a nice selection of things like lamps - most of them even work! - and there are always a LOT of toys.
I wish the toys were organized a little better so that people could look through them with a better chance of finding what they're looking for. The toy bins are overflowing, with different kinds of toys mixed up together. It takes quite awhile to go through them.
Games and puzzles, though, are displayed to advantage and are very cheap. Computer things like joysticks, speakers and printers are available, as well as a selection of electronics. Convenient electric plugs allow you to test whether these things actually work, as well! ;-)
The clothing selection could have more items for women who are larger than a size 10 or 12, but are displayed well and organized by color.
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The Value Village store that used to be located on 6th Ave has moved over by the TCC transit center, but they're still the same store. A wide variety of items and semi-reasonable prices keep me...
The Value Village store that used to be located on 6th Ave has moved over by the TCC transit center, but they're still the same store. A wide variety of items and semi-reasonable prices keep me coming back. The store is airy, clean, and brightly-lit.
Very few stores are perfect, so I do wish that the prices were a wee bit lower sometimes. However, bargains can be had. The general quality of items is good, and I do like .99 Mondays! Different-colored tags are 50% off on certain days, as well. You can also get a set of coupons at the end of the year, which are each good for a different discount for a month during the year to come.
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Artco Crafts is a small, friendly crafts store located on 6th Avenue. They're not too small to carry some items that the bigger stores don't have, however. For example, they're the only store that...
Artco Crafts is a small, friendly crafts store located on 6th Avenue. They're not too small to carry some items that the bigger stores don't have, however. For example, they're the only store that has the means to create drawer and doorknob pulls out of a special, pourable kind of material, complete with ink dyes, molds, and other materials necessary to the craft.
The staff at Artco is friendly, personable, and seem genuinely interested in helping with your project.
The rubberstamp, scrapbook, floral-and-ribbon departments are very good. The fabric area seems to only cater to quilters, which is unfortunate for those of us who need different kinds of fabric. The frame area is HUGE - the number of choices are truly awesome.
Artco has special drawings on some days, where a lucky person in the store can win a shopping spree. I never was fortunate enough to win yet, but I keep hoping!
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This store is big enough to get lost in. Seriously. Of course, if you are in any way artsy-craftsy, you won't mind this and will in fact consider it an opportunity to discover a new craft. (Not that...
This store is big enough to get lost in. Seriously. Of course, if you are in any way artsy-craftsy, you won't mind this and will in fact consider it an opportunity to discover a new craft. (Not that you necessarily NEED another one.) There is very little that they don't carry. From fabrics to paints to home decor to Styrofoam to doll hair, you'll probably find it here.
The 40% off coupons are definitely worth waiting for, and if you get on the mailing list you'll get one in the mail every few weeks. These coupons are good for what they claim they are - no hidden surprises like with some other stores.
Store wide sales are also good opportunities - believe me, you'll need them. The salespeople are helpful, and the 'value flat fold' table is another good source of bargains.
It's true you won't find the specialized, unique items that some crafters might require, such as steel boning or $100/yard silk brocade, but you can definitely find many items to satisfy that creative urge.
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Located in the heart of Tacoma's downtown Antique Row/Theater district, Blu Wolf is a Native American/ New Age/Pagan type of shop that provides a relaxing, peaceful, inspiring atmosphere as well as...
Located in the heart of Tacoma's downtown Antique Row/Theater district, Blu Wolf is a Native American/ New Age/Pagan type of shop that provides a relaxing, peaceful, inspiring atmosphere as well as a lot of really beautiful items. A large drum graces the center of the floor, one with a powerful "voice." A little seating area is off to one side, where there are comfy chairs and sofas, as well as a few toys for small children. Tea and coffee are available as well. Sale items include jewelry, music, books, incense, essence oils, scarves, puzzles, artwork, smudge feathers, statues and ornamental objects, crystals, and much more. If you are interested in these types of items, BluWolf is definitely a place to investigate.
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Culpepper's is a real, old-fashioned bookstore tucked into a corner of the historic Proctor district. It's small, but it's jam-packed with goodies. Everything from antique volumes from the late...
Culpepper's is a real, old-fashioned bookstore tucked into a corner of the historic Proctor district. It's small, but it's jam-packed with goodies. Everything from antique volumes from the late 1800's to recent paperbacks can be found here, and the shelves scrape the ceiling. Especially rare books are carefully preserved in the glass showcases, but there are plenty of hands-on books to be browsed through. The proprietors are friendly and knowledgeable, and there are many different categories ranging from science, history and art to sci-fi/fantasy and children's classics. Plan on spending some time there, because it will take awhile to see everything.
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I honestly don't know what I would do without this store. The one I go to is on 6th Avenue. It's not too small to have a large selection of items, and not so large that you get lost or overwhelmed...
I honestly don't know what I would do without this store. The one I go to is on 6th Avenue. It's not too small to have a large selection of items, and not so large that you get lost or overwhelmed by too many choices, like many supermarkets. The people who run it are warm and friendly, seem to know many of their regular customers, and are anxious to help you. It is true that sometimes they're sold out of some items - things seem to come in on certain days of the week - but I can live with that. The prices are, in a word, amazing. For example, a bottle of fruit juice costs almost $5.00 in a regular supermarket, but at Grocery Outlet the exact same bottle of juice is only $1.99. A box of crackers can be $3.00 at the supermarket, the same or a similar box of crackers is .99. I used to just walk around open-mouthed at the low prices - now I walk into a supermarket and gasp at the high prices there. Grocery Outlet also has an ever-changing selection, and I've tried various foods I never would have tried if they'd been full price. I found a lot of new favorites that way! But my favorite part comes at the very end....when I go to check out. The clerk always tells me how much I saved, with a big smile. I consistently save between 40 to 60% on every single shopping trip. Grocery Outlet definitely makes my food budget stretch to cover the month. I hope they never, ever go out of business.
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