As much as I’d love to keep this on the DL, the artists represented in this artsy, handmade shop in Puglia are too fabulous to keep hidden away. When I stumbled upon this cute shop in Puglia, Italy, it felt like finding a hidden treasure trove all for myself. For a second there, I couldn’t decide whether to share it with the world or keep it my own little secret!
In honor of International Women’s Day though, I’ve decided to let the spotlight shine on the talented women that make up No’ Contemporary Shop!
While living in Castellana Grotte in the heel of Italy’s boot, one of my favorite things to do was stroll around the charming, whitewashed town perched on top of rocky cliffs and jutting out into the sea- Polignano A Mare. With a gelato in hand and a warm breeze, it’s pretty much heaven. There on one of the town’s winding, stone streets, I met Stefania as she sat on a brightly colored bench outside the entrance to her shop.
I ducked inside and went down the hand-hewn stone steps where there was a small room abundant with colorful, handmade jewelry, dresses, hats, sandals, scarves…everything needed to brighten your life and embrace the joie de vivre that is so abundant in Italy. I soon started to chat with Stefania and learned she was the owner and had opened the shop in 2016.
She showed me a variety of blouses, knitted tops, earthy jewelry, and decorative accessories. Each item was handmade, very unique, and playful. It took me nearly an hour just to pick one thing for a gift for a friend back home (indecisive much?)!
Read below as Stefania talks about her shop…
“I worked in Fashion and my sister worked in Theatre as a seamstress. We decided to put our talents together, first by creating jewelry and bags made from recycled fabrics so that the items would be totally unique. Today, we travel around Italy looking for materials to salvage.”
“La mia parte preferita è che tutti gli oggetti che puoi trovare nel nostro shop: abbigliamento con piccoli e unici dettagli, sandali e cappelli con decori artigianali, gioielli e accessori vari tutti fatti a mano da artigiani pugliesi.”
(My favorite thing about our shop is that each object you can find in our shop: clothes with intricate and unique details, sandals and hats with artistic decorations, jewelry and accessories..everything is made by the hand of a Apulian artisan.)
“The biggest challenge at the beginning was getting to the point to be able to do what we loved and making others love it, too!”
Creative Edge Travel offers small group and custom trips to the lesser-known areas of Italy. Visit our Upcoming Trips page to see where we’re headed next!