Wandering Orlando - Winter Park Shopping Treasures

Years ago when I first started working in the 80's, I was all matchy matchy with the shoes and the handbags and the Oroton custume clip on earrings. Keeping up that appearance required a lot of shopping. Oh - and every morning having to swap all my handbag contents into another bag.

Then I discovered black.

But when on holidays, and particularly in Florida, suddenly there is colour everywhere! Orlando, being one of the world's most frequented tourist destinations, has miles of shops where you can purchase buckets of  colourful items! Sometimes too much colour!

One of my worst 'hypnotised by the colour - have to buy some' experiences was at a chain store named Chicos in San Diego. This store at first appears benign but on return to Canberra I realised that I do not live on the Gold Coast, am not blond, not tanned, nor am I 5ft 10in, weighing 55 kilos. But I do not have to fear - Chicos does not stray any further than 2 kms from a coast line. Orlando, being inland, is safe territory.

Now, knowing that many Zontians love a good shopping experience let me introduce you one of the nicest areas - Park Avenue, Winter Park.

(photo source: TripAdvisor )

Winter Park is a low rise, tree-lined, outdoor cafe'd, brick paved streeted adult world in a town that makes it money from theme parks.

The main intersection in town

The first thing that stikes is the sound of Winter Park. See that road surface above? Brick pavers. So it makes a very distinctive clinking paver noise as the cars roll across. Also as you can see the place is very pretty. Tree lined streets, large flower tubs and of course there is a very pretty park.

All very 'just so'

The shops themselves are all very plush and boutiquey. No Wal-Marts here.

(photo source: TripAdvisor  )

Every third shop is a jewellery / accessories store. These are a mixture of designer consignment stores, serious gem stores and custume statement pieces. One gallery, Tresor, allowed me to photograph some of their pieces. Which was very nice of them. It is all so very fabulous and chic and sophistocated. Shame my photography does not possess any of those attributes.

A broad collection of high quality designers. Click on the photo and hopefully it embiggens

The other major gallery (not jewellery stores - 'gallery') is Be on Park. Also operating as a designer outlet, it is much more serious and also carries home interior pieces such as art, crystal, small pieces of furniture and estate pieces.

Top left clockwise: designer diamond bracelets, inside the gallery, artwork for sale, tableware

Park Avenue is full of shoe stores, clothing boutiques and all types of gift stores.

(photo source: TripAdvisor  )

Some of the stores, like Scott Laurent's Wearable Art work hard to be collections of unique items.

Orlando colours - hand painted silk Beautiful but I can't imagine ME wearing it

The Partridge Tree Gift shop carried my Portmeirion dinner service, Crabtree and Evelyn and other gifty brands like Tyler candles, Burts Bees and cards and wrappings.

The Partridge Tree carried the most amazing array of Vera Bradley.   Vera Bradley is a HUGE brand in the US. The brand is based on the bright, colourful, intricate patterns that are then applied to pretty much any product you can think of. At any one point in time they may have 50 patterns available and are retiring and launching them frequently. If you can think of it, Vera Bradley have patterned it - bags, luggage, stationery, party items (paper plates, cups, napkins), eye wear, umbrellas, even yoga mats an flip flops! 

Walking around Florida I was astonished at the frequency with which I saw a woman with a Vera product. It was as if ownership was compulsory!

So I bought a wheely bag.

In boysenberry.

But this time I have NOT been hypnotised by the bright colours!!

Future Winter Park Shopping parts will cover Food & Wine, and Tours and Museums - including Tiffany Glass

Mrs. Banks has a Birthday!

Yes - Hurrah for Mrs. Banks! She has made it to her 1st birthday!

          Happy Birthday Mrs. Banks!!    (Cake by Walt Disney World bakery for Tiggerifficheidi from DISboards)

I am still writing this thing and still getting hits from all over Poland.

My hits map - it's USA vs Australia in the Mrs. Banks showdown

It's USA going head to head with Australia for all time hits - with thousands of hits each, Australia trails by only 400. Then there is a huge drop off to the UK, Russia (which is all spam pinging me), France, New Zealand, Canada and the fantastic Fort Fiends at Fort Wilderness

So my most popular post? The one that really drives traffic:

That top one that outstrips all others???

Hurrah! It is this post called: Princess Wars!

Where I rant about Disney describing Minnie Mouse by her physical attributes

 

 

To be fair - a lot of hits on this post are from India - people after the photo of all the girl in their winter princessey gowns. Oh well. And in my top ten search terms, variations of disney princess take up 5 out of ten slots.

So let that be a lesson to you!! Wanna drive traffic to your site? Don't use the word Zonta. From now on every post is gonna have some princessey thing in it. If only I could find a way to include kittens with the princesses - OH traffic would go NUTS!

Subtle and yet attractive to the right crowd.

Oh - and you thought I was joking about the Fort Fiends tracking the blog. Well guess what? That Fort Wilderness post is No. 5 on that graph!

My number one traffic source is a race between the DISboards - and this thread is No. 1 and Google - which really could just be me - hitting myself to drum up traffic.

My purpose with this blog is twofold:

1. To expose more people to world of Zonta International and advancing the status of women; and
2. To expose more Zontians to the joys of Orlando, FL and entice them to attend ZI Conference in 2014.

I really do hope that somehow, somewhere I am working towards that goal, and I thank all my Zonta and Disney friends who smile politely and occassionally comment, which eggs me on!

I also need to thank The Ken Man you keeps me supplied with endless cups of the most perfect tea.

Into which he dissolves my happy drugs

In closing, I think it appropriate that I link back to the very post that started all of this rambling. To harken back to another place - outside of worldly time and responsibilities. Like stepping through the looking glass into a completely immersive world where we can all sing like the birdies sing, and there is a great big beautiful tomorrow shining at the end of everyday.

It's probably time for me to reveal ....

I'M GOING TO WDW AGAIN - DECEMBER 2012 - TO DO WDW CHRISTMAS!!

Snow, parades, decorations, lighting, candy - it is the most OTT Christmas ever. (Photo: wdwnews.com)

(click on the link - go on - and work your way through the Christmas Book to the Piratey Christmas who sing about a Pirately Christmas on Christmas Island. I told you WDW is divorced from reality)

Happy Birthday Mrs. Banks - here's to more Orlando goodies to come  - and starting to plan for 2014 in earnest!

Pamela, that ship is still sailing

Something had to happen to re-launch this ship - and what a timely, coincidental little press release to lull me back onto the blog.

Let me open with a quiz question: would you go and see a film whereby this guy......

.... plays a 1950's business man atttempting to do a movie deal with a chick played by this chick ....

 .... who is a cranky, grumpy ex-Australian author who for 15 years refuses to do the deal?

Then of course the deal is finally done and they all live happily ever after she gets really pissed off and accuses the business man of ruining her book.

Won you over? What a plot?! What tension?! What resolution?!

Disney have announced that Forrest Gump and Nanny McPhee will be playing Walt Disney and P.L. Travers in the upcoming movie: Saving Mr Banks. I wonder if it will be anything like Saving Private Ryan?

uncannily similar?

They were inspired by my blog post from last year.

Missing Muffy

I haven't posted about anything other than Disney and Zonta, and not about my private life with my cat addiction. Unfortunately, last week, Muffy passed away after being my friend for 17 years.

Our last night together - the way we spent every night

17 is way old for a cat, and whilst he was old and creaky over the course of only 1 week he developed very severe symptoms and so he slipped away peacefully and after having enjoyed a wonderful pussy cat life.

I'll get my act together and find some joy to post about soon - after all we are still on our journey to the 2014 Conference. It's just still sad right now.

Thanks