Shopping Local in Las Vegas - Neon Holiday Bazaar

Event flyer

     Just in time for the Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping weekend, the Las Vegas Neon Holiday Shopping Bazaar set up a one day pop up shop on Saturday, November 24 at the Jackie Gaughan Plaza outside the El Cortez.  The shop featured some popular food trucks and booths featuring vintage boutiques, independent retailers, and designers.

The crowd at Neon

     When I arrived at the event, I was glad to see an old favorite vintage store - Annie Creamcheese.  My songbird friend, Stevie Jewel, introduced me to the Annie Creamcheese store on one of our many shopping expeditions.  I went to their display and loved the funky jewelry at affordable prices.  They had more items in the trailer, including lots of designer shoes and bold dresses.

Annie Creamcheese at the Neon Holiday Bazaar

     I was excited to finally check out Leather Couture by Jessica Galindo.  I've seen photos from Lollieshopping but had never been able to see the merchandise in person.  I am a fan of leather and hardware so Leather Couture's pieces were right up my alley.  I especially liked the rings.

Merchandise from Leather Couture by Jessica Galindo.

     Another booth I was looking forward to was The Jeweler's Daughter by Polly Weinstein.  I love seeing the success of former classmates and I believe Polly was actually my high school student body president at some point.  Her jewelry line shows that you can take the girl out of Vegas (she went on to study at Sarah Lawrence), but you can't take the Vegas out of the girl.  Love the playing card suit inspired rings and earrings, and this beautiful Stardust inspired necklace.

Stardust Necklace by The Jeweler's Daughter.

     I was drawn to the unique displays at the Ruffled Robin Boutique.  There were so many pieces made from recycled and vintage materials.  These necklaces made with tiny perfume bottles were so cool!

Necklaces from Ruffled Robin

I bought this metallic leather and chain bracelet with copper lock and key charms.

     My relatives were in town for the Thanksgiving weekend so I didn't have too much time to shop before dinner but had a great time checking out these boutiques and more.
      I am really pleased to see events like the Neon Holiday Shopping Bazaar succeed among both Las Vegas locals and tourists.  A tourist town known for being a haven for everything in excess hasn't been the easiest place to find interesting shopping and cultural events, but looks like Vegas is stepping up it's game.
     A longstanding local culture event called First Friday was alright when I was in high school, but I really only enjoyed going for the company of my best friends.  Now it is bigger and better - with more artists, food trucks, and even children's activities.  A newer monthly event featuring small businesses, musicians, and food trucks is VegasStreats.  I've only been to one Streats event but hope to catch the next one coming up on December 8.
     The Neon event was so much fun and hope to see more like it in the near future!  For more information, check out their website.