Shopping

Dutchess County, New York can fill the items on everyone’s shopping list with many fine retail outlets available in the heart of the Hudson Valley. From large shopping malls with every type of store imaginable, to small, unique specialty shops, Dutchess offers a wide range of merchandise and experiences.

The Poughkeepsie Galleria (Poughkeepsiegalleriamall.com), Rte. 9, Poughkeepsie, is the largest shopping mall in the county. The Poughkeepsie Galleria is exactly what people are looking for when they want to enjoy a wonderful day of shopping; lots of choices for great apparel and shoes, jewelry, electronics, gift items, books and music, plus a wide variety of restaurants and an international food court. It has everything you need and caters to all types of shoppers. In 2005, the Poughkeepsie Galleria opened several new stores including, Target and Build-a-bear Workshop. The Galleria is also home to the first H&M store in the Hudson Valley and DSW Shoe Warehouse. H&M, a Swedish-based clothing retailer, is legendary for its great fashion and quality at competitive prices, also known as “cheap chic,” while DSW sells hundreds of name brand shoes at discount prices. The long-time retailer Abercrombie & Fitch is a very popular store for the younger generation. Other popular stores include Dick’s Sporting Goods, the Disney Store, Ann Taylor Loft, Express, and Hot Topic. The restaurant Ruby Tuesday, Payless Shoes, Best Buy and Old Navy are some other great places within the Poughkeepsie Galleria.

The Hudson Valley’s “oldest” year round Christmas Emporium is Forever Christmas (845/229-2969) located in historic Hyde Park. It offers everything for Christmas as well as a wide variety of collectibles. Snow babies, Clothtique Santa’s, Fenton Art Glass and Boyd’s Bears are only a few of the items from their huge selection. It’s the perfect place to find unique Hudson Valley ornaments that are great gift ideas or souvenirs. Another stop to make when looking for Christmas gifts is Kringle’s Christmas House (845/838-2830) in Beacon. Specializing in Eastern European ornaments and giftware, the shop has unique, one-of-a-kind items.

The Maple Tree Gallery (Mapletreegallery.com) in Pawling features fine art and custom framing. Featured are artists like master glass blower John Burchetta as he creates contemporary art glass in his studio, Burchetta Hotglass. Ned Reade is known for his award-winning watercolors, including paintings of the beautiful Dutchess County countryside. The gallery also has jewelry, textiles and garden art. The Maple Tree Gallery provides you with only the finest design and workmanship from many artists throughout Dutchess County, ensuring something that will be enjoyed for generations. In addition to the gallery, there is a holiday shop, which displays the Christopher Radko Collection, as well as collectibles, ornaments and other unique gifts.

The City of Beacon is now known for its art studios and galleries. These galleries, many opened with the advent of Dia: Beacon, specialize in a wide array of art and styles. Each has unique paintings, photos, sculpture and other types of art and crafts for sale. RiverWinds Gallery (Riverwindsgallery.com) features the Hudson Valley’s finest artists and specializes in fine art and contemporary crafts. Hudson Beach Glass (Hudsonbeachglass.com) is located in a newly restored 1890 firehouse. The renovated firehouse now serves as a glassblowing studio and art gallery, which shows glass creations from the studio and from internationally recognized glass artists. Visitors can not only peruse the gallery, but can also watch glassblowers demonstrate the ancient art form!

For a unique shopping experience visit the Webatuck Craft Village in Wingdale. This working craft village with 18 th century buildings has a toy store, café and gallery. Craft specialties include stained glass, pottery, country furniture and early American lighting.

Dutchess County also offers some of the finest antique shops in the nation. Area towns noted for antiques are Beacon, Pleasant Valley, Millbrook, Hyde Park, Rhinebeck and Red Hook. The Annex Antiques Center, in Red Hook, is located in an old-time movie-house. The center features the eclectic collections of 26 dealers. They offer assorted period furnishings, sports memorabilia, toys, reference books, post cards, and specialized items. Hyde Park Antique Center has just undergone a renovation, but they still combine fifty dealers under one roof, and is located right between the FDR Home & Presidential Library and the Vanderbilt Mansion on Rte. 9 in Hyde Park. Johnson’s Antiques in Millerton looks as if it has everything including the kitchen sink. Many undiscovered treasures wait to be recognized by just the right person. Treasure hunting like this is fun at any time of year, but is especially lovely when combined with a fall foliage drive along Rte. 22 or Rte. 44.

Similar finds are waiting at area auction houses. They feature the contents of estates and country homes and usually include furniture, rugs, artwork, silver, collectibles and toys. The Absolute Auction Center (Absoluteauctionrealty.com) holds “live” auctions approximately every two weeks on Saturdays at 5pm. Preview items the night before from 3-9pm or the day of the auction from 3-5pm. George Cole Auctions (Georgecoleauctions.com) is located in northern Dutchess in Red Hook. Their auctions are selected Saturdays at 5:30pm with previews Friday from 3-8pm and Saturday from 3pm until the auction. Beacon is home to Cold Spring Galleries (Coldspringgalleries.com), which specializes in large estate and antique auctions. They accept consignments and provide free appraisals, holding auctions every other Monday at 6pm. Rinaldi Auctions & Appraisals, Poughkeepsie, hold auctions at many sites throughout Dutchess County on an ongoing basis.