Shop Between the Shows

Southern Living, Jun 1998 by Ford, Gary D

Before I started a morning of shopping in Branson, Missouri, Melissa McCormick sang to me a country song she had written about Daddy leaving home. And her show cost only $4.99.

That was the price of my threeegg omelet at the Hard Luck Diner, a cafe with a singing waitstaff, located in The Grand Village Shops. In Branson, even a shopping spree begins with a show.

Good places to browse rise along Branson's famous 76 Country Boulevard. I started at The Grand Village Shops, a complex owned by Branson-based Silver Dollar City. It attempts to look like a small town, with nice landscaping and street lamps above brick walkways.

Twenty-six stores angle around this little "town," with gift selections ranging from typical mall fare to antiques and gourmet foods. While inside the shop Remember When . . . The '50s, I found a baseball autographed by the World Series champions of 1969, those amazing New York Mets, for $450. Another signed by Bo Jackson, the 1989 All-Star Game MVP sold for $95.

In Kringles, where it's Christmas anytime, you can buy ornaments off the trees, including carved and quilted decorations, as well as snowcapped Christmas villages. How about a hand-carved Santa? That's one of the creations in Peter Engler Designs. Engler is one of several Silver Dollar City craftspeople in The Grand Village Shops. You can find their baskets at Ozark Mountain Gifts and glass creations at Village Glassworks.

I suggest strolling the crafts displays and watching working craftspeople. On my last visit, Wren Helwig was shaping hot, liquid glass into beautiful teardrop shapes. The finished products-fragrance burners costing $15 to $40-were on display in a sales area.

Elsewhere, Kathy McCurry sewed dresses and jumpers of denim and print cotton for $26. You could buy Daddy's Long Leg dolls, finely crafted African American dolls made by Karen Germany of Dallas.

The Engler Block has its ritzy neighborhood too. Hawthorn Galleries turns the corner from crafts to art. Some of the wood-sculpted and bronze birds cost up to $25,000. You'll pay $3,000 to $5,000 for a sculpture by Grant Speed, a member of the Cowboy Artists of America.

The gallery has a well-rounded selection, but it will cost you a lot more than a song. Gary D. Ford The Grand Village Shops: 2800 76 Country Blvd., Branson, MO 65616; (417) 336-7467. The Engler Block: 1335 West State 76, Branson, MO 65616; (417) 335-2200 or 1-800-335-9299. o