Tourist in Your Hometown: Abby of Lancaster, PA

Hey folks! I’m Abby and I blog over at Little City Adventures, a blog about food, adventures living in a little city (hence the name), and our newest adventure entering into parenthood. When Jess asked me to write up a post with the theme of Tourist in Your Hometown, I was overjoyed! I love my little city, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and I will go on and on and on about the wonderful things we have going on, on our historic streets. Lancaster City has definitely bloomed just over the last few years, it has become a desirable place to live, and the perfect place to spend time with friends in our various coffee shops and little parks. Today I am going to share one of my favorite shops in the city, one you just have to see if you’re coming to town. Welcome to Building Character.

This is one of those places where you can just get lost for quite a long time, it’s such an inspiring space. Building Character is one giant warehouse shop made up of over 40 individual vendors. Local artists or small vintage shops rent out these sort of alcoves and little spaces in the warehouse to sell their wares and treasures. You wander in and out of each aisle, enjoying the pleasant little surprises at each turn and at the end you pay for everything at one spot (they have a really cool vintage cash register that holds their cash so I would suggest paying in cash so you can see it in action). This community of local vendors all in one space is just one of my favorite things about Building Character. Essentially, they are all supporting each other. It’s wonderful!

Although known for the vintage treasures you can find throughout the large warehouse, there are also countless handmade and locally sourced items. Even if you don’t buy anything, you’re sure to find something to make you smile; the rubber duckies make me grin every single time.

There are also two or three large spaces that offer high quality thrifted items, like in the photo above. The assortment is just wonderful at Building Character, it’s like a hipster looking, indoor flea market. What could be better, really?!

 

To the right of the entrance there is a loft space with a shop called The Sassy Tassle which sells an array of bright, printed fabrics, perfect for quilting style projects. It’s so brightly colored and in such a neat space that it’s another piece of the shop that never fails to make me happy. 

Yet another thing that building character is known for is their reclaimed and salvaged items like the banisters pictured above. Someday when my hubby and I buy our own home, we will be visiting Building Character for beautiful vintage details. They also have tons and tons of doorknobs and hinges and awesome, random things like that.

I hope you enjoyed this peek into one of my favorite stops in Lancaster City. It truly represents what Lancaster stands for: supporting local artists and business owners, community, and mixing old with new. Also, if you are in Lancaster on Feb. 15-17th all participating shops at Building Character will be offering 10-50%! I know I’ll be stopping by to look for fun little decorations for my house. 

Thanks for letting me hang out on your blog today, Jess! 

Love,

Abby

Building Character - 342 N Queen St rear warehouses, Lancaster, PA 17603