Barcelona Travel Guide | Places To Shop.

Well, well, well… I must admit that am both excited and a little bit sad to welcome you to this Travel Tuesday and the fifth and final post in the Barcelona Travel Guide Series.

Like they say – all good things must come to an end, but before I get all emotional and shi… I mean stuff, let me just tell you about a few excellent places where you can spend you hard earned cash (or display restraint unknown to myself, and enjoy a good dose of window shopping, although that’s never as much fun, right?!)

One thing to keep in mind when planning your day is that shop hours are approximately 10am – 1:30pm and 4:30pm to 7:30pm Mon – Fri (and Sat mostly am). And when I say approximately, I mean very approximately, as you need to give or take an hour to two each way. Basically, it is almost impossible to know when some shops will be open. Some simply do not open until the afternoon. Others never reopen after lunch. Quite absurd, moderately amusing and highly frustrating. How anybody gets anything done in this town remains a bit of a mystery to me, yet it all seems to work just marvelously. So my tip is to just give in to the pace and go with the flow.

Barcelona Travel Guide | Curated by Yellowtrace! // Places To See & Things To Do. // Places To Stay. // Places To Eat & Drink.

Vinçon.

A shrine to design, home wares and furniture, Vinçon is Barcelona’s ultimate design store and a must on any design aficionado’s itinerary. Located in the most incredible heritage building designed by architect Antoni Rovira i Rabassa in 1899, it was owned by a painter named Ramón Casas (Picasso’s contemporary during his time in Barcelona). This place oozes cool in every single humanly possible way – there are nearly 10,000 products housed over two floors, casually merchandised by mixing the humble with the high-end, with a jaw-dropping furniture showroom up above, and one of Barcelona’s most beautiful courtyards from which you can admire the rear facade of Gaudí’s Casa Milà… In fact, Vinçon is so cool that their shopping bags alone are a collector items.

You will walk through the labyrinth of rooms not knowing which way to look first – at the building itself, the gorgeous products or impeccable styling – and you will gasp, possibly even squeal frequently. Not to worry, others are doing the same thing, so just keep looking like an excited school girl – all first time visitors do. Vinçon is also famous for their striking and creative window displays… Seriously, I am running out of superlatives for this place. Do yourself a favour and just go there. In fact, just go to Barcelona so that you can go to Vinçon. Word.

Vinçon | Passeig de Gràcia 96, 08008 Barcelona, Spain | Ph: +34 932 156 050
The shop can also be accessed via Provença 273 and Pau Claris 175.
Opening hours | Monday to Saturday 10am to 8:30pm (without interruptions – I know, so good!)

The Outpost.

The Outpost is a little gem disguised as a menswear store, which is owned and run by a former Prada buyer and a super lovely guy by the name of Pep Esteva. Pep was very chatty and friendly, and extremely generous with his invaluable local tips (also, his English was excellent which is such a relief let me tell you!). Mr Esteva has an impeccable eye for exquisite high quality men’s shoes that sit somewhere between the informal and traditional with a contemporary twist. Same goes for his great collection of accessories and grooming products, all housed in a deliciously warm and elegant interior designed by Pilar Libano. You can check out some of The Outpost’s recent window display’s right here. What a brilliant little place, no? Yes it is. Go there, and tell Pep that Dana from Sydney says hi!

The Outpost | Carrer del Rosselló, 281 | 08037 Barcelona, Spain | Ph: +34 934 577 137
Opening Hours | Monday to Saturday 10:30 – 14:30 and 16:30 – 20:30

2.046 Shoes.

2.046 shoes is another special little gem I wanted to share with you. This gorgeous little shop is run by the lovely Teresa, while her talented husband Emilio hand makes all the shoes sold in the store. Here you will find the most divine, grown-up shoes and boots in classic styles and shapes, finished to perfection using only the finest, most lust-worthy leather you can get. Extremely extreme love! Husband and I may or may not have walked away with four pairs between us… I did not stop wearing mine for pretty much 6 months until the weather turned warm here in Sydney, and now I can’t wait for it to get cooler so that I can wear them again. True story! These shoes alone managed to wipe out the rest of my shoe-drobe just like that. They are to die for and worth every last cent. Just sayin’… Also, Teresa is one of the loveliest and most stylish women you could ever hope to meet – she is also exceptionally warm and generous with her local tips despite her broken English. If you go there, make sure to give her a little hug from me!

2.046 shoes | via Augusta, 14-16 | Plaça Narcís Oller | 08006 Barcelona Spain | Ph: +34 933 681 381

OX.

Just up the road from the shoe-shop is a fabulous furniture showroom which sells a brilliant range of immaculately restored 50s, 60s and 70s Scandinavian collectables + their own range of furniture and lighting. They also have a really lovely collection of vintage German ceramics. One of the owners, Shukri Girgis spoke surprisingly good English – turns out he lived in Melbourne for a number of years prior to settling in Barcelona.

OX | Sèneca 8 & Riera de Saint Miquel 17 | 08006 Barcelona Spain | Ph: +34 616 765 351
Opening Hours | 15:00 to 20:30 daily.

Il.lacions Galleria de Disseny.

Il.lacions is a new gallery on the Barcelona scene, and the first one in this city that is dedicated exclusively to design. Designer Xavier Franquesa and architect Ellen Rapelius of studionex are the two people behind this initiative. This is such a beautiful space which really challenges the traditional gallery space aesthetic by showcasing the layers of paint and pencil graffiti from previous decades, original ceramic floor tiles, cast iron structural columns and a moody charcoal grey interior. And as you can see from the photos, this place was unfortunately closed when we got there (which was also the case with about 398 other places we went to – see my previous note about absurd yet amusing opening hours.)

Il.lacions | c. Notariat 3. Local  08001 Barcelona, Spain | Ph: +34 933 184 223

Santa Rita.

Santa Rita is a lovely little concept store set in the middle of El Raval. You want music? They’ve got music – hip-hop, retro punk, electronica in both CDs and vinyls. Oh, you also want books? They’ve got books too – fashion, photography, music, design and art all spread out on a central long table. And if that’s not enough, directly across the road is another great place for groovy art, design, fashion books and mags called Ras Gallery (ph: +34 934 127 199).

Santa Rita | Carrer del Doctor Dou, 11 | Ph: +34 932 690 800

Tutusaus.

Located in a posh uptown area in Barcelona, Tutusaus is a mecca for high quality cheese and ham – my two favourite things in life, along with good shoes… (shhh, shoes are just a few doors up from here at Jofré.) Established in 1977, this store offers product tastings, perfect if you are curious about how the famed Iberian ham (Jamón Ibérico) tastes, but not sure if you’re willing to pay the price. This place offers over 200 national and imported cheeses, Jamón Ibérico + an array of Spanish ham varieties, imported French pates and foies, caviar, olive oils and carefully selected wines. Heaven!

Tutusaus | C/ Francesc Pérez I Cabrero, 5 | 08021 Barcelona, Spain | Ph: +34 932 098 373

Oriol Balaguer.

This one is for the chocolate lovers amongst us. Hurrah! Oriol Balaguer is a master chocolatier and a pastry chef who trained in both Spain and Belgium, and was hired to work with Ferran Adrià who defined him as ‘one of the most well-rounded professionals in the world of gastronomy’. This slick spaceship-like retail space displays his many architectural chocolate creations. Mmmmmm….

Oriol Balaguer | Plaça Sant Gregori Taumaturg, 2 | Ph: +34 932 011 846

Semon.

The epicure’s deli, Semon is pure heaven for all senses. Here you will find the most fabulous cakes and pastries, delicious prepared foods, Jamón Ibérico, lots of cheeses and wine. Everything is so beautifully displayed and packaged and looks almost too good to eat. We recommend making your selection and taking a short stroll to the nearby Turó Parc located right in the middle of one of Barcelona’s most exclusive residential areas. This place is a luscious oasis of calm and a perfect place to rest weary tourist feet while jamming your face with your delicious pastries of choice. Heaven man!!!

Semon | Carrer de Ganduxer 31, Barcelona | Ph: +34 932 016 931

And that’s all folks! I hope you’ve enjoyed this super special Barcelona Travel Guide Series curated with love and care especially for YOU by yellowtrace. Enjoy!

[All images © yellowtrace.]