I never write reviews. If I could give this store a zero rating for their customer service, I…read morewould. I must say, this is one of the worst experiences I remember having in a boutique store. I have been shopping in this store for many years now and spent lots of money. I usually buy my gifts early, especially during Christmas so that I can take advantage of the selection. The owners Marina, and the other senior woman that works with her with the blond hair would not do an even exchange for a Christmas item. I had purchased 2 ornaments by mistake, 5.99$ each, and all I asked is if I could exchange one ornament for a Christmas napkin which was the same price. Its not like they were going to lose any money. The owner and the the blond senior lady at the cash both said no, no exchanges on Christmas items. She said we have never bent the rules in 30 years and we are not about to do so now. Wow, what great customer service! Especially considering the fact that on boxing day, a student employee told me to come back after boxing day, since they don t do Christmas exchanges on boxing day, which is completely understandable. Its not the money that bothered me, its the principle, and their horrible attitude. The owner and the blond woman that works with her were both extremely rude, they seem bothered, and unfriendly. The other day when I was waiting in line for boxing day shopping at their store, I was talking to another customer waiting, she said, the store has gone down hill, and I could not agree more. If the business is too much, and adjusting your inventory for a straight exchange for the same price is too much of a hassle, not to be discriminatory, but maybe its time to pass on the torch to a younger generation. These women are stuck in their old fashion ways of doing things. They need to realize they need to up their customers service with the times, be more flexible, and make exceptions when it makes sense, in order to keep their customers happy and coming back. Remember word of mouth gets around. If not, it may be time to retire, as I noticed during my Halloween shopping at their store, they ( when I say they, I mean the owner, and that blond senior woman that works there), they looked fed up of customers already. When I asked one when the Christmas decorations were coming out, she just nodded her head and rolled her eyes, like she was saying in her head, let me get through Halloween first. I went across the street to the new store that opened called the Zone Maison ( this is a small chain boutique store, they have others in Montreal), and what a difference in the staffing. The employees and owner really care about their customers, they have a positive attitude and they are more flexible. with their policies. This may be one of the reasons for the store owners frustrations and bad attitude. For many years, Le Panier was the staple store in the Pointe -Claire village, now they have a competitor that sells beautiful items, and has friendlier staff with more flexible policies. Do yourself a favor, its not worth the drive if you live outside of the west island, their Christmas selection this year, was horrible, compared to previous years, another client in the store noticed this as well. The owner blamed it on supplier issues, while Maison Zone, that sells similar items didn't seem to have supplier issues. The owner and the blond senior woman that works with her, (I don t know which one was worse, I would say the blond woman had a serious chip on her shoulder) needs to put a smile on her face, and pretend at least to show she likes her job. Life is too short to be this inflexible and bitter when you are running a business! Remember things don 't last forever in life, and its your customers that made you! Ps. Please read the low class review on google reviews, with the comment about the shopping bag! This store is not deserving of our business, if they continue to be this inflexible, especially with their customers that have been giving them our money for so many years! Shame on you!

Headline: Win the Battle, Lose the War…read more We just spent $100 on gifts at this store. When we asked for an extra bag, the clerk wanted to charge $1. This store has a lot of interesting and cute gifts. We've been in there half a dozen times in the past three years. However, our recent experience causes us pause.

What started out as a sweet potter's co-op and boutique to showcase all of the handmade pottery,…read morehas now transformed into a beautiful café in the heart of Le Petit Laurier. It's still a co-op of about 10-15 different local potters, and the boutique still features a wide selection of absolutely gorgeous one-of-a-kind pottery, but you can now linger a little longer, nestled in a vintage chair or relaxing at the chunky central wooden table, sipping your espresso and taking your time to decide on which piece of handcrafted clay you need to take home with you that day. I've been here a number of times, typically to pick up affordable and unique wedding gifts for friends, or when I want to treat myself to a new piece for my own eclectic pottery collection (I pride myself on my collection). I am never disappointed. I come from a craft background and have a number of family members and friends who are established potters, so I know quality craftsmanship when I see it. I've always been *extremely* impressed by the pots, platters, mugs, teapots, plates and bowls that this collective kicks out. I often stop in my tracks on the sidewalk to stare at the ever-changing window displays, making a mental note to come back and get one of what I've just seen. There are a wide variety of styles: classic porcelain ware, arty stoneware with funky glazes, cutesy earthenware, hip decal work, high end vases and basins, some larger sculptural pieces, one-off wall tiles, and all extremely affordable and reasonably priced for what they are. Some of the glazes are to die for. They have a very large studio in the back, with an number of electric potter's wheels (not sure if they have kick wheels or not), and offer pottery classes to those who want to learn how to make muck into useful housewares themselves. Super down to earth bunch. Yep... I really DID just make that obvious pun...

Such a fun activity! You begin by choosing a pottery item and the selection is huge! There is so…read moremuch to paint varying in sizes, prices, utilities! After that you can pick your paint colours and there is a helpful chart showing you what the colours will look like once your product is glazed. There is also lots of helpful information on painting technique and style. Once you settle in with all of that, you can order drinks and food and it is the most enjoyable way to spend an afternoon or evening. I highly recommend and it's a surprise when you go back a week later to pick up your creation! You pay by the hour and per item.

My friend and I and had passed this place several times and decided to try it out one weekend as it…read morelooked fun. The cafe has two floors. Their menu is basic and food is decent. Service is very friendly! We were more satisfied with the painting part of the experience. We were guided through the process as soon as we were seated. We were told to head upstairs to pick what we wanted to paint, and they have a lot of options of ceramics to pick from! I picked a rabbit and was advised to layer the paint on several coats to get the best effect later. Which means you spend a few hours here so take time out accordingly. It's a nice place to just relax and paint, however it's a little pricey. Also once you are done, they take your painted ceramic for a week to glaze and fire it in the kiln. May not go here again, but for a one time thing, it was a fun experience.

Zone Orange is a charming art gallery (galerie d'art) and cafe on a side street off of Old…read moreMontreal. It isn't terribly large, but it's clean, colorful, with a ton of random art on display and for sale. I had a conversation with friendly Dominic Morin, the manager/owner (he's listed as "le directeur" on his business card - I'm unsure how that directly translates). I told him I was sad there wasn't any food[1] for purchase, only coffee, and he noted my complaint (now they actually have SORBET in addition to their espresso). He also pointed out a few pieces to me, and mentioned his sister was an artist here; I also checked out these animal plushies (amusing cat and octopus ones) sitting on a huge IKEA shelf. Much of the random art there was graspable stuff - tres cool. Zone Orange is worth a visit.

Cute boutique with very expensive items. This is just off the beaten path so you will have to look…read moredown the side street to find it. Worth a stop if your in Old Montreal according to Frommers, to us it was overpriced crap.

Absolutely love this art store ! The employees are super…read morenice and always welcoming. This place has everything you need as a beginner or advanced artist :]] Once you come here you'll always want to come again and again !

This is the mega Omer, the mother Omer, the Berri Omer located on the same corner where the…read moreoriginal Omer Deserres existed in 1908 back when it was a hardware store. Dedicated to supplying artists, advertising agencies, local art schools and DIY crafters since 1950 and with branches across Canada you can find fairly much everything you might need to get creative in this creativity complex. In my experience, it's great to chat with the staff here about what you're working on or looking for. The organization is a bit complex because they have so much stuff, so it's helpful to have one of the wise young art students leading you around, plus: adorable. The vibe in here is clean, bright and modern, not at all the inspiring sense of dripping with history and the labours of love as you find in true old school places like Pearl Paint in NYC, but it gets the job done in style. Some items suffer from the usual Montreal markup, but they make up for it by having in-house brands for things like sketchbooks that are really cheap.

I visited this lovely little corner shop in the Le Plateau-Mont-Royal neighborhood last Wednesday…read moremorning and it was nice to see they already had regulars sitting and knitting their projects. The shop carries nicer, higher-end yarns. There are a lot of knitted samples to pique your creative interest. I didn't try their tea and pastries, but they have a nice, small selection. I bought a few items that were specific to La Maison Tricotée. The staff was so nice, welcoming, and helpful. I would recommend La Maison Tricotée to knitters, crocheters and yarn lovers. Even if you are not, but need to buy a gift for one, the helpful employees would give you guidance.

I had time to visit one yarn shop on a business trip to Montreal. I couldn't have chosen better and…read moreI wish there were more stars to give. The young lady working that day showed me all around when I asked about local, hand dyed yarns and told me interesting things about each brand. I had a delightful cup of tea and even though it was nearing closing time, I never felt rushed. She even helped me choose a great place to go to dinner and recommended a great bar to visit with a cool atmosphere I loved (Darling bar). But then she really went above and beyond when my uber driver called and she spoke to him for me in French. I ended up needing to request another driver and she offered me to wait inside the store out of the cold rain while he arrived even though the shop was closing. On top of that, I bought beautiful yarn! I am so glad to have things to remember from this shop. Many yarn stores have fabulous yarn but it's customer service like this that makes people fall in love with the store. (The tea and baked goods don't hurt either.) How I wish it was my LYS and that I didn't live hundreds of miles away. I hope I get to visit it again. In the meantime, do yourself a favor and visit this store!

Cute market with lots of fresh basics, if you need fruits, veggies, outdoor plants and specialty…read morefoods, this market offers just about everything. There is a butcher, seafood place, cafe, bakery, as well as other restaurants and stores within the strip mall all easily accessible. There's also a big IGA supermarket right next door. However there are many vacant spots in the market, the area seems to have suffered during covid closures. Best to come in the sumer months to enjoy the outdoor set up with plants and produce. When we were there was also a nice stall with fresh corn - affordable prices if you want to buy a dozen or whole bag - straight from the farm. Best discovery for me was "Cavallaro" which is a small italian shop specializing in fine cheeses, imported goods and treats, but they also bake fresh pizzas on site. These are the large rectangular slabs, with just about any toppings you want. If you like plain tomato pizza, this is the best - excellent sauce and crust. Highly recommend!!

Marché de l'ouest has an exterior market with fresh fruit and vegetables who uses containers of…read morehoney to catch bees and wasps so they can't get to the food. The insects and their wings get stuck to the honey making it impossible for them to fly away. They are several other options to prevent insects getting to the food. For example, placing citronella candles around the market.

This was one of the first stores we stopped in while wondering around Vieux Montreal and absolutely…read moreloved it. I didn't want to buy all the things our first day so we made it a point to go back the last day we were there. They have gifts that you can get at other establishments along with some local flair as well. Upstairs and downstairs, those stairs get quite slippery in the winter so be sure to watch your step! Given the location it was busy both times we went so be patient, get a basket and shop around!

Cute gift shop…read more Along the main drag of Rue St. Paul, flanked with shops on both sides. Cut socks, kitchen items, apparel items and accessories too.