I had such a fun shopping experience at Quilting Connection this afternoon. So many bolts of fabric…read moreand friendly staff. I felt welcomed. The next time we take a road trip in this direction, I'll make a point of visiting again.

I know they will always have what I need. Kelly, the owner is so good and all the ladies that work…read morethere are so helpful. It's the best material store in our area.

I knew even before shopping at Modern Dress that my experience would be 10/10 & it most definitely…read morewas. I really didn't think I would say yes to the dress my first time shopping but I did! My experience was extra special for a few reasons- both Ashlee & Sage were able to help me find the perfect dress & both of them will be standing by my side when I say I do! And on top of that, I am marrying Sage's brother. I truly can't imagining saying yes to the dress any other way. Modern Dress has a wide variety & selection of dresses. I tried on so many different styles. Sage & Ashlee were great at finding dresses that complemented me well AND met my mom and grandma's expectations. Whether or not you say yes at Modern Dress, I guarantee your experience will be top notch and a day to remember.

I cannot say how much I love Modern Dress enough. Ashley, the owner, was SUCH a sweetheart. She was…read moreso patient with me and my girls and getting everyone coordinated and looking fabulous. I bought my bridesmaid dresses here for my May 2015 wedding and really wish I would've bought my wedding dress here. They have some amazing dresses and are definitely worth the time and effort to go through them. I ordered my dresses right before Thanksgiving for my wedding and was given an arrival estimate of 12 weeks. Perfect. More than enough time for altering. 12 weeks came. 12 weeks went. 13. 14. Ashley took a lot of her time to track down my dresses - sitting on a loading dock in California and then in Dallas TX - due to a shipping strike! Couldn't believe it. She was so apologetic and kept me in the loop on everything so I was never wondering what was going on or where my dresses were. She was absolutely on top of everything. I couldn't have asked for a better advocate for me and my bridal party! The dresses came in on time and looked gorgeous. Everybody loved their dresses and I was SO pleased. And every single Modern Dress employee was an absolute doll. Loved working with all of them. Definitely go here for your prom, bridal or any other special occasion dresses.

The Frame Shop is absolutely the best. I have had framing done there for decades. The two women…read morewho work there have guided me to be absolutely happy with every framing. Further, they brought back to life a 100 year old piece that had fallen from a wall.

I had The Frame Shop frame a sketch my father had done on vellum (very thin paper) and they did…read morean absolutely fantastic job with it!!! It was a complex framing with sketch on a white backing and glass raised above the sketch so it didn't touch the sketch. I am very impressed with their work!!!

I literally had no idea that Ames even had a music store in town. After a recommendation on…read moreFacebook while trying to find a guitar (I want to play TODAY!), I decided to check out this place. It's a nice little shop with a lot of stuff for sale including standard musical instruments, guitars, pianos, and a lot more. It's located on Main Street next to a Salon. I had no idea what I was looking for, so when the owner asked me how he could help, I told him I wanted a beginner-friendly guitar that didn't cost too much. It's obvious it's a passion of his as he was happy to give me as much information as I wanted. He explained the various price points of guitars as well as what you get for each price point. He doesn't carry any guitars under $200 since most of those are absolute garbage, but when I mentioned that that was over my budget, he gave me a couple brands and suggestions for something that would be okay until I was ready to upgrade. After that, he recommended a fantastic tuner that I ended up purchasing as well as taught me the differences between guitar picks and how it would effect my playing and the sound. He even gave me a couple guitar picks, free of charge, to try out and figure out which ones I'd like to come get more. Throughout the entire transaction, he was extremely friendly, very understanding of my questions, and pretty much was the ideal experience of customer service. Final thoughts: The owner seems to be a great guy, and I had a seriously amazing experience. If I end up loving the guitar, I'll be back to purchase a higher-quality one from here. I'm impressed. Plus, I love supporting a local Ames business!

I've only been here a few times, but someone always greets me as I walk in and asks if I need help…read morefinding anything. This may not sound like something to get all excited about, but consider how many times you've walked into a store...and it almost seems like the staff is AVOIDING you! Good customer service is a feature worth raving about. While usually I do opt to search on my own, the one time I was in a hurry and did accept assistance, the person helping me was able to take me right to what I wanted. She showed me the various options in the category of item I needed, and I was able to make an informed decision and get right on my way. Everyone working at this store is always friendly and available to help, and--at least in my experience thus far--they always have what I need. All in all, it's a pleasure to visit this location.

Great selection on very niche items. Excellent customer service. What a find! Must see to…read moreappreciate.

Super cool hidden gem in Boone, Iowa of all places! A funky fresh little vintage shop with…read moresomething for everyone! And ALL are welcome! It's also the unofficial safe spot for the quirky and marginalized in a redneck, racist, Confederate town.

One of my favorite little consignment shops!…read more This is a higher end consignment shop for being in semi-rural Iowa. They recently (04/2025) moved from a location in Gilbert IA to Nevada IA. Not going to lie though... I liked the Gilbert space a bit better. Nothing wrong with the Nevada location; they are still working on getting settled so it may turn out just as nice in the long run, That being said... It's the the same great staff and same great selection. If you don't like dust this is the place for you. Always clean. Prices are reasonable and items range from smalls to beautiful handcrafted furniture. Definitely worth the trip to check this spot out if you are a treasure hunter!

Fast, friendly & professional service. They knew their products well, and worked with me to make…read moresure the product I was ordering was what I wanted. I order a canvas print, the final product came out exactly as I wanted. Excellent communication on the status of my order. COVID - masks and hand sanitizer were offered. Staff and customers were wearing masks.

As our Iowa Vacation was winding down, my Mom wanted prints for some of the pictures on my digital…read morecamera. She's super organized and so much so that every picture in her multiple albums has the date, place, and persons portrayed written on the back of every picture. Mom is also a little wary of technology, as evidenced by her only recent conversion to digital photography and non dial-up Internet. She also likes to have her hand held when operating those photo ordering machines. She loves dealing with the patient folks at Photosynthesis, and after accompanying her there yesterday, I came away impressed and thankful for their kindness. Nice prints too.

Love the ladies in there. They have furniture, china, kitchen gadgets and some small appliances,…read morepictures, jewelry lots of Christmas decorations All of the stuff is USED.

This shop has been here FOREVER and I had no idea... 25+ years if I recall our conversation with…read morethe owners correctly. I grew up not far away in Dows IA and my mom actually worked in Ellsworth for a few years. This shop doesn't look like much from the outside, but it had a great selection inside. It's a little dusty and cluttered...you can browse from a little bit of a distance or you can do a little bit of digging. Whichever your preference is. Make sure you pay attention to the sale sign posted on the wall as you walk in past the front counter. When we were there it was 50% off of items tagged after a certain date. The owners are personable and friendly. A definite place to make a stop by if you are into thrifting and are in the Ellsworth IA area!