Shopping

Nantucket shopping is so phenomenal you'll be tempted to rent a U-Haul. It's as if all the best big-city buyers, from Bendel's to Brooks Brothers, got together and gathered their favorite stuff. True, some tourist dreck has managed to drift in, but most of what you'll find for sale is as high in quality as it is in price -- everything from $6 boxes of chocolate-covered dried cranberries to $900 cashmere sweaters. There are also bargains, like lightly-used designer togs at the Nantucket Cottage Hospital Thrift Shop at 17 India St. (tel. 508/228-1125) and Murray's Warehouse outlet at 7 New St. (tel. 508/228-3584).

Art & Crafts

The Artists' Association of Nantucket has the widest selection of work by locals, and the gallery at 19 Washington St. (tel. 508/228-0294) is impressive. In February and March it's open by appointment only.

The celebrated sculptor David L. Hostetler exhibits his work in one of the little galleries along Old South Wharf, 2 Old South Wharf (tel. 508/228-5152). Private viewing appointments are also available in his large showroom. His work in various media appears as spiritual icons expressed in the female form.

Exquisite art-glass pieces, as well as ceramics, jewelry, and basketry, can be found at Dane Gallery, 28 Centre St. (tel. 508/228-7779), where owners Robert and Jayne Dane show top-quality work. You'll be amazed at the colors and shapes of the glassware.

Books

At Mitchell's Book Corner, 54 Main St. (tel. 508/228-1080), Mimi Beman handpicks her stock, with an astute sampling of general-interest books and an entire room dedicated to regional and maritime titles. Nantucket Bookworks, 25 Broad St. (tel. 508/228-4000), is a charming bookstore, strong on customer service and with a central location.

Fashion

Current Vintage (4 Easy St.; tel. 508/228-5073) is one of the most original shops to open in recent years. Beth English, who is known on the island for exquisite taste, sells gorgeous vintage gowns and accessories like antique bags and jewelry, as well as special wines from small wineries.

Martha's Vineyard may have spawned "Black Dog" fever, but this island boasts the inimitable "Nantucket reds" -- cotton clothing that starts out tomato-red and washes out to salmon-pink. The fashion originated at Murray's Toggery Shop, 62 Main St. (tel. 800/368-2134 or 508/228-0437). Legend has it that the original duds were colored with an inferior dye that washed out almost immediately. However, customers so liked the thick cottons and instant aged look that the proprietor was forced to search high and low for more of the same fabric. Roland Hussey Macy, founder of Macy's, got his start here in the 1830s. Today's management also keeps up with current trends.

Preppy patterns and bright colors are back! You'll find Lilly Pulitzer's In The Pink, which has sensational minidresses, at 5 S. Water St. (tel. 508/228-0569).

Ralph Lauren's store at 16 Main St. (tel. 508/228-9451) scandalized Nantucketers when it first opened (there are no chains here, not even upscale ones), but now everyone is used to it. The store is stocked with high-end resort ware.

Zero Main, at 0 Main St. (tel. 508/228-4401), has a limited but fine selection of elegant yet casual women's clothes, shoes, and accessories.

Gifts/Home Decor

Nantucket Looms at 16 Federal St. (tel. 508/228-1908) is the place to ogle exquisite brushed mohair chaise throws, and other handmade woven items. The weaving studio is upstairs, where they also make blankets and sweaters of cotton and cashmere.

A casual counterpart to its Madison Avenue boutique, Erica Wilson Needle Works, 25-27 Main St. (tel. 508/228-9881), features the designs of its namesake, an islander since 1958 and author of more than two dozen books on needlepoint. The shop offers hands-on guidance for hundreds of grateful adepts, as well as kits and handiwork of other noteworthy designers.

The also eponymous Claire Murray, 11 S. Water St. (tel. 508/228-1913), is famous for its elaborate hand-hooked rugs. As a New York transplant running a Nantucket B&B in the late 1970s, Murray took up the traditional art of hooking rugs to see her through the slow season. She now runs a retail company grossing millions a year and is so busy creating new collections that she has hundreds of "hookers" (probably an old profession, but not the oldest) working for her around the world. Do-it-yourself kits ($100-$500) are sold in the shop here for about two-thirds the price of the finished rugs and come with complimentary lessons.

Jewelry

Diana Kim England, Goldsmiths, 56 Main St. (tel. 508/228-3766 or 800-343-1468), is a team of five goldsmiths that have almost 70 years of combined experience in making jewelry. You'll find gold baskets and pearls, as well as unique custom pieces.

Newsstand

The Hub, 31 Main St. (tel. 508/325-0200), offers a selection of newspapers, magazines, and books, as well as greeting cards by local artists.

Seafood

Sayle's Seafood, 99 Washington Street Extension (tel. 508/228-4599), sells fresh seafood from Nantucket waters and a menu of takeout seafood platters. This is a great place to get a huge, steaming plate of fried clams to go.

Toys

The Toy Boat, 41 Straight Wharf (tel. 508/228-4552), is keen on creative toys that are also educational. In addition to the top commercial lines, owner Loren Brock stocks lots of locally crafted, hand-carved playthings, such as "rainbow fleet" sailboats, part of the Harbor Series that includes docks, lighthouses, boats, and everything your child needs to create his or her own Nantucket Harbor. There are also stackable lighthouse puzzles replicating Nantucket's beams.