The Best Souvenirs

The following are just a few suggestions for New Orleans souvenirs beyond the T-shirts and snow globes, and more welcome than a couple of extra pounds around your hips.

• A Book from Faulkner House, 624 Pirates Alley (tel. 504/524-2940): In the appendix we've listed a portion of the many books inspired by this city, and you should consider picking up a couple from this jewel of that vanishing species, the independent bookstore. Tucked into the bottom floor of the house where William Faulkner lived long enough to write two novels (Mosquitoes and Soldiers' Pay), this charming shop's centerpiece is a table crammed with New Orleans- and Louisiana-related literature, novels, nonfiction, poetry, and art books, with still more on the surrounding shelves (ask the staff to point you in the right direction). Many an author has tried, with varying success, to capture New Orleans on the page, and you may find their efforts will help you get a little fix back home when you begin to know what it means to miss New Orleans. And where better to buy it than at a local institution with a literary history?
• A Photo or Art Book from A Gallery for Fine Photography, 241 Chartres St. (tel. 504/568-1313): The owner calls his impressive shop "the only museum where you can buy the art." Always feeling free to spend your money, we do admit we are talking about a bigger investment than a poster. Many famous photographers are represented here, but for our purposes at this moment, you will want to concentrate on the local artists' works such as E. J. Bellocq's famous Storyville photos, or possibly more affordably, atmospheric cemetery images from Sandra Russell Clark, Michael P. Smith's locally beloved moments of New Orleans color and custom (Jazz Fest photos from throughout the festival's 30-year history, jazz funerals, Mardi Gras Indians, and much more), or even photos of the New Orleans World Fair taken by owner Joshua Mann Pailet. If an original is still out of your financial reach, they also carry a range of photo art books.
• A Southern Scent from Hove, 824 Royal St. (tel. 504/525-7827): A perfumery since the 1930s, Hove not only creates their own unique perfumes (like Bayou D'Amor and Creole Days) but also carries some traditional scents. We got hooked on their version of vetiver, which was described by one Virginia-native-turned-Louisiana-resident as "smelling like the South" (Creoles used it to freshen up stuffy closets). Locals also adore the tea olive (made from the indigenous sweet olive). The scents come in perfume drams, as cologne, and some in soaps, while they also sell dried vetiver for your own closet. And they have scents for men, too!
• A CD from the Louisiana Music Factory, 210 Decatur St. (tel. 504/586-1094): A visitor might first think of the sights or tastes of New Orleans as his or her primary sensory experience, but take away the music and you just have another pretty, aging city. Bring some of it home with you, courtesy of an independent store that doesn't just hold the best selection of New Orleans music but embodies its funky spirit. You can always ask the salespeople.
• Mardi Gras Beads: Here's an interesting phenomenon: You go to New Orleans, especially around Mardi Gras time, and you get saturated by beads. They are like leaves on the ground -- valueless by reason of their ubiquity and seasonal expiration date. But hand a friend at home a few strands, and watch their face light up with pleasure. Even the beads that you know are the cheap, crappy ones will delight, because outside of the parade setting, they are novel.

  Don't buy beads (unless it's just a strand or two) in shops around the Quarter, where you can pay 10 times what the beads cost at the source, Accent Annex, 1009 McDermott Rd., Metairie (tel. 888/394-5537 or 504/391-3900). Sadly, they no longer have a Quarter outlet, but the money you'll save on beads will make driving to their store in Metairie worth it, especially if you intend to buy in bulk. The smaller antiques stores on Esplanade near Decatur often have bags of used beads, which can produce some curious variations, and in those same shops and the like on Magazine you can often find antique Czech glass beads, though even those cost about three times what they did some years ago. Finally, you can go to the headquarters for the Zulu Krewe, known for the coolest beads of any krewe. You will have to pay a bit more for them, but all the money goes back to the krewe: Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club, 732 N. Broad St. (tel. 504/827-1661).

• Christmas Tree Ornaments and Other Handicrafts: The Poor Claire nuns make everything in their little gift shop, from handmade rosaries and ceramic statues (look for the glazed nativity scenes) to, best of all, Sr. Olivia's amazing Christmas tree ornaments. Various iconic New Orleans landmarks (from the Cabildo to the Cathedral, from a Lucky Dog cart to Mardi Gras floats) are meticulously re-created in architecturally accurate and scaled detail, and then hand-painted on balsa wood. Locals collect them all (there are some standards, but she also introduces new designs each year). The prices are so low it feels sinful. Buy a lot, to ease your conscience. Monastery Gift Shop, 720 Henry Clay Ave. (tel. 504/895-2019). (Go to the sliding window when you enter the building, and ring the bell. The nun on duty that day will open the gift shop for you.)
• Glasswork from Studio Inferno. This art gallery/shop features playful New Orleans-inspired glass pieces -- cocktail glasses with a fleur-de-lis in the stem, "milagros" with flames shooting out of them (a sacred heart for faithfulness, a torso for good health), spicy-looking peppers on cords to wear as a necklace -- at prices that will allow you to fill up your whole gift list. 3000 Royal St. (tel. 504/945-1878).