Casa Slovenija is a new souvenir shop on renovated Kongresni trg square. You will notice it with Slovenian flag hanging above the entrance door and “ciza” – traditional carriage decorated with flowers or pumpkins or whatever is growing in that season.

What makes it different from the rest of the shops is that is made as an old Slovenian house. When you enter the shop you enter past century. In the middle there is a ceramic stove which was common around Slovenia and even I have a warm memory on my grandmothers’. Next is an imitation of a “black kitchen” where many sausages used to be smoked and the place is fully decorated with old furniture.

You should drop buy this shop for three reasons. To see it, to buy hand made Slovenian arts & crafts which are hard to find elsewhere and to get a shot of  a blueberry liqueur – our traditional welcome drink.

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Casa Slovenija | Art & culture, Shopping | Free
Kongresni trg 13 | Center | +38640455365
10:00 – 20:00 daily

Lectarija from afar appears as a museum shop, but a closer look reveals it’s a true curiosity. Every Ljubljana visitor meets the great architect Jože Plečnik and I proudly present all the Spotted by locals readers what I call his least known project.

Jože Plečnik had a remarkably positive attitude towards tradition, so it is not surprising that he responded to the request in 1939-1939 to draw the plans for the interior of the shop that was going to sell traditional arts. During next sixty years Lectarija had its tops and its regression but was later restored and has a new life in the Ethnographic Museum (check the Slovene Ethnographic Museum article).

The shop now has handmade traditional products like Idrija lace, wooden and clay products, hand woven goods and hand painted beehive panels among others. There is also some unique jewelry from traditional materials from Slovene designers.

Even if you don’t want to buy anything, this shop is worth seeing. When you enter the main museum doors turn left to find the shop.

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Lectarija | Art & culture, Shopping
Metelkova 2 | Center | +38613008700
Tue – Sun 10:00 – 18:00

The last but not least of thematically related articles is Oblačilnica dela (the working dressing-room/ dressing-room of work), located close to Gostilna dela (check out the article). It’s also a part of Tovarna dela – unit for textile. The goal of Tovarna dela – Tekstil is teach about the importance of separate disposal of old clothes and textiles, the establishment of a functional system for collecting old clothes and new “green” jobs for young unemployed and older unemployed women.

In Oblačilnica dela they sell used and redesigned clothes. For the official opening they prepared an event “A date with another dress”. I have always liked to wear used clothes, knowing that before I got it, it already had a long journey packed with adventures and that gives them great value, immeasurable with money. Knowing that here by getting something you like, you are also helping someone, puts everything on a higher level.

Here you can also buy products from Projekt Človek with the collection ‘Izdelki iz koše’ (products from dumpster) and Kralji ulice.

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Oblačilnica dela | Shopping
Poljanska cesta 11 | Center
Mon – Fri 09:00 – 19:00, Sat 09:00 – 13:00

I love everything about vinyl records. I love the sound, the fact that you have just the most special songs on vinyl contrary to thousands of MP3 on your computer, I also like it when my friends are surprised that my old gramophone is still working:).

One of the things I love is also to browse in small packed 2nd hand record shops. You go in with maybe just a thought what you want, but you always get something special. And the most exciting part is when you’re on your way home and you just can’t wait to listen to it.

VOM 2nd hand record shop is one of the spots where I can fulfill my vinyl love and also the place where I bought my first one. Listening to jazz on gramophone…what else can you want in your life! It’s also a good place for special Ljubljana souvenirs. Why would you buy some lame tourist souvenirs, when you can buy old Yugoslavian evergreens on a vinyl which is probably older than you:).

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VOM | Art & culture, Shopping
Gledališka pasaža | Center
Mon – Fri 10:00 – 19:00

Last year I wrote about ZOOO, because they had Startas shoes. Now I decided to present the oldies goldies Croatian store. The only thing inside that I would buy are Startas (everything else looks just funny ). They have designer printed shoes and also the basic ones: black, white and dark blue for € 20 or even cheaper (€ 4) on sales!

As you all know, Slovenia was once a part of Yugoslavia. In those days things from the West were either hard to get or outrageously expensive! Because of that young folks didn’t drink Coca-Cola but Cockta (which you should try because it’s great!) and they also didn’t have (well….at least the majority didn’t have) All Star sneakers. But they had Startas shoes, made in Croatia. They were really popular in the 80′s but people forgot about them in the 90′s when Yugoslavia felt apart.

Thanks to designer Mauro Massarotto the brand got a new and fresh design in 2006. I’m a kid of new post-communist Slovenia so before the renaissance I had no idea about Startas and now that I know for those shoes and owe a pair (or 2 or 3…) I would just like to say: thank you Croatia!

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Borovo | Shopping | Startas € 22.00
Tavčarjeva ulica 1 | Center
Mon – Fri 08:00 – 19:30, Sat 08:00 – 13:00

“To je to” means “That’s it”, and that is definitely THE shop I like the most.

Situated between two coffee bars on Gallusovo nabrežje it is a perfect place for each and everyone who is an explorer by heart and game freak. One step inside the shop and you dip into the magic world of puzzles, party and table games, cards, toys, rubik’s cubes, magnets, kaleidoscopes, kites, juggling equipment such as diabolos, flower and firesticks, yoyos, juggling balls and lots of other stuff.

I don’t like to go there too often, because every time I visit the shop I find something I’d like to have. Just observing all the things is tiring, and afterwards I usually relax in one of the neighboring bars.

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Tojeto | Shopping
Gallusovo nabrežje 29 | Center | +38614256784
Mon – Fri 09:30 – 19:30, Sat 09:30 – 14:00, Sun 10:00 – 13:00

When you are traveling and your umbrella accidentally breaks, you simply throw it away and buy a new one for only a few euros. In Ljubljana you should do something else instead. On Trubarjeva cesta on the crossing with Mala ulica, there is a little umbrella-making and repair shop, even locals don’t know about. Its owner, Ms. Marija, repairs broken umbrellas, makes new ones and sells old ones. She’s the last one in Ljubljana, even in Slovenia, that is occupied with this craft.

Regardless of the condition your umbrella is in, she would know how to fix it. If you are emotionally attached to the umbrella or you don’t want to throw it away, you should bring it to her. Also if you want to buy yourself an umbrella our grandparents had in their times, Marija’s shop is the right place for that.

I’ve known her for quite a while now, and she’s really positive and open minded person. I also did a documentary about her and her work, which you can watch here.

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Dežnik | Shopping | Umbrellla from € 1
Trubarjeva cesta 13 | Center
Mon – Wed 10:00 – 12:00, Thu 15:00 – 19:00

I have already written about a very nice games and toy shop on Galussovo nabrežje called TOjeTO. Only few meters along the street stands another interesting shop. It is called Ristanc. The owner of both shops is Ms. Sašek, a very kind lady who works from time to time in one and another shop. Ristanc is in fact a mother shop to TOjeTO. Why is it so special you may reckon?

All the toys and games are made mainly of wood. Wooden puzzles, cubes, highways, cars, helicopters, dolls, swings, pinwheels, jenga, skipping ropes, and many others. I remember I used to come here as a child. I was amazed staring and gazing at all this wonder. Sometimes mama bought me something and I was happy. I still think wooden toys are much better than any other “plastic fantastic” stuff and recommend you to pay them a visit. If not to buy something then to smell, touch, play. Toys are full of stories, just listen to them. Listen carefully.

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Ristanc | Shopping
Galussovo nabrežje 11 | Center | +38614252436
Mon – Fri 09:30 – 19:30

Sometimes you can get the feeling that Ljubljana is dead during the weekends, especially on late November Sundays. When it gets really depressing, you just have to bump into the Flea Market, where you can say to yourself: “oh, this is the place where all the folks went!”

Ljubljana has many antique shops, but the very best is held every Sunday on Cankarjevo nabrezje. They sell many different things, from really expensive old furniture to retro sunglasses, badges from the Tito era or jold postcards.

Even if you don’t have a plan buying any of those things, you have to visit it. It is Ljubljana’s “social life” centre on Sundays and you are able to just sit in a café and watch people go by.

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Antique Flea Market | Art & culture, Relaxing, Shopping
Breg | Center
Sun 08:00 – 14:00

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I decided to write about three projects in Ljubljana focused on sustainable development and social enterprises. First one is Cultural – ecological fellowship Smetumet (trash-art). Their goal is to show a new perspective on trash and recycling, showing us that we can be a part of “reduce, reuse, recycle” principle in different ways, not just by throwing trash in separated dumpsters.

The beauty of this project is that we can play with our garbage, using creativity and our imagination. With all that we can transform rubbish into new useful and wonderful things. One of the great missions is focused on old clothes. Why do we need to throw away old stuff, just because something new is cheap? We can redesign old ones and give them our personal touch. With the similar “do it yourself” theory they are encouraging us to make our own toys, cosmetics, food, furniture etc. as a statement of standing up against consuming society.

They have their “cradle” in Šiška, where they have different workshops and where you can buy their products made from collected trash. One of my favorite items is wallet made from baby food (Čokolešnik and Čokolino) packaging. I also like that they are located in Šiška, giving this area new quality programs.

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Smetumet | Art & culture, Shopping | Wallet € 10.00
Celovška 53 | Siska
Mon, Wed & Fri 10:00 – 16:00, Tue & Thu 13:00 – 19:00

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