Gumbo

I love this store! I came last year and bought a Mac painted cat. This year I had to get another. They have fun things for adults and children. I have to visit again the next time I’m in Portland.

Oops they moved — no more bargain back room! However, their selection of nifty stuff just got better!

A really big, fun store full of all kinds of gifts, toys, housewares, jewelry, art, hats, stationery, and novelty socks. There are several rooms in the back, so if you think you’ve seen it all, keep going!
None of it is really organized, as far as I can tell, so you just have to browse slowly and try to see everything. The front area has some really incredible and elaborate masquerade masks, and lots of amazing rhinestone jewelry. The novelty sock wall is fun and had some styles I hadn’t seen anywhere else; I ended up getting the mustard yellow dachshund ones because I couldn’t resist! The back room has more vintagey/​costumey hats, dresses, and accessories.
The owner was there on the day I went, and was very friendly and chatty, talking about various items and asking if I’d seen other things. It seems to honestly just be a ton of all the stuff she loves and wants to show off to the world! It might be nice if things were a little more organized and less crowded, but then I guess you wouldn’t get the excitement of discovering something amazing hidden away. This store seems to be really fun for kids, too, although you’d want to keep an eye on them because there’s a lot of fragile stuff kind of precariously displayed. Definitely worth a visit — you never know what you’ll find in there.