Waco, Texas Shopping Trip!

A few months ago I visited Waco, Texas on a short girly trip with my mom, sisters, and niece. We are big fans of HGTV’s Fixer Upper reality show and we couldn’t wait to check out the Magnolia Silos Store and Bakery.  We arrived at the silos early Monday morning to try and beat the crowd, or so we thought.  It was a wet and chilly morning during spring break, and we parked the car and made our way down the street towards the silos.  We entered the gate and were a bit confused to find a super long line wrapping around the entire garden area. The store had been open for thirty minutes, and this long line was just to get in the store! After waiting in line for about an hour we made it through the door into the overcrowded shop.  We elbowed our way into the crowd to check out the fairly simple housewares on display.  It was a bit chaotic, and disappointing. We felt the need to buy a few small souvenirs to remember the visit and justify our long wait in line.  The gardens and silos were fun, and we enjoyed taking a few photos with the cool backdrop.  Next, we made our way through the crowd and over to the bakery. The line to get in was about a block long, so we decided to leave and maybe visit another time.  My best advice is to get there early on a week day. You can get free parking down the street, and maybe avoid the crazy crowds that come on the weekends and holidays.  Magnolia Silos are open from 10am to 6pm Mon-Thurs and 9am-6pm Fri-Sat, closed on Sunday and located at 601 Webster Ave, Waco, Texas, 76706.  Phone No. 254-235-0603

Our next stop was The Findery, a cute boutique about a block away from the Magnolia Silos.  The moment we entered we were greeted with the beautiful aroma from the sparkly lit candles on display.  The store is filled with farmhouse chic home décor, trendy clothes and an array of gift items. We really enjoyed our visit! The Findery is located at 501 S 8^th Street and open from 9am-6pm Mon-Sat, Closed on Sunday.

After all that shopping we were hungry! We ventured over to Homestead Café in the beautiful Mennonite community about 15 minutes away. This place was quite packed at lunch time, so we perused the handmade goods in the cute shops around the restaurant.  We watched the black smith work iron over hot coals, tasted the delectable granola and syrup at the food shop, watched in amazement as young girls spun pottery from lumps of clay at the pottery shop, and admired the beautiful woven goods from the Fiber Craft Store.  I bought some really nice homemade soaps from The Barn before we headed to the café for lunch.  We shared some chips and guacamole before diving into our soups and sandwiches.  I highly recommend the jalapeno sweet potato soup, and you can’t go wrong with any of their sandwiches! Our server was super nice and even sent us away with to-go cups of the tasty lemonade we had enjoyed with our lunch.  On our way out of the community we stopped at the Homestead Market and General Store. The market is like a small convenience store and has some fun gifts and snacks for the road. The General Store had a variety of home goods, farming and gardening equipment. The Homestead community is located at 608 Dry Creek Rd, Waco, Texas 76705 and is open 10am-6pm Mon-Fri and 7am-6pm Sat, closed Sunday. Ph: 254-754-9604

Time for more shopping! We stopped by Harp & Co (Clint's store from Fixer Upper, 808 N 15th Street) for a quick tour of the store. I found some super soft and colorful dish towels to take home with me! We had a quick look at Clint's Fixer Upper house next door before moving on. We then popped in a few shops at the Central Texas Market Place outdoor shopping strip.  It had the typical line up of chain discount stores, and we had fun shopping for spring clothes and accessories.  Our next stop was the super fun Spice Village store! There were tons of booths with all kinds of home décor, gifts, clothing, and accessories. We had a great time browsing all the girly things here! Spice Village is located at 2^nd St. and Franklin and open Mon-Sat from 10am-6pm.

Our last stop of the day was a short walk from Spice Village over to Ninfa’s for some great TexMex!  I loved the beautiful décor in this restaurant, and our dinner was really yummy! Ninfa’s was a hit with our group!  Ninfa's is located at 220 S 3rd St, Waco.  Ph. 254-757-2050

After breakfast at our conveniently located hotel (Home2 Suites by Hilton), we ventured back downtown for a quick stop at Summer Ellis Jewelry. This was a beautiful boutique with hand crafted jewelry and unique upscale furniture and gift items. There is a nice coffee shop within the store as well.  The store is located at 601 Franklin Ave, 1st floor, and open Mon-Sat 10:30am-6pm.  

We had some time to kill before lunch, so we parked the car at the Doris D. Miller Park and took a leisurely walk along the Brazos River to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial before crossing the historical suspension bridge to Indian Spring Park on the other side.  The river was previously only passable by ferry, and the bridge opened in 1870 to provide a better means of transporting goods on the growing Chisholm Trail.  There are several longhorn and cowboy Chisholm Trail sculptures, and we had fun getting photos with them.  These parks are accessible from various points in downtown Waco and provide a lovely atmosphere to rest or sit and read a book.

After our morning exercise it was time for lunch at Sironia, a cute tea room accompanied by little boutique booths filled with fun gifts and fashionable clothing and accessories.  Although they lost our reservation, the food was pretty good and we all enjoyed sharing the strawberry cake for dessert. Sironia is located at 1509 Austin Ave and open from 11am-2:30pm Tues-Sat. For reservations call 254-754-7467.

We wrapped up our trip with a free tour of the Armstrong Browning Library on the Baylor University Campus.  The quiet atmosphere was the perfect way to admire the beautiful stained glass windows, extensive poetry collection, exquisite antiques, and elegant art work.  Grab a hot cup of joe at Common Grounds as you leave the college campus. 

We had a great time in Waco and can now check it off our bucket list! If you happen to be traveling through the little town of West on your way to Waco, be sure and stop by Czech Stop for some amazing kolaches!   I love the savory jalapeno sausage kolache, and you can’t beat the cream cheese or pumpkin kolaches when you’re craving something sweet! Enjoy!