One of the most prime neighborhoods in Kansas City is Leawood – specifically, Park Place. Filled with new, up-and-coming apartments, restaurants, businesses, shops and more, you are bound to find something for the whole family here.
This past weekend I went and scouted out some of my favorite places in the area to share with you all. I’m calling the collection of these places “The Park Place Trio” as they all happen to be right next door to each other, which works out in my favor. 😉
The first stop is very near and dear to my heart, Hand & Land.
I’ve mentioned them quite a few times in previous posts, but it’s time to give them some of the spotlight. Owned and run by two cousins, Jessica and Nicole, these two boss babes curate select organic beauty products, natural home goods, crafted accessories, apparel and more. I’ve grown to know and love the people behind the business and love working with them and calling them friends.
Once you step foot inside you will be instantly captivated by the vibes of this place. Greeted with fresh aromas of essential oils, incense or soy candles going (or a combination) you’ll drift into dreamland as you browse the shelves.
What makes Hand & Land one of my favorite places to scout out is how much love and care goes into everything throughout the store. From carefully selecting the right brands to carry – with no traces of the top ten harmful chemicals found in common goods – to their brilliance behind what makes each and every item special and useful for you and your needs.
Amongst the delicately arranged shelves you’ll be able to find a wide array of Kansas City area local makers and a range of goods. But, you’ll also be introduced to fun and functional indie brands that are held to quality. One of their most unique features is their home cleaning refill station.
Either bring your own bottle or purchase one of their glass reusables and come fill up on hand soap, dish soap, laundry detergent or all-purpose cleaner. Featuring the natural and plant-based cleaning brand, Common Good, this little station is one simple and easy way to make a huge impact on your home and the planet. Plus, with their punch card, you get the 10th refill for free!
But overall, I think my favorite thing about this special little shop is how much Nicole and Jessica care about the community. Opening their space to feature local goods and bring awareness to more people of fantastic natural and indie brands is just one piece. On top of this, Hand & Land is known to host “pop-up” events throughout the year featuring different local makers, artists, shops and more.
While I was visiting Hand & Land this particular weekend, they were having an Earth Day pop-up event hosting three different locals and serving up snacks and refreshments.
Featuring Happy Cactus Plants, Kristen Elise Art and Little Weave Bird, you were able to see and learn about different these three ladies and check out their work.
Happy Cactus Plants serves up just that – joyful little planters filled with different cacti, succulents and other precious greenery. My personal favorite are the teeny tiny little cement planters – just too adorable!
Browsing through Kristen Elise Art’s table you’ll be mesmerized by the details and imagery of each piece. Crafting together beautiful collages it’s fun to figure out what each can potentially be saying.
Lastly, is the precious table of Little Weave Bird. Showcasing different size wall hanging weavings, little blankets and soy candles, you can’t not like something. Mitch and I ended up taking up that middle weaving hanging on the front of the table – we love the air plant and copper details.
Be on the lookout for more pop-up events hosted by Hand & Land – the sense of community they foster is great! So great in fact, that they even opened up one of their walls to share with their newly opened next door neighbor, sewKC…who is the next shop I’ve scouted in Park Place. Such a cool concept and really shouts “community over competition” that is strong within the small business local KC community.
I’ve actually written about sewKC before and called them a “hidden gem.” This still rings true, but they’ve got an amazing storefront now and I couldn’t be happier for them! The weekend of April 22nd was their grand opening celebration and am glad I was able to check it out.
On this side of the building you’ll be welcomed into a cozy little corner that you want to capture inside your own home.
As you walk through, you’ll discover unique apparel designs (that are all stunning!) hung on beautifully made architecture.
The back of the shop is where you can find their workshop space – and I can not wait to see what different workshops sewKC and Hand & Land will be hosting there. For their grand opening, folks could pop in and hand stamp a leather keychain or bracelet.
Every single detail of their place is beautifully designed and thought about, much like their shared neighbor Hand & Land. The whole shop is just so fun to walk around and be in. Even their bathroom had me in love!
The last piece of the “Park Place Trio” that I think really makes this area such a great stop, is Pink Antlers Studio – a collection of fun and unique gifts, party supplies and home goods.
Every single time I step foot into this place I am instantly transported to my favorite childhood memories: holiday celebrations and my kick a** birthday parties. The shelves are always boasting the most recent season, but in the most fashionable and pleasant way.
You can tell that everything is, yet again, carefully selected to be showcased in the store. You’ll be able to find all your needs for hosting or celebrating any type of party/gathering and discover the perfect gift (and wrapping) for someone.
My favorite thing about this place though, is how it fulfills my crazy categorization brain.
Their “cubbie wall” has each cube tactfully filled with all the right party supplies for any theme, season, reason or flavor of choosing…and it’s amazing. I could really spend all day planning a party for just about anything from this shop. Pink Antlers also makes me want to throw a party just on the fact that I definitely need to find a reason to use a giant confetti filled ballon, in any color palette. 😉
Not only does Pink Antlers Studio house wonderful party supplies and decor, but they too host different workshops in their space, like weaving and calligraphy just to name a few.
This common theme of community between these three local shops is exactly why I’ve chosen them as must-stops in the Leawood and Park Place neighborhood. All three open their space up to share memories and learn from others, while also selling and spreading local goods (and others!) too.
If you haven’t been out to this area yet, now you have an excuse to! Of course there is so much more offered than just this in the area, but I hope it brings some light to a neighborhood you’ve never been to or have been wanting to check out.