#Shopping

If you live in Joburg, you know that the most popular beaded animal of 2013 is the rainbow giraffe.

Beaded rainbow giraffes.

Beaded giraffes are nothing new in South Africa, nor are beaded animals in rainbow colors. But this particular design – the giraffe with a super-long neck, loveable face, and bright, blocky horizontal stripes – appeared earlier this year and has taken the beaded animal world by storm. Every beaded animal artisan in town is churning out rainbow giraffes, and they’re selling like hotcakes. I can see why. It’s impossible to look at a rainbow giraffe and not smile.

From the Melville Cat:

I really like living on the Lucky 5 Star Commune. There are nice people around here who pet me and tell me I am a beautiful cat. (Of course I know this already but it’s nice to hear it repeated.) I get lots of good cat food and milk, and there is plenty of game-hunting on the property.

I’ve written several times about Joburg’s Oriental Plaza – a giant Indian shopping mall in Fordsburg. “The Plaza”, as locals call it, is one of my favorite spots in town. So when my friend Anita called me up on her birthday and invited me to go to The Plaza to pick up a rabbit fur coat, I dropped everything and complied.

You might remember my post from a couple of weeks ago about the the Fête de la Musique. It featured Cargo Kilts, the new Scottish kilt shop in Melville. In that post I wrote:

Today’s shots are from Long Street, in the Jozi suburb of Albertville. Long Street is one of the best places in town to shop for furniture – antique, new, and just plain old. Long Street is also great for a dose of Jozi quirkiness.