Tucson's Why I Love Where I Live, at MSA Annex, 267 South Avenida del Convento.
It’s time again for our weekly $25 challenge, where we explore some of Tucson’s beloved local businesses and search out must-have goodies that won’t strain your bank account.
This week, I made my way over to Why I Love Where I Live in the MSA Annex, 267 South Avenida del Convento, to see what delicious treats or adorable trinkets I could find.
As the name suggests, Why I Love Where I Live is all about cultivating a love of place, and the idea arose when founder Kristin Tovar decided to challenge herself to find at least one thing each day that she liked about Tucson and share it on her Instagram account.
That Instagram now has nearly 25,000 followers, inspiring customers to find beauty in their surroundings. And there are certainly plenty of things to love in their shop.
Small-batch, botanical bars from gigglestars soap co.
The first thing I was drawn to was a table covered with beautiful, incredible-smelling soaps from gigglestars soap co. The small-batch, botanical bars are handmade right here in Tucson and come in a variety of unique scents like pineapple jalapeño, tres leches and palo verde.
I personally love anything tea-scented, so the Earl Grey tea bar was probably my favorite, but if you want something more earthy, the tomato scent also smelled amazing.
Each bar costs $10.50, or you can get a beeswax lip balm with flavors like horchata and prickly pear for only $10.
Prickly pear kettle corn from Cactus Corn.
Speaking of prickly pear, one of the most interesting finds was a bag of prickly pear kettle corn from Cactus Corn. Cactus Corn has been making small-batch popcorn since 1998, with ingredients inspired by the flavors of Arizona. In addition to their prickly pear flavor, they also sell roasted street corn and white cheddar jalapeño popcorn, along with a few others on their online store. Individual bags of the prickly pear kettle corn retail for $9.
Mini food trucks from Candycar.
If you’re looking for unique gifts for a food lover in your life or cute decor to set on your desk or bookshelves, they also stock a collection of mini food trucks from Candycar, which cost $22 each.
Whether hot dogs and burgers are your thing or you prefer tacos and donuts, there’s a mini food truck for you.
Sparkly cactus earrings from Phoenix Supply Co.
As far as jewelry, I found tons of sparkly cactus earrings from Phoenix Supply Co. When I say sparkly, I mean sparkly.
Sparkly cactus earrings from Phoenix Supply Co.
Each pair is made with blue, pink or green glitter, so they’d be the perfect accessory to bring a little Southwest glitz and glam to any outfit. Hoops retail for $24, while small post earrings cost $15.
Stickers from from local artist, Annotated Audrey.
Everyone loves stickers, and Why I Love Where I Live has tons of amazing designs from local artists like Annotated Audrey, a Tucson-based paper goods and lifestyle brand that specializes in stickers, art prints and cards that feature desert- and nature-themed artwork.
Cactus sticker packs from Creative Kind.
Individual stickers are priced at $3, but they also sell cactus sticker packs from Creative Kind for $6 that are meant to resemble postage stamps.
For $22, you can buy their Women’s Tucson tank top, which incorporates the Catalina Mountains into the design, or the “¡Vamos!” roadrunner tank, which was created by Joel Harris Design Co. and Saywells Design.
“¡Vamos!” roadrunner tank, which was created by Joel Harris Design Co. and Saywells Design.
If you have just a couple extra dollars to spend, their other T-shirts retail for $28, and you can choose from several other Tucson-inspired designs like Joel Harris’ “¡Andale!” shirt.
