Sometimes when you walk into a local shop, it affords you a great feeling—a positive vibe, if you will. And Mary D’Alton’s gorgeous boutique Convivio in quiet downtown Spring Green is one of those places. D’Alton has made a conscious, thoughtful effort to stock items that are exclusive to her shop, including wine, spirits, tableware, linens, décor and specialty food items. Her curated selection has even caused those who are visiting the area to remark, “I can’t believe I can find this selection in rural Wisconsin,” smiles D’Alton.
This May, D’Alton’s shop (which in Latin means “feasting together”), will celebrate ten years—quite an accomplishment for a local boutique in this age of online shopping. And her merchandise mix is changing focus from tableware to concentrate more on specialty food items, spirits, fair-trade items, jewelry, accessories and biodynamic and organic wines. (Or as D’Alton jokes, “no headache wines.”) Also look for Japanese ceramics, Turkish hand-painted pottery (mugs, plates and bowls), handcrocheted and woven baskets from Kenya, and Mayelo’s brass jewelry, made out of ammunition shells by Kenyan women.
The deep navy walls, original oak floors and pressed tin ceiling shine in the 1911 building the shop is housed in. If you’re there on a Saturday, you can partake in their weekly wine tastings, or take a seat outside in back when it’s warm out to relax. Soon she’ll also have an espresso bar serving Viroqua’s Kickapoo Coffee Roasters.
“I love the community and people here,” she says. “We have a lot of local people who love the store and make a choice to come here. That’s the best part about a small town—the collaboration.”
Convivio, 122 N. Lexington St., Spring Green, 608-588-2351. convivioshop.com