Homefront: Provincetown
Take a stroll down the main street in P-town, and you'll find that this funky fishing village at the tip of Cape Cod has plenty of upscale home décor to balance its maritime flavor.
Ever since Eugene O’Neill named his theater troupe the Provincetown Players, after the town on the outermost tip of Cape Cod, art has been a fixture there. A stroll down Commercial Street, the main drag, makes it clear that while remnants of a fishing town remain, upscale shopping plays a leading role in this seaside retreat.
Summer swings at Northern Lights Hammocks (361 C Commercial St., 508-487-2385), where you’ll also find massage chairs, swings, chimes, gongs and deck furniture. Single-point hanging chairs are big sellers, says owner T Gandolfo, who imports them from Nicaragua with his wife and co-owner, Celine. “It’s like a woven hammock, but you can put it in a house, a tree or a deck.” Test rides are encouraged.
Make room in your weekend bag for a mod memento from Utilities (393 Commercial St., 508-487-6800). This chic kitchen shop carries colorful measuring cups, Jonathan Adler’s Happy Home dinnerware and wetsuit-inspired wine totes to keep your bubbly cool at the beach.
Find naval inspiration in the anchor linens, Irish guest towels, Bay Rhum toiletries and Royal Navy dinnerware at Peter’s Royal Navy (120 Commercial St., 508-487-7141). Owner Peter Constandy regularly travels to England and Spain for popular finds like Regatta Stripe bedcovers and shams.
If the summer crowds have you feeling flushed, escape to Wa (220 Commercial St., 508-487-6355). The Asian-inspired store (its name is Japanese for “harmony”) specializes in serene home and garden goods: carved stones, fountains, Cantonese plant potters and fine art that owner Tom Rodgers handpicks from New England and the Far East. Chances are you’ll find Wiley, Rodgers’s black Lab, napping nearby.
West End Trading Company (137 Commercial St., 508-487-2327) packs an eclectic mix, from nautical artifacts and vintage barware to Bauerware pottery and distressed furniture—“Anything that has peeling paint on it,” says Meg Stewart, who co-owns the shop with Maureen Wilson. Antique birdhouses are the latest addition.
After a day of shopping, dinner at the Lobster Pot (321 Commercial St., 508-487-0842) is a P-town tradition. Nosh on fresh seafood and Portuguese specialties in one of two waterfront dining rooms or at the upstairs bar.