What to do and see in Bloomington-Normal, Bloomington-Normal: The Best Shopping

Eaton Studio Gallery opened in 2000 in Historic Downtown Bloomington by local artist Herb Eaton-Pamala Eaton for showing and selling paintings, sculpture, drawings, and prints. Our goal is keeping the ARTS ALIVE and creating value in ART in our downtown community by exhibiting and selling new-rotated work monthly and hosting musical & theatrical events and art and cultural salon discussions.

Quality handmade chocolates, cheesecorn, caramelcorn, and Italian Ices made on the premises. You can see quality confections like sea salt caramels, turtles, truffles, toffee, barks, creams, nut clusters and peanut butter cups being made depending upon the time of day. Great place to treat yourself, your family, and guests as well as wonderful client and corporate gift ideas.

Mother Murphy's opened in 1968 to provide quality products for the then counter-culture movement(aka hippies)sweeping the country! Now in it's 49th year it continues to impress customers (children of all ages!) with a sensory overload as a visit is sure to excite the senses! Posters, tapestries, incense, clothing, smoking accesories,tye-dyes, candles and many locally made goods!Shockwaves Skateboards opened in 1992 to address the need for a legitimate skateshop in Bloomington-Normal. It originally was in Bloomington but now is on Illinois State University campus with Mother Murphy's! Come up and EXPERIENCE 2 stores in 1!!

A merchant of fine herbs, spices, salts, and more located in Downtown Bloomington! Whenever possible we toast and grind whole spices in house to provide the freshest and most flavorful combinations available in the area! The aroma that envelopes you as you walk in the door will stay with you longer after your visit and will be memorable enough to call you back on your next visit into town!

The Olive Bin is a purveyor of fine olive oils, balsamic vinegars, stuffed olives, pastas, and other incredible products. Our store is an experience. Come in to taste as many olive oils and balsamic vinegars as you'd like - we'll give you bread to try the olive oils, and ice cream for the balsamic vinegars (you'd never believe it, but the taste is unmatchable!).

Red Raccoon Games, in Bloomington, IL, is the leading game store serving Normal, Decatur, Peoria, Champaign, Chenoa, Clinton and surrounding areas since 2007. We have more than 1,500 games in-stock ranging from board games, card games, miniature games, children's games, and role-playing games. For more information, visit Red Raccoon Games in Bloomington.

Come visit the BEER NUTS® Company Store at the BEER NUTS® plant location for product samples, a plant video tour, or to pick up some nuts and merchandise to take home with you, wherever that may be! Ever wonder what's behind the success of America's Favorite Nuts? It's a story that begins with a lot of the attention to freshness, quality and detail that started way back in 1937. That's when Arlo Shirk and his father Edward G. Shirk purchased a small confectionery store in downtown Bloomington, Illinois and with it, the recipe for a special glazed peanut.Called the Caramel Crisp Shop, the business sold glazed nuts, popcorn, peanut brittle, caramel apples, and orange drink. The ancestors of today's BEER NUTS Peanuts were known as "Redskins" because they were prepared with their red skins intact. In 1940, at age 22, Edward Shirk's son, Russell, returned to Bloomington following his brother’s untimely death, to help manage the Caramel Crisp Shop. A stickler for quality, Russell personally monitored how every item in the store was prepared and served.In the early 1950's, the Shirks occasionally packaged "Redskins" for the National Liquor Stores in Bloomington. The product sold well under the label "Shirk's Glazed Peanuts." It was this small start and the persistence of Eldredge C. Brewster, a local potato chip and food distributor and a customer and supplier of the Caramel Crisp Shop that got things going. Shirk and Brewster teamed up as manufacturer and distributor to see how the product would sell, the first target being taverns and bars in the nearby community and surrounding areas. It was then that the product was officially dubbed "BEER NUTS" Peanuts and the now well-known trademark was registered. While Shirk produced the product in the basement at a new Caramel Crisp Shop location during off hours, Brewster began achieving market penetration through his potato chip distribution in Central Illinois. In a matter of months the product was available in Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Louis, and Indianapolis. BEER NUTS, Inc. continues to use the same unique formula for its special niche of products as they did back in 1937. All BEER NUTS® products are produced at the single 100,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Bloomington, Illinois, under the direction of the Shirk Family. With the same family commitment to freshness and quality since 1937, the family takes pride in the fact that the BEER NUTS® trademark brings smiles and instant recognition in all 50 states and several countries around the world.

From May to October, thousands of Midwestern collectors clear their calendars to shop the 3rd Sunday Market, an event devoted exclusively to the finest in antiques, collectibles, crafts, and garden. A Bloomington tradition since 1988, the indoor/outdoor sale features more than 450 top dealers, representing 17 states. Whether you’re looking for the finest in antique furniture, americana, folk art, vintage advertising, sport memorabilia, or antique linens & clothing you’re likely to find it here.