Exhibiting Good Taste

The museum shop as afterthought is largely a thing of the past. From its origin as a place to purchase postcards and other inexpensive souvenirs of what you just saw on the walls, today's museum shop has evolved into a destination in its own right, offering merchandise that takes an idea and runs with it.

Take the National Building Museum's wonderfully eclectic retail space, where a theme that has been central to several of the museum's recent exhibitions -- good, and green, design -- gets applied to just about everything, from a $2 recycled-plastic crayon sharpener to a $160 handbag made from aluminum soda-can pull tabs. Or the independent-minded shops of the Smithsonian's Freer and Sackler galleries, where you'll discover things that have little to do with the often ancient Asian art that's on view, such as a $24.95 Japanese manga drawing kit.

Need a little help knowing where to start? That's not surprising in a museum scene as rich and diverse as ours, where the Native American arts and crafts on sale at the National Museum of the American Indian are just across the street from the National Air and Space Museum's kites and model airplanes. That's where we come in, with a guide that should make it a little easier to navigate the bazaar of museum shopping.

No, you won't find the iPod Nano at any of the stores listed below, but you just might discover the perfect present for that impossible-to-please person on your list.

American Visionary Art Museum Sideshow

800 Key Hwy., Baltimore. 443-872-4926. http://www.unclefunchicago.com/sshow.html. Open Tuesday-Sunday 10 to 6.

Vibe: Stocking-stuffer capital of the free world.For the nostalgic boomer: Bob's Big Boy piggy bank ($14). For that special someone: Original art by Maryland painter Jason Snyder ($200 and up). Stocking stuffer: President Bush playing cards, featuring the commander in chief's face superimposed on vintage cheesecake photos ($10). (Note: On Nov. 25 from 10 to 5, the museum will host Bazaart, a marketplace of original work by regional artists and craftspeople.)

Baltimore Museum of Art

10 Art Museum Dr. (at North Charles and 31st streets), Baltimore. 443-573-1844. http://www.artbma.org/shop. Open Tuesday-Saturday 11 to 8 (Wednesdays until 5); Sundays 11 to 6.

Vibe: Spice it up. For your foodie roommate: Coarse sea salt from France ($17.95).For that special someone: Earthenware ceramics by Vermont clay artist Laura Zindel ($28-$295). Stocking stuffer: Set of eight preprinted CD labels by Mixit ($6.95).

Corcoran Gallery of Art

500 17th St. NW (Metro: Farragut West). 202-639-1790. http://www.corcoran.org/shop/index.htm. Open Wednesday-Sunday 10 to 5 (Thursdays until 9).