stationery

When designers need inspiration, they head to this fashion-focused bookshop to poke through the array of volumes covering everything from Moroccan textiles to Donatella Versace. The selection of 'zines is equally stellar. Bonus: Almost all the books are in English.

Cowhide rugs are abundant in Argentina—the country's largest industry is ranching—and due to its immense selection, Calma Chicha is the insider-favored spot to buy them (prices start at a reasonable $200).
From Buenos Aires' Palermo Soho neighborhood store listing.

The concept behind this retail center is pretty innovative: It's a sleek, multistory mall dedicated exclusively to interior design, and it's possible to outfit an entire home with goods purchased here.
From Buenos Aires' Recoleta neighborhood store listing.

Created and run by a coterie of artists, this studio-shop showcases the work of more than 100 different names in the world of Buenos Aires design, from animators and architects to ceramicists and painters.
From Buenos Aires' San Telmo neighborhood store listing.

This is the kind of store you'd expect to stumble across in a South of France seaside town, not on a residential Amsterdam street. The interior is effortlessly simple, with unadorned fixtures and white tile floors, allowing attention to focus on the bright, beachy merchandise: Moroccan tooled-leather slippers, scarf-print skirts, piles of embroidered Indian pouches, and mismatched glass bead necklaces.