Green Thistle Emporium opened in 2023 and specializes in earth-friendly, zero-waste merchandise produced locally. Photo by John Kent.
With the holidays approaching, local greenies can add an eclectic eco-friendly boutique to their shopping itinerary, thanks to Fort Worth entrepreneur Stephanie Morrison.
“I have always wanted to have a funky little store with unique items, and a place where people can share their talents by hosting classes and sharing their work,” she said.
The Green Thistle Emporium, nestled in a modest one-story building at 2800 Race Street in Fort Worth’s Riverside Arts District, is that funky little spot.
For those who don’t mind venturing a bit off the beaten path, its carefully curated selection of artfully upcycled, recycled and sustainable merchandise, scheduled art classes and craft workshops, and a refillery with every imaginable eco-friendly soap, cleanser and lotion, are the pot of gold at the end of your Google Maps rainbow.
Morrison, the owner and operator, is in it for all the right reasons.
“It sounds a little crazy and unfocused, but what I have tried to create here is a place where people can buy from local makers and refill their home and body products and learn a new skill,” she said. “All of these things really have one thing in common, and that is sustainability. When you can buy local, refill or buy zero-waste [products] for your home, and learn to make your own things, you are building a more sustainable, earth-friendly world. Reuse, refill and reduce.”
Morrison is motivated by her belief that our throw-away culture, particularly the plastic avalanche that we allow to cascade into the worldwide waste stream daily, is ruining the planet. No small amount of that refuse ends up fouling meadows, streams, lakes and oceans, imperiling wildlife.
“I hate how much plastic waste we generate. Plastic makes our lives better in so many ways, but the single-use aspect of it and the manufacturing in staggering amounts is harmful to our environment,” Morrison said. “The natural world is very important to me. Sometime, in 2021 I believe, I visited a friend in Portland, Oregon, and went with her to refill her [plastic] bodywash container at a local refillery there. I was thrilled to know such a thing existed!”
It was there that the Green Thistle seed was planted.
She had already earned an undergraduate degree from UT Austin and a master’s in environmental management from Texas State University. And as an environmental investigator for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, she inspected gas stations, landfills and hazardous-waste facilities to ensure their compliance with state and federal regulations.
Two years ago, after starting her own refillery (in a previous business at what is now the Green Thistle), Morrison took things to the next level.
“In April 2023, the owner of that business decided to step away. I decided to take the chance and build Green Thistle Emporium and really focus on local makers and zero-waste options.”
The store’s name is a mashup of Green to connote sustainability; the Texas Thistle, one of her favorite wildflowers; and Emporium to express the wide variety of goods available.
FILLING STATION
Today, you can bring in your empty bottle of shampoo (or conditioner, floor cleaner, laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid, etc.) and refill it with an effective, sustainable replacement. The shop also sells its own refillable containers. Toothpaste tablets and dishwasher-detergent tabs are among the containerless products the store sells.
“I like to say, ‘Stop buying your trash.’ Refill that bottle or invest in a decorative container and refill it over and over again. Start where you are comfortable, and you will see that the products are just as good, and most likely safer, than the ones you’re already using,” Morrison said. “Don't be nervous to refill your containers and to try nonconventional zero-waste options. I get it — it is not ‘normal’ to bring in your empty body-wash bottle and fill it from a big tub. But it's only weird the first time.”
MINI MALL
Refills are only part of the story. The rest of the store is an oasis of handcrafted items, from bespoke fashion accessories, upcycled embellished clothing and art objects to handmade-paper cards and adorable crocheted plush animals. Classes for sewing, stained glass, watercolor painting, alcohol ink and other arts and skills are scheduled throughout the year.
Much of Green Thistle’s stock is locally produced and some of it is literally green: a local nursery sells houseplants there. The store’s open-concept layout means no walls or partitions, with each business occupying a small but unobstructed space in the room.
One of those spaces is The Last Place On Earth, specializing in repurposed vintage decorative items that evoke a “spirit of adventure,” according to owner Tom Frye. His merchandise typifies the shop’s nod to both the unusual and the earth-friendly.
“I sell bohemian treasures for the home from all over the world, celebrating the artistic diversity of global cultures in the form of decorative items and art — eclectic pieces to suit the free-spirited personality,” said Frye, a long-time Fort Worth resident and interior-design specialist with an art degree from Texas Wesleyan University. “These are items that one wouldn't normally be able to find in a regular store. Most of my items are pre-owned and from a different era. Some are embellished to give them a more exotic vibe,” he said.
Frye also sells his own original art, as well as that of other artists.
ARTSY AMBIANCE
The Race Street area’s friendly, chill atmosphere has been a draw for the Green Thistle’s business owners, starting with Morrison, who became enchanted with the district several years back.
“I had a friend who had a shop on Race Street ‘Creative Collections,’” she said. “And, when my kids were younger, they attended Travis Avenue Fine Arts which was planning to take over the old Baptist church down the street. We had art exhibitions and concerts there. And we loved visiting Gypsy Scoops ice cream [now Dough’d Up]. The street just had a laidback, artistic vibe. I loved the character of the buildings, and the community feel of the street.”
The appeal is real. But generating business in the Riverside Arts District can be a challenge. The area’s slow-motion rehabilitation tends to lurch forward in fits and starts and has yet to gain the traction of other Fort Worth urban-renewal success stories like Magnolia Avenue and South Main Street.
“Unfortunately, Race Street does not currently have a ton of foot traffic, and so many people don't even know where it’s located or how to get here,” Morrison said. “We hear people say, ‘I never knew you were here!’ all the time. Several businesses are in the process of opening on the street, so I hope that brings more awareness to the area. The street already has cool places to visit and is very walkable, and once people find it they usually love it.”
Adventurous shoppers willing to bypass big-box retailers or suspend their next Amazon.com foray will find that the Green Thistle’s diminutive footprint houses a surprisingly broad spectrum of useful, appealing merchandise that’s easy on the planet and hard to find anywhere else. And many of the store’s business owners are willing to go the extra mile to make or acquire anything you can’t immediately find there.
The pleasant vibe is the icing on the cake.
“I think the one thing that all of the vendors at Green Thistle Emporium share is the desire to spread joy and kindness in an exciting shopping experience,” Tom Frye said.
GREEN SCENE
Green Thistle Emporium’s businesses include:
• Ayleen’s Crochet: Handmade crochet products
• Belinda: Bracelets and fairy houses
• Butterfly Ranch: Handmade paper cards, journals, bookmarks
• Cassie's Trinket Box: Jewelry, wood carving, real spiderweb preservation art
• Cozy Closet: Curated vintage clothing
• Creatively Beauty Goods: Permanent jewelry, bespoke hats, custom jewelry, artisan soaps
• Crinkle & Squawk: Handmade prints, embroideries, luminaries and ceramics
• EcoFashionista: Jewelry from upcycled materials
• Fool for Wool: Wool artisan items
• Golden Haze: Handcrafted stained glass
• Joyfully Quilted: Sewing classes
• The Last Place on Earth: Curated Bohemian home decor
• Lola's Kitchen Table: Upcycled and unique kitchen items
• Lovely Bee: Reusable glass cups
• LZ Aurand Art: Custom jewelry, watercolor cards
• Mad Paperie: Watercolor greeting cards
• Olive Tree Body Care: Natural body care products made in Fort Worth
• Sue Bee Beauty: Natural soaps, body care, wax melts
• Thistle Threads: Upcycled clothing
• The Twisted Gypsy: New clothing & accessories
• Verde Collection: Plants (from local nursery in Haltom City)
Refillery products:
• Body: Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, hand soap, hand sanitizer, body lotion, face wash, sugar scrub, shower steamer, toothpaste, facial moisturizer, facial oil
• Pet shampoo
• Home: Laundry detergent, dish soap, dishwasher tabs, rinse aid, stainless steel cleaner, all-purpose spray cleaner, Oxy clean, floor cleaner
Classes and Workshops (Sewing, Watercolor painting, stained glass, alcohol ink art):
• Check the Green Thistle website’s Events Page for schedules