Mercedes Rusticos is the kind of shop I could spend all day in. Mercedes Muñoz, the owner, has accumulated a multitude of fascinating furniture and art objects for the home, all exquisite and tastefully arranged. The outside of the shop, which is located in the Old Port, gives a taste of what's inside, for the name is spelled out in huge letters of hand tooled metal. Inside are tables, seats, armoires, shelves holding metal jars, little wooden boxes, fantastic animals. A stained glass hanging of a parrot filters colored light into the interior. It's hard to do justice in words to the feeling conveyed by all the beautiful objects. It's necessary just to wander around and try to take it all in, walking through the entire store. Each room leads into another room, or a hallway, or a courtyard, with yet more exciting finds. One room has a sleigh-shaped bed with a white cover inset with strips of crocheted lace. Another has a high-backed wooden bench upholstered with a cowhide seat. In another a brilliantly colored rooster holds court. His tail feathers are ceramic tiles painted in bold blue, green, magenta, turquoise, and yellow. Around him are other, smaller roosters similarly decorated. A little courtyard between two of the rooms has a small pool at one end into which water runs from the mouth of a giant fish fixed to the wall. The back wall is inlaid rock; the end walls inlaid tile. Trees and plants in pots surround the pool. Next to it stands a woman's torso inlaid with small tiles and pieces of glass. The other end might be called the courtyard of masks because the walls, all painted in different bright colors, are hung with masks--wooden, metal, papier mache, all colorfully or dramatically painted. Many are skull faces for Day of the Dead. I bought one for my sister-in-law, who collects masks. Everywhere there are little shelves and brackets hung on the wall. They may hold vases, or miniature angels, or pigs, or fish, or candles. Candles--Mercedes must love candles because they are to be found throughout the store. Giant candles three feet high and one foot across, smaller candles, square candles, candles shaped like fruits, sets of candles, scented candles burning underneath religious paintings that look like replicas of old masters. I was enchanted by one religious artifact, a giant rosary hanging over a closet door. Each bead must have been 1 1/2 inches in diameter, and the cross at the bottom was about 6" long. The beads and the cross were painted green, and each one was decorated with tiny brass figures of seahorses, fish, and animals. Mercedes also has many crucifixes in various designs. The kitchen has brilliantly tiled counters with dishes of ceramic, stained glass, and metal. The sink itself is a large brightly colored "tile." A table and chairs of painted wood complete the decor, but this is only one of many sets. There are tables and chairs of bronze, wood, rattan, glass, tile, and one that especially fascinated me--a table made from a wooden door with the rustic metal hinges and cornerpieces still intact. I met a young woman in the store who told me she had picked out furniture here for every room of her home. She dragged me around pointing out her bed, her armoire, her end tables, her chairs, her lamps, and the candles she wanted in each room. I never did figure out whether she was furnishing an actual house or just an imaginary one. It would be easy and fun to do either from all the fine things Mercedes has on display. I bought some items that took my eye immediately, but I need to go back to do some Christmas shopping. My purchases were packaged efficiently by the attendant, Maria Eugenia Chi Robleda. She is a striking looking young woman with dark skin and beautiful large black eyes. She could have been a Mayan princess. She is Mayan, she told me, from Yucatan. She showed me a picture of her little boy, and he has the same big black eyes. On the counter is one of the most striking displays I've ever seen, large glass jars of different shapes filled with colorful foods in layers: garlic cloves, red peppers, beans, nuts, orange slices. I would have liked to buy one for myself and each of my daughters because we all love to cook, but I know I couldn't bear to disturb the beautiful arrangement by actually using any of the ingredients. Mercedes is an attractive and gracious person, who obviously has excellent taste. She welcomed us into her store as if it were her home and answered any questions we wanted to ask. She is a member of a family of successful business owners in Puerto Peñasco. One brother owns Números; a sister owns Salmo's; another brother owns Lucas Chicken. Mercedes told us that she has had the store for about two years; She is continually improving it and adding new rooms and items. She must have fun buying lovely things and arranging them, almost as much fun as her customers have looking at them and furnishing their real or fantasy homes.
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