(WACO, Texas)— Baylor University sophomore Kali Wherrey said she goes to Spice Village, a downtown vendor boutique, because it is unlike any cooperate department store.

“You could walk around there for hours,” Wherrey said. “You could probably go every single day of the week and you’ll see something that you didn’t see the day prior or something that you’ve never seen before ... it just makes me feel happy seeing all of these cool, nifty things that you wouldn’t necessarily expect to find.”

However, Wherrey said the uniqueness of the boutique’s goods isn’t the only reason she goes to Spice Village. She said she goes because of the comfort it brings her, which she describes as “old time but with a modern twist.

“Usually if I’m in a weird mood or I just kinda need to get out and do something I’ll go there ... I don’t know if they’re pumping something into the air or if it’s just, I don’t know, it just feels very homey,” Wherrey said.

According to the Spice Village website, this hospitable ambiance comes from the aroma of the building’s original long-leaf pine beams.

The 30,000 square foot building was completed in 1911 as the McLendon Hardware Company and Higginbotham Hardware Company building before it was damaged in the 1953 Waco tornado, according to the Baylor University Texas Collection. The building was then repaired before becoming the Shops at River Square Center and location of Spice Village.

For Wherrey, the building itself adds to the experience of Spice Village.

“There’s something with those stairs,” Wherrey said. “The bottom level there’s not really anything. It’s just kind of bleak. And then you walk up and all of a sudden there’s this bright, colorful everything everywhere. And you have friendly people greeting you at the door, so it’s so cozy.”

Wherrey said shopping at Spice Village is every girl’s dream, and she hopes the welcoming environment influences her aesthetic.

“That’s what I want my house to look like. That’s what I want my wardrobe to look like,” Wherrey said. “It’s ridiculous in a good way.”