The art of giving

NEED another reason to visit local museums besides the exhibits of Salvador Dali, Takashi Murakami and “Birth of the Cool”? Consider the shopping. Museum stores are becoming miniature home boutiques where you can find tables, lamps and decorative pieces that make great gifts or quick additions to holiday homes.

Many of these finds can be seen in person only and aren’t available on the shops’ websites. Others can be bought online at the Internet stores for spots such as New York’s Museum of Modern Art -- making life easy if you let your fingers do the shopping.

-- Nancy Yoshihara