When you go to Ethnika, you’re not just shopping in New Rochelle.

You’re shopping in Tibet and Japan, Italy and Brazil, Russia, France and Africa.

Owners Yvonne Jean Rabie and her husband, Daniel Carranza, travel the world to find the unique pieces that fill their spacious shop.

The day of my recent visit, their “souvenirs” included a stool from Morocco and a mirror from Tibet, a French Art-Deco lamp and a side table from Syria.

Some of the work is old, some is new — it all shares an artistic sensibility. That’s no surprise since both Rabie and Carranza are artists, and their paintings are scattered throughout the shop.

Here’s a Carranza painting, set over a vignette dotted with buddhas.

“We work a lot with buddhas, because I love buddhas,” Rabie says.

Open the door to the shop, and a lovely scent hits you.

“I have candles, flowers always and apples,” Rabie says, pointing to a small shrine area.

The shop is definitely welcoming; Rabie’s just as likely to make you a cup of green tea as she is to walk you through the showroom, including a glimpse into its large warehouse.

“People have to feel like they are at home,” Rabie says.

And the atmosphere is indeed very welcoming.

Rabie and Carranza came to America from Brazil, where they also owned a shop. Before opening Ethnika in the summer of 2007, the couple ran Al Kadim antiques shop and YJR Art Gallery in Mamaroneck for 10 years.

“I always worked with antiques, but now I’m working with more ethnic things,” Rabie says.

She says it’s a reflection of how people decorate — “people want to mix.”

At Ethnika, ingredients from around the world are within easy reach. Work represents several centuries; a recent sale, for example, featured 19th-century Japanese scrolls.

But there’s plenty of new work, which the couple finds as they tour small factories and visit local villages on their travels.

Much of the new furniture, Carranza notes, is made with recycled woods.

“They are not cutting trees,” he says. “For me, that’s important.”

All the work fills the main showroom, with containers arriving all the time with items they have selected.

“Every week the store is different,” Rabie says. Merchandise starts at around $20 and ranges into the thousands, with wholesale prices and frequent discounts on offer.

Rabie says it’s most rewarding to help customers find something that resonates with them — something they want to live with.

“I display them like they are in your house,” she says. There’s not a section for desks, a section for lamps; instead, you might find a Chinese cabinet topped with a French lamp and a Murano glass bowl.

“I buy what I love,” Rabie says. “I have to live with them before I sell them. They have to be beautiful.”

Here’s just a bit of what I saw:

And here’s the warehouse area, open to all customers. In warm weather, Rabie and Carranza open the garage-style doors and merchandise spills onto the sidewalk, too.

It seems like there’s no end to what treasures you may find at Ethnika.

“I love to go and travel and buy more,” Rabie says.

“The next trip is going to be India, or maybe Egypt,” Rabie says. “We will see.”

And then, so will we.

Ethnika is at 1 Portman Road in New Rochelle. It is generally open from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays; call for extended hours or appointments at other times.

Call 914-813-8920 or visit its Web site.
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Hope you enjoyed my visit to Ethnika. A version of this blog will appear Monday in the Life & Style section of The Journal News — and elsewhere here on LoHud.com — when the New Rochelle design destination is featured as Shop of the Week.