T took me to Cactus Joe’s in May but it was closed on the day we visited. We were near Red Rock Canyon and decided to check it out last Saturday. He loves Cactus Joe’s and the place is just teeming with T’s signature Southwest Style (or as I call it… brown things).
I’m glad we didn’t get to go in the Summer heat because it was sprawling and open-air. There was a lot to see and T was just wandering from place to place like a kid in a candy store. I’m not really sure what to call this place. I assumed they sold cactus and that was it but it was like a nursery and a giant gift shop of desert-y (and ethnic) things.
T bought many of our home decor from Cactus Joe’s. Everything from wall art to figurines to bits and bobs (including a Chinese rice barrel). As you can see from the pictures, there were decorative art and sculptures all over the place – some made of glass, some metal, some wood. A lot of HUGE glass chunks and chiselled off semi-precious stones. There were some posters of old mining towns, books on Native American art, a gold-mining kit, jewellery and plants of course! One section was just all Joshua Trees! There were other desert plants and cactus of all shapes and sizes everywhere.
I ended spending a total of USD9 at Cactus Joe’s last week. I bought 2 glass balls encased in what I think is hemp rope – each slightly bigger than my fists. One was orange and the other yellow. I’ve decided that we are going to get a Christmas Tree for our 3rd floor living space and each and every ornament will be purchased by us together. Nothing out of a commercially packaged box and hopefully, we will grow our collection for years to come.
I think this is a wonderful break from the Strip itself. Cactus Joe’s is a great place for both locals and tourists. You can buy some plants or learn about desert plants, maybe bring a gem stone or two home, buy some post cards or a map of the old mining towns, purchase a giant Mayan calendar for your wall at home, come play with the critters that roam the premise or take some pretty fun pictures! There’s apparently a chapel that you can rent for a wedding too!
CACTUS JOE’S BLUE DIAMOND NURSERY
12740 Blue Diamond Road,
Las Vegas, NV 89161
Email: cactusjoeslasvegas@gmail.com
Phone: (702) 875-1968
An Exercise In Trivial Pursuits 