Moss Landing’s newest shop feels like an art space.

Amidst the kooky and colorful shops and restaurants that line Moss Landing road, a pale green building frames a window with a short poem:

Broken by a storm

Freed from my roots

Amongst the whales and waves

My journey continues

Polished by sand

Whitened by the sun

I flow towards destiny where

New adventures await, anxiously.

That poem is a clever introduction for Driftwood, the relatively new shop that occupies the refurbished-but-rustic-looking building. The shop is filled with sweetly scented handmade candles and soaps, beach-themed art and handcrafted glassware. Subtly colored cotton tees and tanks screen-printed in the back hang from racks. In one corner, unique baby onesies and hand-blown glass lanterns catch the eye; in the opposite corner, framed watercolors by Kathryn Hanay, a Moss Landing teacher and painter, fit with the other items beautifully. A few racks hold up-cycled reusable totes. Driftwood opened just before the start of the year and finds itself enjoying its busiest month as this goes to press. Owner-operator Renée Balducci curates the place like it’s an art gallery rather than a shop, which makes sense given the fact she’s an artist and local art appreciator who also owns Fern Design Studio right next door. The design of the space, like the items, is anti-kitsch. “I don’t want people to become overwhelmed, so I fill it with things that are meaningful,” Balducci says.

Much of the fun for her is the hunt for items. “I look for mothers with pottery studios in the back of their homes,” she says, “or grandfathers who take hikes with the grandson to collect sticks to make twig crayons.”

DRIFTWOOD  is located at 8071-B Moss Landing Road, Moss Landing and is open 11am-6pm Sunday-Thursday and 11am-7pm Friday and Saturday. 632-2800, www.driftwoodstore.com