OKC.NET T H E H O L I D A Y B U Y I N G G U I D E 2011

BOHO GYPSY DNA GALLERIES COLLECTED THREAD

HAVE YOURSELF A LOCAL LITTLE CHRISTMAS

Welcome to the first OKC.NET Holiday Gift Guide. We encourage you to shop local if you don’t already. We promise you won’t be sorry. When you support your artisans and small business retailers you keep your tax dollars in your community and you make Oklahoma City and the metro area more of a destination rather than another box store landscape. Why visit strip malls when you can go to a one of a kind storefront to enjoy a less crowded and more festive atmosphere? And if that weren’t awesome enough, the items listed within our buying guide are not what you’d typically find in a big retail outlet. So go ahead and have yourself a local little Christmas today.

BOHO GYPSY

Boho Gypsy is the creation of OKC resident Annah Chakola Ramsey. Her line of accessories blends cultural influences and simple styles with her own aesthetic to create jewelry and textiles that are both authentic and contemporary. She books trunk shows and can be found online at: http://www.bohogypsy.com/

Gift Ideas:

$20 Lhasa drop pendants for a Stocking Stuffer.$40-45 Shambala wrap for a Friend or Co-Worker.$50 The Knot Necklace for a Family gift.

Price range: $20 - 250. 5% of bag sales goes to support the Maria Pallana Orphanage near Annah’s home town.

DNA GALLERIES

1705B NW16th, OKCMonday - Saturday, 12 pm - 7pm

Located next to Collected Thread, DNA Galleries has a distinctly Oklahoma focus. The accessories, art, and clothing they carry are 85% Oklahoma made.

Gift Ideas:$20 and under: Handmade vinyl wallets and card holders by innad. Many colors to choose.$30- $40 “Altar L Texas/Okahoma jewelry collaboration” uses rocks and minerals along with other elements to create one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces$75 and over: a gift that is always the right size, never (well, mostly never) needs batteries, and one that you can be sure they don’t have already: Original art by local artists

Price Range: $20 - 75 (and up).

THE GLEEFUL PEACOCK

Gleeful Peacock is a line of hand painted, vintage inspired jewelry and accessories. Owner Nikki Halgren says her items can be found on Etsy, at Birdie in Norman and The Collected Thread in the Plaza District. You can also checkout her blog at:http://www.gleefulpeacock.blogspot.com

Gift Ideas:

Earrings for a Friend or Co-Worker.Hair comb for a Stocking Stuffer.Pocket watch for a Family gift.

Price Range : $ 7- 40

COLLECTED THREAD

1705 A NW 16th, OKCTuesday - Saturday, 11am - 7pm

Comfortable yet fresh, Collected Thread specializes in handmade goods. Owner Lindsay Zodrow says, “Everything in the shop is handmade or hand-altered. They carry clothing, jewelry, baby stuff, prints, soaps, accessories, cards, and more. The shop itself is an ever-changing work of art. Thoughtful displays and decor create a complete tableau for shoppers, a warm environment that welcomes you as soon as you enter. While shopping for gifts, be sure to check the class schedule to learn skills from cupcake decorating to photography from local creatives.

Gift Ideas:$20: folded brass geometrical earrings$30-40: honey pouches in colors: olive, robin's egg blue and mustard and "Local is for lovers" sweatshirt. $75 or more: Tunics and winter coats.

Price Range: $20 - 75

ISTVAN GALLERY

1218 N. Western, OKCTues-Fri: 12:00 pm -6:00 pmSat-Sun: 1:00 pm -5:00 pm

Istvan Gallery showcases fine art from the best of Oklahoma's artists. Their inventory includes Painting, Photography, Sculpture and High Craft including fused and blown glass, jewelry, metalwork and some outrageously cool gourds.  Of special note is the hand crafted furniture from Oklahoma City artist and carpenter Todd Graham.  They currently have 5 high end coffee tables, two side tables and a ladderback chair made with sycamore.  The furniture prices range from $700 to $2100. They also have a large selection of fused glass, blown glass and other handcrafted holiday ornaments.

Gift Ideas:$20-40 Handblow glass ornaments$15 each Fused glass ornaments$1800 Todd Graham Table Walnut on Steel Pedestal$175 Billy Reid "I Don't Have to Change Yet" Mixed Media Painting

Price range: $8 - 3,000

WILD HARE BEADERY

319 White St, NormanMon - Sat: 11:00 am - 6:00 pm

Wild Hare Beadery offers custom and vintage jewelry, ephemera, furniture and lighting. Not to mention a huge selection of beads and jewelry-making supplies. Items in the store range from one cent and to their most expensive item which is $1600. Most items will range between $5 and $50.

Gift Ideas:

$50 Citrine necklace $45-75 Rings for him or her:Cost of materials - Select beads, findings, and have owner Reese Truesdell assemble your one of a kind creation.

Price range: .01¢ - $1,600

FORWARD FOODS

Norman- 123 E. Main Street, Tuesday - Saturday 11am - 7pm, Sunday - Monday 1pm - 6pm

Oklahoma City- 5123 N. Western Ave., Tuesday - Saturday 11am - 7pm, Sunday - Monday 1pm - 6pm

Food as a gift? Sure! Pop by forward foods and find some high quality indulgences to pack into a gift basket for your favorite foodie. The shop’s helpful staff can point you to all of the local products in the store, from produce to jams.

If you like to bake as a gift, the holidays are a great time to pull out all the stops and splurge on high quality ingredients. Organic, local produce, gourmet gelato, olive oil and fine vanilla in bulk: explore and find some gems. Go ahead, get that good butter you have your eye on- it will make a difference in those shortbread!

In addition to gifting, of course, there’s also entertaining. Whip up a super-fancy antipasto platter with selections from the gourmet olive bar, meat counter, and what we would go so far as to call the best cheese selection in the metro area. Curious about that Gouda with cumin seed (it’s good!), but if you don’t believe us, the knowledgeable and helpful staff will offer you a sample.

Gift Ideas:Your choice $: Gift Card$20 - 40 Assortment basket with cheeses, fruit spreads, and crackers (price variable)$35 Enrollment in a cheese-tasting class (including wine pairing and beer pairing classes- watch the schedules. They apparently fill up fast.)

Price range: $5 - 50 (or more)

BLUE SEVEN

7518 N. May Avenue, OKCopen Monday - Saturday, 11am- 7pm

Somewhere between the scented candles, the wall of Toms shoes, the display of plastic Holga-esque cameras, and the macaroni scented air fresheners, there is truly something for every taste in store at Blue Seven. The store’s tagline reads “apparel, gift, home” and those three far-flung adjectives only hint at the wide variety on display. The inventory goes all the way from ironic hipster kitsch to earnest hipster chic, and from humorous to truly lovely. Blue Seven is a gift shop that doesn’t forget about the guys, or about those who enjoy giving tongue-in-cheek gifts.

Gift Ideas:under $20: a multicolored set of ‘mood mustaches’, along with a variety of mustache-themed novelties$20-35: stylish scarves and hats galore $45 or over: Lomography ‘fisheye’ cameras bring the low-fi fun of vintage photography out of your iphone and into the world of actual film.

Price range: $20 - 45 (and up)