San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
From lockets to portraits, discover unique gifts
A lot of us haven’t seen our friends or loved ones outside of immediate family for many months now. And we won’t be gathering for Christmas or Hanukkah. Yet rather than getting gloomy about that, let’s put extra meaning into our gift giving this year.
Personalized presents can brighten the holidays so much, showing the extra time and thought that go into them.
Instead of just a necklace for mom, for example, why not surprise her with a locket tucked with a treasured photo inside? The familyowned, three-decadeold Aura Jewelers in Berkeley has a changing assortment of unique, vintage 18801930 lockets like a sterling silver Art Nouveau “Lady and Iris” pendant locket ($ 1,598). Buy at www.aurajewelers.com.
Etsy’s Verabel Jewelry has many much more affordable choices, such as a gold tone locket with a completely customizable embellished front and two hinged panels to hold four photographs ($ 65). Verabel will even trim and securely insert your provided photos, before shipping the locket wherever you please. Buy at www. etsy. com/ market/ verabel_ jewelry.
Or maybe your pal misses attending sports events, so make them happy with a custom gift basket arranged around their favorite team. The Gifted Basket in San Francisco will pull together the perfect goodies, arrange them handsomely and ship your gift for you ( prices vary). Be sure to request some gametime goodies, as well as sports paraphernalia — San Francisco’s famous Molinari salami, local caramel corn and such. Buy at www. sanfrancisco giftedbasket. com.
No matter what gifts you decide on, it’s best to purchase them right away. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, experts have long been predicting that the holiday shopping season will start much earlier this year, notes Coresight Research, which focuses on global consumer, retail and technology trends.
That’s because of the decline in brickandmortar shopping, and concerns about shipping backlogs and product shortages. Personalized gifts often take a
bit longer to prepare and ship, too.
But even online shopping so personally can be great fun, and lets you be especially creative. Maybe your friend or family member enjoys a sip of spirits now and then while sheltering in place. So figure out what their
favorite adult libation is and put together an interesting cocktail package, complete with all the ingredients and a handdecorated recipe card on fancy paper.
The team at Sonoma’s 3 Badge Beverage Corporation, a wine and spirits négociant, offers
tempting suggestions with some new, artisanal quaffs, like the holidaytheme Mexican Rice Pudding Oaxacan Toddy. It’s based on Bozal Ensamble Mezcal made with Espadin, Barril and Mexicano agaves for a slightly smokysweet, citrusy character with an herbaceous undertone ( buy the Bozal and other ingredients at stores like BevMo! or Total Wine & More).
Here’s the recipe: combine 1.5 oz. mezcal with .75 oz. yellow Chartreuse, .5 oz. Barrow’s Intense Ginger Liqueur, .25 oz. agave syrup and a splash or two of hot water, then garnish the mug with a cinnamon stick and lime wheel spiked with clove.
“It may seem like an unusual drink,” said 3 Badge owner and fourth generation vintner August Sebastiani. “But this Mexicaninspired recipe is great with its warm flavors of cinnamon and clove.”
For more information on 3 Badge, visit www.3badge.com.
Wine is a Bay Area favorite, and you can easily gift personalized bottles. At Napa Valley Private Label Wine, you can to upload your art to fit a template or engage full custom design services ( prices vary). Choose your own logo or photo, choose your colors and text, and of course, choose the wine, and you’ve got an elegant item.
After the wine is enjoyed, the bottles make nice flower vases, too. Buy at www.napavalleyprivatelabelwine.com.
Everyone has favorite photos, and Etsy brims with clever ways to make them into household art at low cost. One Etsy partner, Jade Forest Design, specializes in whimsical, stylized cartoon illustrations of families. Their “Taupe Family Illustration With Children” is customized to look like your provided photo, down to hairstyles and color, eye color, clothing, accessories and pets ( starting at $ 79). Buy at www.jadeforestdesign.com.
Or turn the photos into an attention grabbing throw pillow. Sebastopol’s Gypsy Café has evolved into the Gypsy General Store as owner and artist Shawn Hall uses the shuttered indoor dining area as an art and gift shop.
Among the most popular items are the pillows she handsews with vintage fabrics, printed with West County animal, landscape and antique truck photos snapped by her partner, Rob Scheid ( pillow prices vary). With advance notice, she can turn your own photo into a custom pillow, too — just drop it off when getting cafe takeout or eating on the patio. Buy at www.gypsycafe.com.