A Highly Opinionated Holiday Gift Guide from Experimental Vintage

I’m not sure about you, but I’m feeling more deeply now than ever the joy of chosen community within my own life.

This year the EV team (all two of us that is- myself and my right hand gal Michaela) is celebrating one of our most cherished communities – our favorite small businesses, artists, and makers – with the very first Experimental Vintage Holiday Gifting Guide.
It’s a list of one-of-a-kind shops and makers we personally shop with, and that reflect values we hold dear: sustainability, intentionality, artistry, and community.

The holidays are creeping near, but there’s still time to find something truly unique and special from one of these incredible shops and makers.

Local Love:

Portland Picks We Love

Portland is known for its small businesses, artists, movers and shakers. We have a lot of great places to shop and support over the holidays within the local community. Many of these spots we’ve chosen also ship so if you aren’t local still stay tuned, this is a great list! Here are a few of our favorites that we personally frequent throughout the year and especially during the holidays… 

Mantel

Mantel specializes in unique housewares, ceramics, jewelry, and other quirky and fun finds. This little gem of a shop is perfect for those who love color. We personally love their playful ceramics, and special tabletop offerings. If you have a ceramic mug lover in your life- this is the place where you’ll find them the perfect addition to their collection. Located in the Kenton neighborhood, on a great little block to explore with other shops and restaurants- my routine is to get a sweet and a cup of coffee next door at Posies before heading in to shop.

Find them at:

8202 North Denver Avenue

Portland OR

Or online at mantelpdx.com

Urbanite

Urbanite is a one stop shop collective for both vintage sellers and small makers. It includes 54 makers and interior curators of modern, vintage, industrial, art and lighting. It’s been one of our favorite places to roam around and get inspiration in for so many years! A couple of our favorite booths inside this collective include 

Fabius Grange (@fabiusgrange) 

and Continuall (continuall.com).

Find them at:

1005 SE Grand Ave.

Portland OR 

Or online at urbanitepdx.com

Dogwood 

Dogwood is a family owned wine and flower shop in the Alberta Arts district in NE Portland. We love Dogwood for their highly curated wine selection. They will take the time to help you pick the perfect bottle for whatever event or food pairing you are off to enjoy. I (Anna) have been personally going to Dogwood for years anytime I need a bottle or bouquet- I’m in awe that they grow most, if not all of their own flowers at their urban home farm. And if you’ve happened to see the big beautiful dried floral arrangement currently in the Russell Street studio window-it’s from Dogwood and it’s stunning.

Find them at:

4932 NE 30th Ave

Portland OR

Or online at dogwoodpdx.com

Wilma

When we think of Wilma, we think of high design, mid century style, eclectic furniture, and a modern take on vintage style. From Scandinavian candle sticks to that perfect mid century chaise lounge chair we just love Wilmas trend setting style. There are definitely gifts here but this is also going to be a place you are going to want to gift for yourself! And yes, they will freight ship large objects if you’re not local!

Find them at:

1001 SE Water Ave. Suite #130

Or online at wilma.co

PRIMECUT

PRIMECUT is located in a cozy shop in inner SE Portland, and offers handcrafted and one-of-a-kind leather and shearling bags, totes, laptop cases, pretty much anything you might need to carry your life around in. We love LOVE that their materials are secondary products- they source remnant materials from other larger companies to make their products. We love how sustainable their business model is-plus how damn cute their bags are. Here’s me in their colorful shearling baby backpack I got from them- I use it daily and have honestly never gotten so many compliments on a bag before. Even if you aren’t after a shearling bag, stop in for a super cute selection of cards, soaps and other fun stocking stuffers.

Find them at:

524 SE Ash

Portland OR

Or online at primecutbags.com

Colibri

Colibri is a flower, coffee and gift shop with intentional design driven floral arrangements and unique offerings for the home. If you don’t want fresh flowers they also specialize in dried flower arrangements as well- we’ve gotten several arrangements for the EV studio over the years and they really do flower ART- we love the quirky creativity of their arrangements. You can order a coffee while you shop and we always leave with a one-of-a-kind gift for someone else that we also wouldn't mind keeping for ourselves.

Find them at:

1454 NE Prescott

Portland OR

Or online at colibripdx.com

Experimental Vintage

Naturally, we made it into our own gift guide. Imagine leaving ourselves out — tragic! But seriously, vintage rugs are the ultimate multitaskers: they’re practical, artistic, and loaded with personality. Swing by our studio and let us help you find one that checks all the boxes for your giftee (or checks one big box for you…). If you are choosing a rug gift from afar, we suggest placing EV gift orders by December 14th for Christmas arrival. We also offer Experimental Vintage gift cards that can be found with the link below

From Everywhere Else:

Indie Shops We Love From Afar

It only seemed fitting to include a few more shops outside of Portland since so many of you aren't in the local area. And sometimes just having the perfect place to order a gift from online is just what you need. These special places are either from our past hometowns, are owned by dear friends, or are destinations we haunt whenever we can…

Folkling

I (Anna) met Leney of Folkling almost a decade ago when we were both selling on Etsy and she reached out to me to see if I wanted to do a trade- one of my small wool rugs for one of her amazing handknit scarves. I agreed- and the rest is history! I consider Leney my vintage sister that lives on the opposite coast, and is 10 years younger than me. Over the years, we have visited each other multiple times, and collaborated on several pop-ups together in each others respective shops. It’s been a really fun and meaningful process to see both of our businesses grow and flourish over the years. 

Folkling offers the best collection of vintage and antique quilts, textiles, and housewares. Storied objects and slow-living offerings are their specialty, and you’re sure to find something truly unique here. 

Find them at:

502 N Main ST Gordonsville, VA 

Or online at folkling.co

The Rajah Press

You might remember a few collections of vintage jewelry that we have offered in the past…well they were carefully curated in collaboration with Cady of The Rajah Press. Cady is all about hunting down the best vintage sparkle treasures and giving them new life. Not only does she have impeccable taste in jewels, she also has a keen knack for styling the perfect “neck mess” of vintage chains and pendants and knows how to build the perfect stack of gold rings. We especially love her selection of reimagined engraved jewelry- she has some truly magical pieces. Whether it's a gift for someone you love or yourself- look no further for the sparkle.

Find her online at therajahpress.com

Foggy Notion

A serious one stop shop for just about anyone in your life, Foggy Notion has always been a go-to of mine (Michaela) in San Francisco for gift giving. From ceramics, to all natural bath and body products, socks, cards or candles. Find a gift for literally anyone including your friends with a new baby here. They have been located in San Francisco’s Richmond District for years and have just recently opened a second store at SFO so if you are just flying into town and are empty handed keep your eyes peeled and pick up a gift before leaving the airport. 

Find them at:

124 Clement Street, San Francisco CA

& SFO Terminal 3

Or online at foggynotion.com

Kitkitdizzi

I (Anna) discovered Kitkitdizzi in Nevada City after my big sister moved to the area a couple years ago. I am SO enamored with Nevada City, CA. It’s a small town in California’s Gold Country with a historically preserved downtown that looks much like it did in it’s 1850’s gold rush era. It’s got great antique shops, restaurants, and sweet lil’ lifestyle shops like Kitkitdizzi. You immediately feel good when entering the space, which is intentionally filled with offerings from small artists, makers, herbalists, poets, dreamers, and farmers. From handmade soaps, to pottery, textiles, housewares, incense, and yes of course some great vintage offerings too- you can check many off of your list here. 

Find them at:

231 Broad St Nevada City, California 

Or online at kitkitdizzi.com

We hope our first EV gift guide helps you discover new small businesses that have some really great offerings!

I’m forever thankful for this EV community- that’s you!- that values sustainability as much as I do, in both the humanistic and eco-conscious sense. Truly. Your support has kept this dream of mine alive for more than two decades now.

Voting with our dollars can feel super vague, but if you ask me, it’s actually one of the simplest, most direct ways we can make a difference- especially during the holiday season. (Did you know most small businesses rely on holiday shopping for at least one quarter of their annual revenue?? )
Plus, when we holiday shop at small places with well-made, sustainable offerings, we get to give gifts with a warmth and authenticity that mass-produced goods just can’t match.

So go forth, shop small and intentional, and make someone’s holiday delightful (even if that someone is you- no judgment here).

Happy gifting!

xo, 

The EV Team (Anna & Michaela)