Neat SITES
Your local, online holiday shopping gift guide
Why are they calling this weather an Arctic Blast? It doesn’t sound like much fun at all (yuk yuk). Ok, but seriously, holiday shopping in freezing rain is the pits, and we’re on the frenzied two-week countdown to Christmas.
Fortunately, we can still shop online at select Portland retailers who are making it easy to finish our shopping right from home (penguin pajamas and brandied egg nog optional). Shop these neat local online boutiques right now and you’ll receive your packages well before Christmas:
Le Train Bleu – Shop from a gorgeous cache of clothing, shoes, jewelry and more from local and independent designers. Our neat gift picks include Fair Isle fingerless Caravan gloves (above); over-the-knee ’20s Cuban heel stockings; Calicut beaded necklaces; plus beautiful scarves, and prettily packaged perfumes and soaps. www.letrainbleu.com
pdxBoutique – Find clothing, jewelry, gloves, handbags and home decor from local-only Portland designers. We love Grayling’s Cavern Necklace (right), wool knit jersey hats from ElizaBeth Rohloff, and the perfect-fit, wear-anywhere WeMa winter wrap dress. Plus, use the code “NEATSHEET” at checkout and you’ll save 20 percent on your entire purchase, including sale items. www.pdxboutique.com
Pin-Me Apparel – You can now shop this favorite Mississippi boutique from your sofa, grabbing up cool clothing, handbags and jewelry from local and indie designers. Neat picks are classic shoulder bags in cool prints from Orla Kiely, everyone’s favorite Prairie Underground hoodies, and superfantastically sexy-yet-functional black rubber high heeled ankle boots from Melissa Ashanti. www.pin-me-apparel.com
Frock Boutique – New to the Web shopping scene, Alberta favorite Frock now sells Portland-made goods and unique gift items online. Find house-made, one-of-a-kind screenprinted Portland Heart t-shirts and scarves, perfect gifts for Portland-philes; cute, colorful socks from local legwear champs Sock It To Me; and wildlife motif earrings from Passion Flower. www.frockboutique.com
Moxie – Another online newbie, this East Burnside boutique is now a top Web destination for on-trend clothing and accessories for women and men. Shop for bright Brixton Portman hats, Bill Adler textured leather wallets, and our ever-favorite Crazy Coconut St. John’s Bridge pillows and hoodies. www.moxiepdx.com
Greenloop – This popular Portland-based sustainable style site carries eco-friendly clothing and accessories for men and women (you can also find their goods at Seven Planet in the Pearl). Shop for fun, unique gifts including recycled tire watches from ReFinding, cute little ready-to-ride bicycle sets from Loves to Ride; and colorful, recycled “Angie” phone or iPod holders from Aster & Sage. www.thegreenloop.com
Mabel and Zora – Trendsetting Pearl District boutique Mabel and Zora offers online shopping for dresses, separates, luggage, jewelry and gifts. We found flirty party dresses, like this red Adrianna Papell Cap Sleeve Jersey Dress, fun Catherine Manuell AeroTrolley luggage sets in red mock croc, and Chain Leila silver and gold bangle bracelets marked down by 50 percent. www.mableandzora.com
Powells Books – And finally, of course, there’s our beloved Powell’s Books, where you can get expert advice and then either shop online for popular books, audio books and DVDs to be delivered to your home, or you can have Powell’s hold ‘em for you to pick up downtown when this Arctic Blast passes. Two neat gift picks we know your friends will love are Jesse McLean’s “Kings of Madison Avenue: The Unoffical Guide to Mad Men” book or the latest “Star Trek” DVD, which portrays the crew’s maiden voyage and is totally fun to watch even if you aren’t a Trekkie. www.powells.com
Hey wait, this online shopping weather is a blast after all!
i love moxie!