Small, local shops offer unique Christmas gifts

MOSES LAKE — Plenty of people do all their Christmas shopping from the comfort of their laptops. But just a few blocks away, local small businesses are offering things you won’t necessarily find online. 

“Most of our shoppers, they're looking for something unique, not something they can get from Amazon or from China,” said Ken Haisch, one of six vendors at Third Avenue Antiques in Moses Lake. 

With Christmas approaching fast, local small shops are seeing an influx of customers who want something personal, said Lynn Nesmith, owner of The Boutique on Third Avenue in Moses Lake. 

“People are looking for things that are more of a personalized type of gift, something that represents the person and makes them feel some kind of connection with the item,” Nesmith said. “We've had like tons of, like jewelry that's a memory of some time, like a seashell or a palm tree or things like that. I think people are looking for things that spark some type of inspiration in them.” 

Nesmith took over what was then Sue’s Gift Boutique in July, she said. Under its new name, The Boutique still carries many of the items it had before, but Nesmith said she’s increasing her range of inventory bit by bit. A popular item this year is the Barefoot Dreams collection, she said, a luxury line of slippers, robes and blankets. 

“One of our biggest holiday sellers this time of year is our Hobo line (of handbags),” Nesmith said. “It's one of our most exclusive lines. We're the only retailer in (Moses Lake that carries it).” 

For those who prefer nerdiness over stylishness, books and games are popular, said Mai Houvener, owner of the Sandbox Bookstore in Moses Lake’s Smith Martin Building. The Percy Jackson books for teenagers, about the children of the Greek gods, are still popular, she said. Dungeons and Dragons and other games are perennial favorites as well. 

“(We sell) lots of Pokémon,” she said. “You just can’t keep it on the shelf. Whatever we put out, it goes right away.” 

Graphic novels are coming into their own and are hot gifts for young readers, Houvener said. 

“Graphic novels used to be frowned upon,” she said. “People say, ‘Oh, we don't want my kids reading graphic books,’ but if a kid is reading, a kid is reading. They’re retaining context clues from what they're reading with the pictures, and eventually, when they get strong in that they're reading a chapter book and they're able to visualize what the words … They're reading for fun and that's what you want. You want that joy of reading to continue.” 

By the very nature of antique shops, there’s not usually one item that’s in vogue, Haisch said.  

“People pick up the oddest things to remember their childhood,” he said. “Old ornaments and stuff like that. Some people want Christmas lights, some want an ornament, some want a mug. All of our Santa mugs, I think, are gone.” 

Haisch pointed to a large perfume bottle that was once part of a sale display at the now-defunct department store Bon Marché. It was marked down from $90 to $45, and he expected it to go within a day or two. Behind him, a row of metal lunchboxes bore images from 1970s and ’80s TV shows, in which Gen-X children toted their lunches to school back in the day. A row of boxes of vinyl records and another of reel-to-reel tapes held music of bygone ages. 

“You need a lot of things like that, that people can impulsively buy and say, ‘I got you a unique Christmas present. You'll never find another one,” Haisch said. 

    Customers browse through Third Avenue Antiques in Moses Lake.
  

    Lynn Nesmith holds up a Hobo handbag at The Boutique on Third Avenue in Moses Lake. The brand is one of her hottest-selling items for Christmas, she said.