'Tis the season to start scrambling for last-minute gifts. Sure, you could join the throng of frantic Christmas Eve shoppers at Best Buy, frantically scrabbling over one another in a desperate race for whatever Wii game happens to be left on the shelf. Some people dig the rush of combat shopping. Personally, though, I'd rather spend my holiday at home -- and if I can support local artists at the same time, that's even better.
Et voila -- Etsy's "shop local" feature to the rescue. There are hundreds of Alaskans making interesting, useful and beautiful things and selling them via the Internet's handmade marketplace. You can be a statewide patron of the arts from the comfort of your own couch -- without even having to put down your cocoa.
-- Juneau's TP Alaska features chunky crocheted baby booties, chic ice cream pint cozies, and quilted reversible coffee cup holders -- which I bet will insulate just as well whether the cup is from Kaladi Bros. or College Coffeehouse instead of Heritage or the Silverbow.
-- Wasilla-based Baruch's Lullaby has cozy handknits for little ones, including super-adorable baby earflap hats and seamless arm- and legwarmers. So cute you'll beg your sister to have another baby.
-- Homer's Beachcomber Studio has some unusual handcrafted accessories, including vine-adorned felted neck wraps, book bags made from recycled T-shirts, and "pug shrugs" -- which, as the name suggests, are little sweaters for little dogs.
-- Truda Laking Glatz features Ester-made ceramics, including a stoneware serving bowl adorned with bolts, and lithographed and translucent porcelain tumblers.
-- Ketchikan crafters Those Alaskan Girls sell an assortment of funky accessories, including a must-have for the Southeastern fashionista on your list: Slugs -- custom handmade fleece liners to insulate -- and dress up -- the ubiquitous Xtratuf rubber boot. Trés chic for the Panhandle-dwelling gal on the town.
-- Up in North Pole, 2 Raven Chicks are whipping up beautiful jewelry with clever twists -- like this necklace starring the Mona Lisa, a bracelet adorned with vintage crystal from a hotel chandelier, and jewelry made with vintage cow tags.
You can also find some of your favorite local Anchorage-area brands on Etsy, including Alaska Leash (rugged, colorful leashes made from climbing rope), jewelry by HoughtonHill and Annie's Arts and Follies (of Spenard's Bella Boutique), Fiber N'Ice merino yarns, and art from Girdwood gallery Babes in the Woods.
And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
All of which means you can stay home by the fireplace, drinking glüwein and watching "He-Man & She-Ra: A Christmas Special" instead of braving the snowy streets -- an idea that's particularly attractive if you've ever experienced the real-life holiday miracle of getting through the intersection of Dimond Boulevard and the Old Seward Highway in one piece on Christmas Eve.
If, however, you must leave the house...
Anchorage powder buffs won't want to miss the late show at Bear Tooth Friday night, when Alaska-grown film producer Ben Sturgulewski presents the local premiere of "Signatures," the second documentary from his Sweetgrass Productions film company. Sturgulewski and his partner, Nick Waggoner, spent a winter in the mountains of Japan, chronicling "the relationships of local snowsurfers, photographers, and riders to mountain, sea, and season," according to a Sweetgrass press release. "Signatures," a Banff Mountain Film Festival finalist and world tour participant, was named Best Ski Film at the 2009 Boulder Adventure Film Festival. Catch the trailer on YouTube and the whole film Friday, Dec. 18 at 10 p.m. at the Bear Tooth Theatre Pub, 1230 W. 27th Ave. Tickets are $7.
Find more holiday fun -- and add your own events -- on the Alaska Dispatch calendar.
Contact Maia Nolan at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
