Gift Giving

Made In The Hills – Here’s to a season of searching out the best our region has to offer – and sharing widely with family and friends.

November 25, 2015 | | Made in the Hills

We scoured farmers’ markets all summer and fall. Now, here’s to keeping the good vibes going by seeking out more of the best local products in Headwaters as our shopping lists groan with holiday gift-giving goals.

From sculptural live-edge wooden serving platters to delectable handmade oils, area designers, makers and craftspeople offer so many compelling choices, it’s easy to add a stamp of authenticity to your next special occasion. Photos by Pete Paterson.

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From the deep

Dress up any table with one of these appetizer boards created by Mulmur husband and wife team Jedson Smuck and Dianne Hoegler of Deep Water Wood Products. The boards started as a side project for the duo, who retrieve long-lost underwater logs from the bottom of Georgian Bay, dry and mill them into flooring and furniture. (From $50. 4- to 8-foot boards also available. Deep Water Wood Products)

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All stacked up

It’s meant to be hard to choose just one. Gallery Gemma’s trademark stacking rings are available in a wide range of metals and diamonds, each engineered to nestle into the other. (Twig rings in white, yellow and rose gold, about $350 each; three-stone diamond and white gold ring, about $1,395; three-stone clover-shaped diamond, $1,295, Gallery Gemma)

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A sweet note

Get a head start on holiday cheer by ordering up a few batches of holiday cookies to share among the lucky folks on your list. Vanessa Kreuzer and Terry Doel of Lavender Blue Catering dish up chocolate-dipped shortbreads, assorted sugar cookies and our favourite, these charming gingerbreads. Sure, you may put a few home bakers to shame, but they’ll forgive you. (Starting at $6 for a package of six, Lavender Blue Catering)

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Etched in time

Plan ahead and you can add panache to a personal batch of vino from The Naked Vine with a custom-etched wine bottle. The shop’s owners Candice Plibersek and Vera Robinson offer the same service for their line of Spanish olive oil bottled in house. ($20 per wine bottle, wine not included – wine starts at $130 for 30 bottles. $33 per 500 ml olive oil bottle, olive oil included, The Naked Vine)

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Wrist action

If you have a current or former skateboarder on your list, consider this watch, one of many designs by Grand Valley designer John Gibson. Most skateboards are made from seven layers of laminated maple plywood. He slices and dices old decks into geometric works of art that live on with a wink to their daring pasts. ($199, Second Shot)

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    Shape-shifting pearls

    Can’t decide how to surprise a loved one who adores her baubles? The hefty cultured pearls in this genius design by Alton jewellery-maker Anne-Marie Warburton add up to a one-of-a-kind bracelet, but since it comes with a detachable 14K gold-filled chain, it easily transforms into a statement necklace. ($650 with chain, Gallery Gemma)

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    Classic bling

    Designed in-house by Christine Korsten at Orangeville’s Korsten Jewellers, this cluster-style ruby and diamond white gold ring strikes a festive holiday note – and comes in a range of gems. (About $1,299, Korsten Jewellers)

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    Modern style

    If you have heirloom jewellery that’s gathering dust because it’s not being worn, consider taking it to a local jeweller to be reworked into a piece you’ll wear every day, like this 18K white 14K gold tsavorite garnet and ruby ring. (About $2,149, Korsten Jewellers)

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    Dinner upgrades

    Kim Van Ryn concocts these flavoured oils right inside her new slip of a store, Taste, The 4th Sense, in Orangeville. Whole herbs and dried spices make the mini-chain’s Hot Chili Oil, Herbed Oil and Stir Fry Oil as pretty as they are delicious. Plus Van Ryn says you can keep topping up the grapeseed oil she uses as a neutral base. ($15.95, Taste, The 4th Sense)

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    A fine cut

    This Second Shot chef’s knife offers designer John Gibson even more surface area to Jenga his recycled skateboards together than his signature sports watches – and will jazz up any drab kitchen in a flash. ($249, Second Shot)

    Sources

    About the Author More by Tralee Pearce

    Tralee Pearce is the deputy editor of In The Hills Magazine.

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