Loving Local: Proposals on Making this Holiday a Local One

Intro by Lauren Kraus, originally published in Inspire(d) Dec/Jan 08/09 – updated December 2011

The cold has settled upon us, seasonal festivities beckon our attention and one way of looking at things is such: support your local economy and inspire feel-good creative consumerism. Try asking yourself: where (and to whom) is my money going this year?

Inspire(d) enthusiasts, let’s get imaginative, inventive and downright excited this holiday season. A time of the year has come to celebrate, to honor and embrace family over warm meals, laughter, and conversation. Let us ponder the past year and look forward to what lies ahead. During the holidays, gift giving makes us feel good – not to mention, we all love getting presents. The perfect combination: giving gifts that support the local economy and local commerce while making a loved one happy. There are numerous positive factors in purchasing a local item. To name just a few: you are helping your neighbors make a living, you are bettering the economy that directly affects you, and your purchase doesn’t have to travel as far to get here. It’s also generally of a higher quality and, if consumable, definitely fresher. Or have you ever thought of donating to a favorite local charity in someone’s name instead of giving a material present? Be creative, dear reader, and celebrate what is near us and amongst us.

Local/Regional gift ideas:

The quickest way to the heart is through the…you got it – when in doubt, think food and drink. Just don’t wrap perishables too early.

Here are our top 10 (or so) suggestions

In good spirits – local wine and beer:

There are many small, local wineries from which to choose your gift, but here’s a few to get you thinking: Winneshiek Wildberry Winery in Decorah, Scenic Valley in Lanesboro, Eagles Landing in Marquette
www.wwwinery.com
www.scenicvalleywinery.com
www.eagleslandingwinery.com

Hub City beer, located in Stanley, Iowa, just outside of Oelwein, Hub City is Iowa’s newest microbrewery. They currently make Oatmeal Stout, Wheat Beer and Brown and Amber Ale See www.hubcitybrewingcompany.com for distribution locations.

Or check out Decorah’s new brewery, Toppling Goliath. They’ve just started getting their beers out the door – try some at Rubaiyat in Downtown Decorah!

Capon – If you’ve seen a capon for sale or on a menu anywhere in the US, odds are it’s from Wapsie Produce in Decorah, Iowa, America’s largest producer and marketer of capons. Try whole smoke capon or smoked breast – it’s sooo good. www.capons.com

Baked goods, candies, chocolates, jams, breads – there are too many options to list. Check around – there’s no reason you would need to buy something prepackaged and shipped.

CSAs – Community Supported Agriculture is a great concept and great thing. Our region has many to offer .

Coffee – We have our very own fair trade coffee roasters in Viroqua, WI: Kickapoo Coffee! They were recently named 2010 Micro Roaster of the Year by Roast Magazine! www.kickapoocoffee.com

Maple Syrup – Green’s Sugar Bush is located just outside of Frankville, Iowa. It’s a pretty little place and they have pancake breakfasts in the spring – you can buy syrup then, or call 563-567-8472 to order by phone.

Honey – Bear Creek Honey is a small honey business located in the Northwest corner of Allamakee county between Highlandville and Dorchester. Bear Creek Honey is available at the Oneota Community Food Co-op.

The box-less wonders: Sometimes you don’t feel like wrapping. And sometimes the intangibles are just what your loved one is looking for. Pamper them. Promise them dates. Get them out of the house. Here are five inspire(d) ideas.

Around-Your-Town Spa Day:
There are a lot of different spas to choose from in our region, so spread the spa day fun out. Get a facial here, a pedicure there, lunch, a massage…you get the picture. Who needs to go to some other idyllic secluded locale when we’ve got our very own?

Gift Certificates: Enough said. Help get others out into our restaurants, movie theatres, retail shops, grocery stores, and so on.

Memberships: It’s the “better yourself” gift and may not be for everyone, but think about it. Try gyms, museums (like Vesterheim or the Children’s Museum of La Crosse), or clubs (the Decorah Elk’s Lodge, for example), or even to places like Seed Savers Heritage Farm. Or get season tickets to the Commonweal Theatre in Lanesboro or the Center Stage Series at Luther College in Decorah. Or get them a class at your local college or Co-op or ArtHaus in Decorah.
http://vesterheim.org
www.childmuseumlax.org
www.elks.org
www.commonwealtheatre.org
www.luther.edu/programming/centerstage/
www.oneotacoop.com/
www.seedsavers.org
www.arthausdecorah.org

Stays not far away – Try out various inns and hotels in Lanesboro or come to Decorah and stay at the Hotel Winneshiek or Dug Road Inn or visit McGregor’s Lamp Post Inn and Gallery. It will still be vacation, and your gas account will thank you.
www.lanesboro.com
www.hotelwinn.com
www.dugroadinn.com
www.innandgallery.com

Experience the Driftless Region: How about a trip through Spook Cave in McGregor or Niagra Cave in Harmony… or a steamboat ride down the Mississippi on the Julia Belle Swain… or a canoe down the Upper Iowa or Root River? This is a great place we live in, so get out there and explore!
www.spookcave.com
www.niagaracave.com
www.juliabelle.com
www.canoedecorah.com
www.rootriveroutfitters.com

Wrap it up: It’s also fun to make a pretty package and watch someone open it. We’ve just brushed the surface here on the great local, tangible things available for the holiday season and beyond, but we wanted to get some ideas in your heads.

Art from local artists – paintings, pottery, photography jewelry, knitted things… the list could go on and on. Here are a few ideas to check out:

StoryPeople – Fun and often spot-on thoughts on life, StoryPeople has a worldwide audience, and it’s headquartered right here in Decorah. www.storypeople.com

Mini Moos – Waukon artist Valerie Miller paints the personalities of cows in these sweet square portraits. www.steelcowgallery.com

Visit ArtHaus’s Holiday Art Fair December 11 and 12 – these local artists will be selling their wares: Bijoux Jewelry, Rare Bird Jewelry Designs, Karen Misseldine, Silvermoon Photography, Rachelle Branum, and Other World Arts. Visit www.arthausdecorah.org for details.

Other ideas:
Nisses – A Decorah classic… because why wouldn’t you have a waving gnome in your window?

Inspire(d) membership – We give you four fabulous, inspiring issues of our magazine in exchange for your membership! Visit theinspiredmedia.com/subscribe to pay online. Download the card we’ve designed that you can print at home and you’ve got one thing you can cross off the list!

T-shirts – Quality Chick T-Shirts (www.decorahhatchery.com), available at the Decorah Chick Hatchery or Ray Gun T-Shirts (from Des Moines http://raygunsite.com), available in Decorah at Fancy Pants. Fun t-shirts equal fun gifts.

Check your bookstore or around town for these local books:

“Oneota Flow” by David Faldet
“Boats, Ships and a Raft,” by David C. Anderson
“Familiar World” by Jeffery Skeate
“In Search of Emily” by Susan M. Nelson
“Life at the Crossroads” by Robert Felde
“Midwest Corn Fusion…” by James McCaffrey
“The Restoration” by Hans Peter Jorgensen
“We Were Pirates “ by Robert Schultz & James Shell about Decorah’s Bob Hunt

Music, sweet music:
Mike McAbee – Check out Mike’s latest Opera House album, recorded by Inspire(d) at the Elkader Opera House in October of 2009. He’s a funny guy and a great performer/singer/songwriter, so if you’re looking for some fun, look no further. www.mikemcabee.com

Joe & Vicki Price – Upper Mississippi Valley Blues & Boogie- Joe & Vicki are the “real deal” and offer several recordings that will keep you warm until you can boogie outside this spring. www.joepriceblues.com

The Foot-Notes – Decorah’s own Scandinavian string band have multiple recordings perfect for waltzing around the stove this winter. www.footnotesdance.com

Authentic Records – The Nadas, Josh Davis Band, Dick Prall, Ben Wagner and more – based out of Des Moines, this independent Midwest roots label can supply you with some great Midwest rock & roll. http://store.authenticrecordsonline.com

No cash? Feel like getting really creative? Get literal about giving a local gift and make something at home. Making something out of materials you gather can turn out to be a fun way to exercise your artistic side, save money and show someone you care by putting a little elbow grease into the holidays. Here are some ideas:

Homemade note cards: acquire some colorful cardstock paper and perhaps matching envelopes and glue favorite scenic photos from past vacations or cool spots or even portraits. Wrapping up a set of 10 or 12 note cards makes a great gift. If you are feeling really creative, it is fun to integrate magazine cutouts, pictures from cool catalogs (my favorites to use are outdoor clothing catalogs), funky scrap paper, and newspaper clippings. This is a perfect way to recycle and make something new. Another fun option is to make postcards complete with stamps and address lines out of the same materials listed above or try making stationary.

Handmade body scrub: reuse an old glass or plastic container, decorate it with a fun label and add the following ingredients: Mix ½ cup sugar with ¼ cup canola oil and 3 drops of lavender or another favorite essential oil. A massage could be a part of the gift too!

Homemade mixes: in a medium sized plastic bag or even a fabric bag of some sort, add 3 to 4 cups of quick oats, sliced almonds or walnuts, various seeds (sesame, flax, pumpkin, sunflower), raisins, sliced dried apricots, dried cranberries, brown sugar and cinnamon to taste. Any combination of this mixture or other ingredients makes a great ready-to-eat breakfast. You could make your own nut mix, granola mix, or car snack mix. The options are virtually endless.

Handmade picture frame: head outside and find some good sticks, dried flowers, flat pieces of wood or anything else you could get creative and create a picture frame. Bendable wire works well too. Who doesn’t love framed photos?

Lauren Kraus is looking forward to continuous snow fall and approaching this winter season fully suited in armor: seven layers of clothing at all times, mug of hot tea and snowshoes in hand (no shield necessary). Bring it!