The holiday whirlwind is rapidly approaching and it’s time to whip out those gift lists. Make your budget go the distance by buying items made locally and created by Taiwanese brands and designers. Prices are reasonable, so be sure to treat yourself, too.
GIFT SMORGASBORD
Does gift shopping make your head spin? Sort out your shopping in one stop with a trip to Lovely Taiwan (台灣好，店, www.lovelytaiwan.org.tw), which carries crafts from villages and Aboriginal tribes all over the country. Items with gifting potential include hand-carved animals from Sanyi Township (三義鄉), Miaoli County; plant-dyed scarves from Jhongliao Township (中寮鄉), Miaoli County; items woven in traditional Atayal tribe (泰雅族) motifs; and attractively packaged honey or chocolate from Taichung and Taitung. Many items are priced from NT$500 to NT$1,500; a portion of Lovely Taiwan’s proceeds go to the Lovely Taiwan Foundation (台灣好基金會), which supports native Taiwanese culture.
Address: 18-2, Ln 25, Nanjing W Rd, Taipei City (台北市南京西路25巷18-2號)
Telephone: (02) 2558-2616
16 Workshops (16工房, www.redhouse.org.tw), a group of boutiques operated by independent designers in the back of Red House Theater, is another treasure trove of great gift ideas. Treat T-shirt lovers to saucy designs from Betelnut (檳榔) that riff on Taiwanese culture. Check out Dou Dou Hsiang (朵朵香), which shares a space with boutique Younga, for jewelry made from seeds collected around Taiwan and Steven’s Glass Wonderland (璃想國) for colorful, funky glassware and accessories. The latter shop also carries a wide selection of JOS Designs’ (簪簪自囍) hair sticks, which are carved from non-endangered woods native to Taiwan.
Red House Theater’s small gift shop in its main building offers stationery and gifts from Taiwanese brands. Monkey Design’s (猴子設計) postcards can be cut and folded into tiny paper models of landmarks and make a fun alternative to ordinary holiday cards.
Address: Red House Theater (西門紅樓), 10 Chengdu Rd, Taipei City (台北市成都路10號)
Telephone: (02) 2311-9380
Gift-shopping on a budget? Visit the Red House Market for Artists & Designers (西門紅樓創意市集, redhousetaipei.blogspot.com). The fair, which takes place every week in front of Red House Theater, gives fledging brands and young designers a chance to sell their work, including handmade clothing, bags, soap and sterling silver jewelry, for very reasonable prices.
BREAK OUT THE BLING
Indie jewelry brands including Serena Chen, Haoshi and Moorigin can all be found on the Web site Books.com.tw (you can pay for and pick up goods at 7-Eleven stores) or at Leon’s Collection, which has a location at the Eslite bookstore on Dunhua South Road (誠品敦南店) in Taipei. Chen (陳禹潔, serenachen-design.blogspot.com) studied at Sweden’s Konstfack University College of Arts and her jewelry has a Scandinavian flair. Her pendants, earrings and rings are first outlined with brass, sterling silver or white gold and filled in with colorful pieces of suede, creating an unusual layered texture.
Hao Shi’s (www.haoshi.com.tw) all-white animal-shaped resin pendants and rings manage to look both eerie and whimsical. The company’s newest line is based on carousels, with delicately detailed horses on sterling silver chains. Moorigin’s (www.moorigin.com) etched stainless steel pendants are lacelike and strong at the same time. One pendant is shaped like a gingko leaf, while others look like a wisp of smoke wafting through the air or the facets of a gemstone.
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