OBT Holiday Gift Guide: "Holiday Revue" Edition

Still on the hunt for the perfect gift for that hard-to-shop-for boss, brother, second cousin or significant other?  We’ve got you covered this holiday season!  Click on the photos below to buy or get more information.

For the person on your list who loves A Holiday Revue - who loves chic style, has an offbeat sense of humor and delights in the unexpected – we’ve got a whole host of gifts to fit every personality!  Click here to go to the Nutcracker gift guide! 

CARDS & WRAPPING

For gifts that stand out under the tree, skip the stripes and solids for a truly unique wrapping paper.  We love these adorable holiday robots!   And these fabulous retro holiday cards from What’s Buzzin’? pack a major wow factor, with dozens of styles to choose from.

 

“Christmas-Bots” Geek Wrapping Paper ($5.99 a roll at ThinkGeek); Art Deco Holiday House cards ($12 for a box of 8 at What’s Buzzin’?)

NIGHT ON THE TOWN

We’ve discussed before on this blog my shameless obsession with Portland musical icons Marv and Rindy Ross, guest artists in our current run of A Holiday Revue and founders of the Trail Band, a fabulous musical ensemble of fiddlers and strummers who pay tribute to traditional American pioneer music of the Northwest.  But Portland old-timers like myself will also remember them as the stars of 80′s pop band Quarterflash, who are reuniting for one night only for a special New Year’s Eve concert at Portland’s Aladdin Theatre.  The event is 21 and over, which means you get a free glass of champagne for toasting to ring in the new year.  Surprise the Portland music-lover in your life with a pair of tickets in their stocking!

Quarterflash New Year’s Reunion Concert ($35 in advance, $40 at the door via the Aladdin Theatre)

 

STOCKING STUFFERS

Treats that will make them smile: a retro tin of mints flavored like fruitcake, a pack of Post-It notes shaped like old-school floppy disks, and notebooks embossed like Oreos and Cheez-Its.

Fruitcake Mints ($3.99, fredflare.com); Floppy Disk Sticky Notes ($9.95 for a pack of 3, MOMA Store); Oreo and Cheez-It Notebooks, ($8.95, MOMA Store)

GIFTS FOR . . .

The Parents, Grandparents, In-Laws and Other Assorted Relatives

Good books are a holiday gift-giving lifesaver, and biographies of interesting people are sure to be a hit.  In a totally unscientific poll I just conducted, 100% of dads love Steve Jobs and 100% of moms love Diane Keaton, so these two bestsellers – Keaton’s quirky autobiography, where she intersperses stories from her own life with excerpts from her mother’s diaries, and what is already considered the definitive account of Jobs’ bizarre and colorful life – are perfect gifts for parents.

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson ($24.50 Hardcover at Powell’s); Then Again by Diane Keaton ($26 Hardcover at Powell’s)

The Art Lover

If your gift recipients like the quirky, varied ballet/contemporary fusion of A Holiday Revue, we’re pretty sure they’ll enjoy the colorful menu of Chromatic Quartet, where traditional African music sits side-by-side with liturgical hymns and Balanchine is paired up with a Canadian choreographer who specializes in flash mobs. 

2-show subscription to Oregon Ballet Theatre (includes Giselle & Chromatic Quartet), $37 and up

The Portlandian

For years, ever since I discovered them at NE Portland boutique Redux, I’ve been giving jDuct’s duct tape flasks as gifts.  I believe at last count I have given a ninja, a unicorn, an octopus, a squirrel, and a State of Oregon.  This deer with hipster glasses is my new favorite.  I also love these colorful bicycle tumblers, which come in a set of 8 but could easily be broken up into 4 nifty gifts (wrap up a pair of glasses with a pint of good whiskey and presto, your four best friends are crossed off your list).

“Buck the Hipster” flask by local artist JDuct ($22 on Etsy); Multicolored vintage bicycle glasses, dishwasher-safe ($75 for 8, Uncommon Goods)

The Philanthropist

What to give the person who always says “I don’t need more stuff”?  A contribution in their honor to the Willamette Week Give!Guide, a couldn’t-be-simpler online giving portal with a menu of 100 Portland nonprofits (including OBT!)   The minimum donation is $10, but you can give to as many as you want (and earn yourself free swag in the process, from wine and coffee to discounts at local merchants).  Your donations go straight to the organization you designate (Willamette Week doesn’t take a cut) so you’re helping people all over the community; for example, your donation to OBT will help support our Education & Outreach programs that impact youth and adults all over the state.)

Donation to Oregon Ballet Theatre ($10 minimum through Willamette Week Give!Guide)

The Fashionista

The octopus necklace is everywhere these days (we’ve even seen them in the OBT offices!) and if you know a quirky, hip lady who doesn’t yet have one, get thee to Alberta Street boutique Frock to pick one up.  We think they’ll look fabulous with these sassy old-school headphones, which look like a kooky retro throwback but come with futuristic features like an iPhone-compatible microphone and a second jack to plug in a friend and share your favorite song.

Retro Headphones ($34.99, fredflare.com); Octopus necklace ($14 at Frock)

The Man of Style

A classic watch that’s interesting without being fussy is a must for every gentleman’s wardrobe.   This wooden one, from Portland boutique Canoe (a favorite haunt of every man of style I know) fits the bill perfectly.  It comes in several different sizes and finishes, all with sleek lines and retro styling.  And we’re SMITTEN with these movie posters from artist Jerod Gibson, who has reinvented 37 different films & TV shows (including iconic guy classics like Office Space, Star Wars, Ghostbusters, The Godfather and The Big Lebowski) with minimalist designs created out of quotes from the movie.

Wood wristwatch ($95 at Canoe, various styles and sizes); Fight Club Minimalist Movie Quote Poster by Jerod Gibson (5 sizes, $17-$50 at Society 6)

The Foodie

For the gourmand in your life, we recommend a gift card to the legendary Asian import store Uwajimaya, which has been operating in the Pacific Northwest for over 80 years.  From udon noodles (made fresh daily!) to fresh produce to imported products you can’t get anywhere else, Uwajimaya is an Asian-food-lover’s paradise.  We’re also loving these colorful, custom-designed Lucite ice buckets, with dozens of fabulous designs, personalizations and monograms available (we’re holding onto this idea for wedding presents come June!)

Uwajimaya Gift Card, any amount, call 800-889-1928 or purchase at the Beaverton store; Custom-designed plastic ice buckets ($88 at iomoi)

The Kid (Or Kid at Heart)

My gift-guide integrity is such that I would never recommend to you, our faithful readers, a gift I wouldn’t give myself.  So here I must tell you that these Mysterio baby shirts (along with the octopus necklace and duct tape flasks above, and the Penguin book cover postcards in the Nutcracker gift guide) are gifts I myself have given several times.  This is my standard baby shower gift.  Inside each cloth bag is a baby shirt predicting what the child will grow up to be.  They’re all different, and all hilarious, from “Criminal Mastermind” to “Championship Hot Dog Eater.”  We’re also loving this robot clock, which would be a big hit with baby geeks and grown-up geeks alike.

Robot Coloring Clock, $36, and  Mysterio Infant T-Shirts, $13 (Uncommon Goods)

The 20-Something In Their First Apartment

Help a clueless youth who doesn’t know any better ditch the Folger’s and the Mr. Coffee for a colorful French press and a bag of quality Stumptown beans (which, for the benefit of your homesick nephew in Rhode Island, can be shipped anywhere). And even the dingiest Goodwill coffee table will brighten up with one of these colorful, gleaming lacquered trays on top.  Just add flowers, a coffee table book or a pillar candle, and presto!  It’s an adult’s living room.

Bodum Brazil French Press Coffee Maker ($24.95, Sur La Table); Hairbender coffee, French Press #9 ground ($14 for 12 oz., Stumptown Coffee Roasters); Square lacquer trays ($22-$24 at West Elm)

The Coworkers/Neighbors/Hostesses/Dinner Guests

The $9.99 music sale at Music Millennium runs through New Year’s Eve and includes dozens of great albums, from The Strokes to REM to Emmylou Harris.  Three albums we think everyone should have in their collection: The Decemberists, The King Is Dead; The Head and the Heart, The Head and the Heart; and Adele, 19.

Happy gift-giving from Oregon Ballet Theatre!