Gifts Galore on the Lower East Side

Gifts Galore on the Lower East Side

 

Given that the Lower East Side was the original melting pot, you would expect it to have a wide-ranging assortment of shops. The neighborhood, along with adjacent Chinatown and Little Italy, does not disappoint, making it a prime place to shop for presents. You are certain to find something for just about every gift-giving occasion. Below are a few favorite sources.

 

CW Pencil Enterprise

15 Orchard Street (between Canal and Hester Streets)

A standard No. 2 pencil is probably not your idea of a gracious gift. Fortunately CW Pencil sells much more than that—though its pencil selection will impress even those who have long given up writing for typing and texting. In addition to pencils for writing and pencils for drawing, scented pencils and mechanical pencils, vintage pencils and platinum-plated pencils, the shop offers a plethora of related items. These include sketchbooks, notebooks, and planners in a multitude sizes and styles (the Emilio Braga notebooks from Portugal, with their sponge-painted edges, are especially lovely). Novelties such as a trio of pencil-shape enamel pins and sweaters adorned with pencils make great gifts for writers or students.

 

American Design Club

Canal Street Market, 265 Canal Street (between Lafayette Street and Broadway)

 

A mall/food hall/community center, Canal Street Market is a great source of gifts. One of its shops, American Design Club, sells items you will not find in major retailers that were created by on-the-rise American designers. Inventory changes frequently, but among the recent standouts were handcrafted neon wall decor shaped like cacti and unicorns, necklaces with a charm designed to look like a gold cinderblock, and limited-edition art prints. It also sells wrapping paper and cards to make the gift even more special.

 

Coming Soon

37 Orchard Street (between Canal and Hester Streets)

Coming Soon’s eclectic assortment of home decor is all but guaranteed to elicit oohs and ahhs. You might spy luminous cobalt-blue plates by Mosser Glass complementing a vintage Milo Baughman table with a smoked-glass top; a mouth-blown opaque green carafe by Maison Balzac could be perched beside a brass table lamp sporting a coral silk fringed shade. Hand-painted faux bois earthenware vases, fish-shape soaps from Japan, and a modern version of the ubiquitous Lucky Cat that sports mirrored shades are among the gift items you can feel confident the recipient will not have already received.

 

 

Harris Levy

98 Forsyth Street (between Grand and Broome Streets)

 

The original Mr. Levy began selling linens and towels in the Lower East Side back in the 1890s. His descendants have since expanded into all manner of home goods. The bedding offering alone includes luxe sheets made of 600-count Egyptian cotton sateen or 500-cotton Egyptian cotton percale, cashmere-and-wool throws, pillowy down comforters, and anti-allergy pillows from Yves Delorme. Along with thirsty Sferra towels in a rainbow of hues, bath accessories include robes you can have personalized, triple-milled soaps from Scotland, and embroidered guest towels in designs ranging from elegant to whimsical. Linen tablecloths and gingham dish towels make wonderful housewarming gifts, and you can even surprise the canine in your life with a fashionable fleece coat.

 

 

The Sill

84 Hester Street (between Allen and Eldridge Streets)

The Lower East Side is not known for its green spaces, but thanks to the Sill you can create a garden oasis in your home or give the gift of greenery. Just walking into the bijou shop, with its shelves upon shelves of thriving ferns and philodendrons, air plants and cacti, is a treat. The knowledgeable staff will help you choose the right plant for your needs, even if it is going to a home that has little in the way of natural light or to a recipient whose thumb is anything but green. You can also purchase pots, food, and other accoutrements, as well as monthly plant subscriptions. And for those who love plants more in theory than in practice, the Sill sells artwork, jewelry, and bags adorned with fauna that even the most negligent gardener cannot kill.

 

Cha Bay

Canal Street Market, 265 Canal Street (between Lafayette Street and Broadway)

Also located in Canal Street Market, Cha Bay sells two distinct types of product that are even better when paired: loose teas and handmade ceramics from which to sip them, along with other ceramic vessels and bowls. Auguste Elder, the potter, works primarily with wood-fired clay and ash-deposited glazes, giving his work an organic, rough-hewn texture and finish. Lisa Chen creates the tea blends, which boast evocative names such as Forever Spring Oolong and Drum Mountain White Tea.