Shop BIPOC-Owned This Holiday Season: The Emerald 2023 Gift Guide

by Jas Keimig

If you've made it through the genuinely chaotic Black Friday and Cyber Monday season with your bank account balance in check, congratulations. As corporations are trying to extract every last cent out of you to spend on unethically manufactured stuff you don't need, it can be deeply dispiriting to shop during the holiday season. That's why it's important to funnel your attention and hard-earned cash to local BIPOC artisans and makers this season as a way to support your local Communities of Color while finding cool, bespoke gifts for loved ones in your life. I've assembled a BIPOC (and mostly South End) gifting guide to inspire you this month as you hunt and gather cool wares for your friends, parents, siblings, lovers, and neighbors during the holidays. Most of these items you can either buy IRL or online. And if you're looking to send a bit of Seattle to friends and family outside the city, ship your package from The Postman in the Central District!

ART

If you're looking to give the gift of art this holiday season, Seattle has much to offer your discerning eye. Arte Noir in the Central District is home to tons of Black-crafted wares — everything from vibrant shower curtains to 206 sweatshirts to handcrafted jewelry. And on Dec. 16, they're hosting the Seattle Opera Black Artists Market for your last-minute holiday needs. Down in White Center, Nepantla Cultural Arts Gallery has been a pillar of the Latinx arts community, highlighting art made by Latinx artists and makers. For this holiday season, pick up prints or canvas reproductions of local artists' work as well as cool sticker packs and air fresheners. Over in Pike Place Market, Haida textile artist Jacinthe Demmert makes and sells woven jewelry, sculptures, and block prints at Kaigani Craft. And at Stonington Gallery in Pioneer Square, there's a whole room dedicated to prints as well as monthly shows of paintings and glassworks by Native artists. A bit further north on Capitol Hill, Black Arts Love is dedicated to Black artistic output with hangable and wearable art in addition to books. My final note is that if there's an artist who you follow on Instagram, DM them! They'll likely have work for sale and would be more than happy to show you what pieces they have available for purchase.

APPAREL

For the past several months, I've been eyeing clothing and pins from Paradice Avenue Souf as a way to rep both South Seattle and the talented artists who call this part of the city home. Their tees and sweatshirts are perfect for the cool kid in your life. Over in Pioneer Square, family-owned The Lemon Grove has a huge selection of cute and high-quality vintage clothing to sift through. A bit further north in Capitol Hill is Indian Summer Vintage, a queer Native-owned vintage store where I have gotten some of the most unique pieces in my closet. With tons of plus-size selections, it's such an affirming shop to be in! There's no need for your daughter to freeze in her unlined rain boots — pick up SLUGS fleece rain boot liners from WithTheRain, Rayana White's (Tsimshian and Haida) shop in Pike Place Market. If you're looking for a really nice piece for your partner, Elisa Yip's luxury sustainable knitwear line SSKEIN has a variety of fashionable (and soft!) pullovers and scarves to choose from. And the holiday season is sOOooOoo romantic — why not pop the question during Christmas dinner with a beautiful ring from Afro-Latina-owned business, Valerie Madison Fine Jewelry? (No pressure, obviously, but maybe you can just get your girlfriend a pair of really nice gold earrings from VM. Gold is forever.)

BEAUTY

Last Christmas, my roommate got me the dreamiest claw clip from Chunks, an Asian-owned and Seattle-based brand that has rocketed in popularity. From their cute squiggly barrettes to their chic checkered claw clips, this is your chance to wow your terminally online Gen Z niece with your good taste. In the Central District, you can peruse the balms, creams, and oils from Black-owned business QueenCare so that you can show up to your family's holiday party smelling and looking divine. If your bestie is in need of some self-care, book them a surprise facial at Rojas Aesthetics, Miranda Rojas' skincare studio in Madrona where you can also pick up a selection of skincare products. Up in Ballard, Latine-owned Ya'axche Massage Therapy will get all the knots and kinks out of your body in no time with owner Gisela Mendoza S nchez's intuitive and knowledgeable approach to bodywork. For the ink-inclined, book an appointment at Sorry Sorry Tattoo in Capitol Hill with artists bombchelle and crapric0rn or at Chance Magic Tattoo in Pioneer Square with thornpokes and deychanhtae!

BOOKS

Books are one of the things I try (and fail!) to refrain from buying since I have so many unread ones languishing on my bookshelf. But a book present is perhaps one of the best presents to receive! At the north end of the Central District, find books from Black and of color authors at Loving Room: diaspora books + salon for your contemplative big sister. Down Martin Luther King, select from more BIPOC writers at Estelita's Library, a justice-focused community bookstore that has a wide selection of children's books as well. The recently opened mam's books in the Chinatown-International District is the first Asian American-owned bookstore in the neighborhood, with a thoughtful selection of fiction and non-fiction selections by Asian American authors as well as Asian snacks. And, of course, Kinokuniya Seattle inside the Uwajimaya complex is a manga and stationery lover's paradise with tons of cool books and pens imported from Japan.

FOOD

Obviously, Seattle has a ton of excellent BIPOC-owned and operated restaurants. The holiday season always calls for sweet treats — my mom loves coconut, so for family events, I love pre-ordering a buko pie from Hood Famous (they also have cookies and cheesecakes available for pre-order as well). Pick up a guava or haupia Hawaiian cake from Cakes of Paradise in Georgetown, a buttercream cake and Palestinian flag-frosted cupcakes from Shikorina in the Central District, and, at Salvadorean Bakery & Restaurant in White Center, peruse several different kinds of tres leches cakes and freshly-made pupusas. If you're not a cake family, I totally get it — Kryse Ice Cream has PNW and Filipinx-inspired flavors for you to enjoy around the fireplace.

For all your grocery needs, there's Uwajimaya in the CID as well as Fou Lee Market on Beacon Hill, Mexican grocery store — and bar! — El Lugar on Capitol Hill, and West African Market on Rainier. If you wouldn't be caught dead in the kitchen but want to contribute to the food atmosphere, maybe bring bags of coffee from The Station and Boon Boona, a couple of bottles of Hot Jawn hot sauce for spicy bloody marys, or a few cases of beer from Black-owned breweries Mtier Brewing Company and 23rd Ave Brewery. To really impress your friends and family, pick up a 36-hour marinated chicken from Spice Waala on Capitol Hill — pre-orders close on Dec. 19!

HOME

The last month of the year is not only the perfect opportunity to clean out all the dust and weird energy of the year but also a moment to bring in new objects to re-enliven your living space. Why not spend a Sunday afternoon perusing the mid-century wares of Jacob Willard Home in Hillman City? This Black-owned family business curates beautiful furniture selections in addition to offering upholstery and restoration services. Reupholster your dad's old chair this holiday season! My mom loves candles and I'm sure yours does too — Sukie's Candle Co. has Seattle-specific scents like Seattle Fir as well as more tropical ones like Coconut Lime.

If plants are more your thing, Boosh Nursery in the Central District has a wide variety of greenery to make your kitchen or dining room a bit more lush. Eighth Generation in Pike Place Market has been keeping people warm for 15 years with their Native-designed wool blankets — perfect for your always-cold sister! For your stoner cousin who can't focus on anything other than video games, Trichrome Seattle has cool glassware and a rat tapestry that will definitely get their attention. Of course, you can't show up to your partner's holiday celebration empty-handed — pick up a bouquet from Flowers Just 4 U in the Central District (I got one for my roommate's birthday and they last ridiculously long!) or present a gorgeous in-season flower bundle from the Hmong Flower Farmers of Pike Place Market.

" 📸 Featured Image: Photo via Prostock-studio/Shutterstock.com