Gift Ideas
New Books
Sale
Items
The Know-It-All
Tip of the Month
Class – Gardening in Step with Nature
Gift
Registry
Happy Holidays, everyone! We at Mirador are very
inclusive and think that everyone should be allowed to celebrate
this important time of year however they like without being accused of
"stealing Christmas." Personally, we celebrate the Winter Solstice.
This seems to be becoming more important to us every year as we
look forward to the Return of the Light.
As 2006 winds down, we know that many of you are feeling as we are: the
November elections were a clear signal that Americans are not ready to
just roll over, and we want honest leadership and an end to the war. We
believe a lot else is possible too – health care and housing for
all, equal opportunity to education, a change in our relationship to
energy consumption, just to name a couple of issues. We're not naive,
it's a mess, but there is a lot to be hopeful about. We wish you a
great Solstice and a wish for a New Year that brings more
progressive change in this country and around the world.
We are stocked up for the holidays!! If your holiday plans include
some gift buying, we are writing to let you know that we are offering
goods from the practical to the whimsical. The following will give you
some ideas, but there is much more than we can list. And don't
miss Miss Know-It-All's discussion of a myriad of ways to light up the Winter darkness.
We hope you all have a wonderful, happy holiday season!
- Tiger Mountain Rings with Semi-precious stones made in using traditional methods from around the world. (new)
- Bracelets, earrings and necklaces, mostly hand made in Portland using semi-precious stones and minerals such as Jasper.
- Fused glass pendants by Portlander Linda Estes too.
Scarves & Gloves
- Hats & scarves by Cagoule Fleece of Portland, fashioned from "recycled pop bottle fleece", soft & affordable (new)
- Fancy scarves (or can be belts) in sculpted velvet by Dana Herbert of Portland. Beautiful!
- Scarves and gloves of Alpaca wool from Down to Earth of Eugene, made in Bolivia.
- Fingerless gloves too! Be warm and dexterous too.
Bags
- The ever popular Think Again Bags made in Portland from Hemp & recycled industrial inner tube.
- Hemp bags & wallets from HempMania, promoting both Fair Trade & Environmental responsibility. Made in Guatemala.
- Small zipper pouches in beautiful fabric by Dana Herbert of Portland.
Statuary & Incense
- We have a beautiful selection of statues of
spiritual figures that have come to us from around the globe. You'll
find Kwan Yin, Hanuman,
Dancing Shiva, Mary of Magdalene, Buddha, Ganesha and Krishna with
Rahda and more. We are particularly excited about work from an
Oregon company called Mission Studios. The artists came up with a faux
ivory that looks real and shows every small detail. We have pendants
from the same folks.
- And while you are looking at the various
Kwan Yins, you can't help but notice that you are in the midst of a
huge incense selection. Pairing some incense with a nice burner would
be a lovely gift for someone.
Getting in touch with your Inner: Cat, Jewish Angel, Maiden or Crone.
We
have sets of cards in all of the above; be sure to take a free Inner
Cat card at the front counter. Steve and Lynn repeatedly get the same
cards from our inner cats: Enjoy Life! Have Fun!. Ok, we get the
message!!!! Drawing a card from any of these sets might give the gift
giver or receiver a reminder about what is really important.
Cards & Calendars
- We've
brought in greeting cards for the holidays that most often have a
recycled paper content and in some cases, benefit a worthy organization
(for example, Good Cause Greetings). We have some by the single card and many in box collections.
- Another year end tradition is buying the annual wall or engagement calendar; our selection can you with that too.
Kitchen
Don't forget the cooks! We have many items someone who loves to cook would like.
- Small appliances: Blenders, toasters, waffle irons, hand blenders, slow cookers, rice cookers, juicers, and more.
- Tools for preserving food: Dehydrators, canning equipment, books, etc.
- Cookware: Stainless steel, carbon steel, cast iron, ceramic, and glass skillets, griddles, saucepans, crêpe pans and more.
- Bakeware: Stainless steel, glass, ceramic and tin cake pans, loaf pans, muffin pans, pie plates, etc.
- And, of course, all sorts of gadgets and other kitchen needs.
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Toys
We
are offering a wide selection of toys in a small space! It will keep
the kids entertained while the parents shop and offers you a chance to
pick up something low tech and in some cases, Cascadia-made.
- Check out the wood toys by Mark Nutcher of
Portland. They are cleverly designed and made with care. A favorite is
the catapult launcher with very sweet little bean bags to launch.
- Also very special are the toys from Softoys of Shelton, WA. These are for the wee little ones. Hand made with detail and creativity seldom seen in the world of toys.
- Lots of other sweet play things for babies to pre-teens and some great books to challenge and educate.
Sustainable Lunchware
Between adults and
children, millions of packed lunches go out the door each day, a lot of
them in throw away packaging. We have three products that address that
waste issue that would also make neat gifts for any age eater.
- Wrap-n-Mat – A reusable, colorful fabric/plastic sandwich wrap that becomes a place mat.
- Laptop Lunch
Kits – A well thought out lunch kit, complete with recipe book
specially geared to using the lunch kit. The containers are lead-free
and food grade plastic.
- To-Go Ware
– We have been looking for these stainless steel food carriers
for YEARS and we just found them. Perfect for going to a food cart or
transporting a lunch from home. Check out the lovely set of bamboo
flatware in a specially made holder, also by the same company.
Decos
We are thinking that there is nothing like a nice
sparkly for the window, at the holidays and all year long. You'll find
a wide selection of faceted leaded glass crystals as well as some
colorful sun catchers in fused glass from a couple of different
artists. Stars, hearts, globes – these pieces will be ornaments
and long-lasting everyday gifts. Don't forget the strings of LED lights
and some candles (see Miss Know It All) to give a room that holiday glow.
Bed & Bath
Sheets for Christmas? Why not? We keep expanding our
selection of sustainably made sheets and towels as the demand and
appreciation is there. We have just added bamboo kitchen towels, with
bath towels and blankets on the way from the same source.
- We
have great stock on Coyuchi (http://www.coyuchiorganic.com) towels and
sheets, with a set in their newest color Acorn. What they are is a
beautiful, shimmering gold color.
- We've also added organic cotton sheets and towels from Ecolution in four colors.
- Wool blankets are on the way from Faribault Mills of Minnesota, a mill started in 1865!
- Really comfortable wool (from Northwest sheep) pillows from Holy Lamb Organics.
It's a Wrap!
- We're
great believers in reusable bags for gift giving so we've got fabric
bags for you that can serve again and again. There are many ways to
present a gift that does not involve using paper: Baskets, simple
colored boxes, scarves etc. It winds up being a gift within a gift and
is resource conscious. If you want wrapping paper, we are offering
options that have recycled content as well as either jute or natural
ribbon from Paporganics.
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New
Books (by Lael)
Check out our new
“New Books” shelf, where you can see the recent
arrivals at a glance!
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- Student’s Go Vegan Cookbook by Carole Raymond
- Vegan with a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
- GRUB: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen by Anna Lappé and Bryant Terry
- Intuitive Cooking by Joanne Saltzman
- Green Roof Plants: A Resource and Planting Guide by Edmund C. Snodgrasz and Lucie L. Snodgrass
- Foods that Don’t Bite Back: Vegan Cooking Made Simple by Sue Donaldson
- The Sustainable Kitchen: Passionate Cooking Inspired by Farms, Forests, and Oceans by Stu Stein
- Fermenting Revolution: How to Drink Beer and Save the World by Christopher Mark O’Brien
- Building with Awareness: The Construction of a Hybrid Home DVD and Guidebook by Ted Owens
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- Ambrosia: Art of Raw Cuisine by Marc Anthony Hatsis
- Green Witch Herbal: Restoring Nature’s Magic ini Home, Health, & Beauty Care by Barbara Griggs
- A Pacific Northwest Nature Sketchbook by Jude Siegel
- Home Cheese Making by Ricki Carroll
- Walking Portland by Sybilla Avery Cook
- Slow Is Beautiful: New Visions of Community, Leisure and Joie de Vivre by Cecile Andrews
- The Post-Petroleum Survival Guide and Cookbook by Albert Bates
- The World of Street Food by Troth Wells
- Eating Fossil Fuels: Oil, Food and the Coming Crisis in Agriculture by Dale Allen Pfeiffer
- Chunky Cookbook’s Vegetarian Main Dishes from Around the World
- Yoga Poems: Lines to Unfold By by Leza Lowitz
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Sale
Items – 25% to
50% Off
- FiredUp and Paloma locally-made
pottery
- Selected rechargeable batteries
- Kershaw Knives – Great
knives that are giving way to LamsonSharp
knives
- Guatemalan Hammocks
- Selected books
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- Solar rechargeable radio headsets
- Selected bamboo cutting boards
- Assorted writing journals
- Atlas Latex & Nitrile garden gloves
- Small garden tools
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The Know-It-All
by Lael Easton
We Light Up your Life
Ever notice that all of the mid-winter holidays have an emphasis on
lights? Think about it! We have lots of options for bringing
brightness into the darkest time of the year:
Candles: All of our
candles are scented only with pure natural essential oils, (or we also
have unscented ones) and have paper or cloth wicks. Wicks that contain
metal usually release lead into the air while they burn, so we avoid
those completely. Many of our candles are marked with burn times, so
you can compare the number of hours of light you will get. As for where
to put your candle once you get it, we carry bunches of candleholders
to use or give. Want to make your own candles? We have wick by the
yard, beeswax, and books on candle-making! Here’s what our
candles are made of . . .
Paraffin: Okay, so we
haven’t quite kicked the habit. We have some paraffin candles
that are made by hand in Oregon. Also the ubiquitous
tea-light-in-a-tin, which remain the best bargain for when you need
LOTS of little twinklies, bag of 30 for $4.50, made in Canada.
Beeswax: Our beeswax
candles are made in Oregon and come in pillars, tapers, mini-tapers,
and votives. Pure beeswax looks beautiful, burns slowly, and
smells like honey.
Soy wax: A renewable
alternative to paraffin, soy wax burns clean, bright, and slowly. We
carry soy pillars in various sizes, colors, and scents. Faery Lights
candles are made right here in Portland, and they come in unscented as
well as in luscious flavors.
Palm wax: Similar
properties to soy wax, with an attractive mottled look. Our palm wax
candles come in jar, pillar, taper, votive, and tea light styles and
lots of colors. Most are unscented, but we do have some scented
votives.
Flameless Candles: This
is a real wax candle, but it has a lightbulb in it instead of a flame.
The bulb flickers for a realistic candle-like glow. Good for places or
situations where a real candle might be forbidden or a fire hazard. We
also have replacement bulbs for them. Use with a rechargeable battery
for best energy efficiency.
LED Lights: Unlike
traditional string lights, these don’t break every time you look
at them! They also use 80-95% less electricity than their incandescent
counterparts. They are good for indoor or outdoor use, stay cool to the
touch, and have a lifetome warranty. We stock lots of pretty colors!
Himalayan Salt Lamps:
When they become warm these release negative ions to clean freshen the
air and balance and relax you. They are big chunks of salt (yes, if you
licked it, it would taste salty) made into a lamp. They have a
beautiful warm glow. Also available as a tea light or votive holder.
Selenite Glow Lamp: This
is a piece of selenite (a pointy white mineral crystal with reflective
properties) that rests on a base with LED bulbs. You can make it light
up in various patterns of changing colors, or stop it on one color.
These are sort of hypnotic and make great nightlights or mood lighting.
You can also take the selenite crystal off and use the base for other
stones, crystal, glass items, or whatever else you think of.
I hope your holidays are bright!
Lael
Tip of the Month
You can turn your popcorn popper into a coffee roaster! See instructions on Sweet Maria's website.
Preserve Class: Gardening in Step with Nature
Getting the Most Food, Flavor and Satisfaction from your Garden
Please join Glen Andresen, Portland Alliance columnist and host of the
K-BOO radio show The Dirt Bag for two series classes based on his
gardening experience and philosophy. These will be held at Preserve on
NE Alberta. Click here for full details.
Gift
Registry
If you would like to register at Mirador for an event, here are some instructions
on how to do it. This is a great way to get what you want and support a
local business that shares your values.
If you have friends that are registered
here you can see their registry here.
Happy Solstice!!
Whether
we see you this month or not, the Mirador staff wants to thank you for
supporting our store. Because you do, we can keep doing this! We
appreciate your interest in buying local, as building a strong local
economy will help all of us on so many fronts.
Best Solstice Wishes! Steve, Lynn, Lael, Jenny & Beth
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