Are you a last minute shopper?  You can still buy your holiday presents last minute while supporting the local economy and enjoying yourself!  This year on Friday, December 18, merchants in multiple shopping districts, including the Lakeshore Shopping District, are staying open late to give you time to shop.  There will also be live entertainment and face painting for the kids!  For details check out the Shop Oakland Events page here.

On Saturday and Sunday, December 12th and 13th, from 12:30PM - 4:30PM, come down to Temescal Avenue to shop, stroll, and skate!  Show your moves at the outdoor skating rink at 49th and Telegraph, visit your favorite merchants for some holiday shopping, and enjoy the popcorn, candy canes, hot chocolate, carolers, and other fun treats.  More event details are listed on the Temescal District’s website.

Oakland Unwrapped would like to introduce you to the latest additions to the online marketplace–just in time for the holidays!

Bird vs. Bird Designs: hand made purses, bags, and magnets from salvaged materials, featuring original artwork

bubbles and boo: hand sewn fabric tote bags and buckets, children’s clothing, and more!

bylee design: a visual communications design studio offering its service as well as original cards, stationary, and more

Celebrity Poodle Jewelry for Humans: fabulous jewelry (for fabulous humans) with a focus on the Glam Rock scene and a bit of the Hip Hop world

Dippity-Doo-Da Dip Mixes: a flavorful mix of herbs and spices to make outstanding dips for your next party

Found Treasures: jewelry, magnets, and mirrors sold by Oakland Artisan Marilyn Bookbinder

katoPop co.Op: unique handmade jewelry and fine art, using upcycled and refurbished materials

Continue to check back to see what other unique Oakland stores have been added to the marketplace!  www.oaklandunwrapped.org

On Thursday, December 3rd, from 6-9 in the evening, the merchants of the Montclair Shopping District are staying open late so that you can come down and do your holiday shopping early and locally!  Merchants will provide treats for shoppers and strolling the streets of Montclair Village will be other fun people–you don’t want to miss this!  Find out more information on the Montclair Village Association’s website.

Looking for great holiday shopping this Black Friday?  Want to get great deals while supporting the local economy?  Merchants in Oakland, Berkeley, and the greater Bay Area have teamed up this year to bring you Plaid Friday!  Local shops, both in store and online, will be offering great holiday deals this friday, November 27th while providing you with an alternative to the malls.  Want to learn more and check out what local vendors will be having Plaid Friday sales?  Check out Plaid Friday’s website.

OneCalifornia Foundation works closely with Oakland Grown, the East Bay Express, Buy Local Berkeley and the Sustainable Business Alliance on a campaign called the Indie Revolution.  Each month offers a different theme with ideas to help revolutionize our economy and celebrate our community with individual choices.  It provides people with ideas and tools to support local indpendent businesses and aritists.  October was Made in the East Bay month, and we thought we’d share it with you.  You might be suprised by what is made right here in our neighborhood!

Brought to you by Buy Local Berkeley, Oakland Grown, Sustainable Business Alliance and the East Bay Express…

Dear Indie Revolutionary,

We’ve spent this year exploring many ways to change the world through small personal economic decisions and actions.  Many of these actions involved shopping at locally-owned stores and with local artists.  This month, we focus on items that are actually MADE right here in the East Bay.  

We residents and business owners can extend our impact on the local economy by not only focusing on where we buy, but also where products are made. Buying products made here not only reduces the carbon footprint made in transit to you, but also helps contribute to variety of job types in the East Bay, including jobs that may suit those without a high school or college degree, and or those who are not English proficient.

So… in this October issue, we touch on a few industries and a few interesting manufacturing businesses in our neighborhood.

Industries – Now and Then

Here in the East Bay, we’ve moved from the WWII era of shipbuilding, automobile manufacturing, and canning to scooters, skirts, and raw organic granola. Oakland, once a major exporter of beer, finds a young brewmaster ready to bring that era back.

The East Bay has an illustrious industrial past, as one of the largest ship building regions in the world. during WWII.  An industry that included women, helped start the first HMO (by Henry J. Kaiser), and let to a bustling auto industry in Oakland, once known as the Detroit of the West. 

While the region doesn’t produce cars anymore, and it isn’t centered around building warships, it does still offer a variety of smaller businesses focusing on transportation, and benefitting from being near a larger port.  Several  smaller businesses in the area build smaller boats, boat parts, and aircraft equipment.  And new businesses are cropping up to handle more local and sustainable transportation needs, such as bikes and scooters.

Similarly, the East Bay’s current strength in food production harkens back to that same era when our proximity to agricultural land, orchards, and the port made canning Oakland’s second-most valuable war contribution. 

Many people know that several large corporations like Safeway, Dreyers, Clorox and Cost Plus World Market have corporate headquarters here in the East Bay.  But we thought we’d share a small number of interesting, independent businesses actually producing things in our neighborhood.  And we’ll focus on items you can buy yourself, so when you have a choice, you can choose their products.

Fashion

The fashion industry in the East Bay is quite bustling, and incorporates a wide variety of jobs, including models, photographers, event planners, promoters, designers, manufacturers/sewing facilities, to name a few. Here are some locally-made fashions you can buy, next time you’re in the market:

Baby and Children’s Clothing 
Biscotti (Malia Obama’s inauguration dress was from Biscotti)
Mariposa Baby
Jasper Hearts Wren
 

Women’s Clothing
Babette  
Cari Borja
Says Who
Verrieres & Sako
5ft2in

Makeup
100% Pure
Just Glam

Bags
Haiku Bags
Elbow Grease Designs

Watches & Jewelry
Youngblood Timepieces          

Specifically Sustainable
Blue Sky Biofuels
Fwrap
Lucid Design Group

Technology and Web Businesses 
Pandora
Elfster
Livescribe, Inc.           
Wine Commune.com
Drivers Ed.com

Home / Furniture     
Jason Lees
Berkeley Mills
Swerve Co
Metro Lighting   
Wooden Duck
Mediums to Masses
Vertical Home Gardens           

Musical Instruments 
DaSilva Ukeleles          
Ervyn Somogyi Guitars
Steven Faulk Guitars

Sporting Goods and Accessories 
TruKid Skincare for the Active Kid
Electric Motor Sport Motorcycles
Fly Scooters
Xtracycle
Sheila Moon Athletic Wear
Comet Skateboards

Food, Seeds, and Herbs
Fortune Cookie Factory
DELIZIA Olive Oil
Voila Juice
Food Mill Peanut Butter
No Cookie Vegan Cookies
Hodo Soy Beanery
Glow Mama Drink
Premier Organics Nut Butters
Sweet Maria’s home coffee roasting supplies
Blue Bottle, Peerless, Mr. Espresso coffee & machines
Clif Bars
Tofu Yu
Mayway Herbs
Kitsawa Seeds
Gu Energy Gel

For more local foods, and various local Wines and Beers, see last month’s article…

Artisan and Handmade in the East Bay
The list above focused on small to large scale manufactured items.  However, the bay area hosts a huge variety of artisans, home-based businesses making wonderful, unique things, like re-purposed clothing, jewelry, bath and body care, silk screen clothing, hats, housewares, fine art and so much more.  To find some of these, we recommend you check the following sites:

Buy Local Berkeley
Oakland Unwrapped!
Rock Paper Scissors Collective
Feria Urbana
DAI Style Lounge
ProArts Gallery

This Made in the East Bay list is part of the 2009 Indie Revolution - a year-long campaign to support local independent businesses and artists in the East Bay. A collaboration of Oakland Grown, Buy Local Berkeley, East Bay Express, and the Sustainable Business Alliance.

Tell Us About Your Experience in October and Stay Eligible to Win the $5800 Prize
To comment on your participation for these months and be eligible for $5800 in prizes, go to http://indierevolution.wordpress.com

Amy Thomas, owner of Pendragon, for the East Bay Express Indie Revolution

We have recently profiled new, up-and-coming small businesses in Oakland, many of which sell exclusively online.  But Oakland is also home to small, independent businesses with storefronts that have been around for years, some even decades.  These are the stores that you grow up with, that add character to your community and childhood memories.  They are also the stores that set examples for other small businesses in how they treat their employees and serve their clients and community.

Pendragon Books in the Rockridge neighborhood is one of these independent businesses.  Pendragon has been in its same location for nearly forty years.  They have been there so long that the children who used to come with their parents to check out the books continue to come back as adults with their own children.  Many staff members have also grown up with the independent bookstore-several have worked for Pendragon for a decade, some even two decades.

Having been in the independent book business for so long, Pendragon knows a thing or two about operating a successful small business that is competitive with the services offered at any chain bookstore.  All staff members are trained to do everything in the store, from helping customers find a book to buying high-quality used books.  Staff members also earn a living wage and get full benefits.  This partly explains why so many have stayed with Pendragon for so long, but it also demonstrates Pendragon’s commitment to sustaining small businesses.  As Amy Thomas, Pendragon’s owner, says, the store is putting its money where its mouth is in terms of advocating for supporting small businesses.

Many new customers come to Pendragon unaware of the top-notch service they can get at an independent book store.  Pendragon’s shelves are well stocked with a wide variety of titles, both new and used, and anything that isn’t in its stockroom can be ordered and shipped to the store within a few days.  Their prices are comparable to the ones you would see at a big book store.  Pendragon’s staff is also knowledgeable about the books they offer, and can suggest book titles and recommendations the way staff at a big book store cannot.

But Pendragon is more than just a bookstore in Oakland; it acts as an engaged member of the community.  Pendragon features local authors and sells beautiful gift cards, many designed by local artists.  It gives discounts to book groups in the area.  It donates books and gift certificates to local libraries and schools.  It is an active member of the American Booksellers Association and supports national literary events, such as Banned Book Week and National Novel Writing Month.

Pendragon, while a stalwart, is also changing with the times.  They have greened the water filtration system in their store and recycle all their packaging materials.  They also buy and sell used books, which is, as they say, perhaps the greenest thing they do.  They also sell all their books and products online, so you can browse their book collection from the comfort of your own home!  To shop online at Pendragon Books and to learn more about their role as an independent bookstore in Oakland, check out their website.

October’s Full Moon Buy Night Shopping Bazaar was such a hit that we’re bringing it back–just in time for your holiday shopping!  On the evenings of December 10th and 11th, Oakland Unwrapped, in collaboration with Jack London Square, ProArts, and Oakland Grown, will be hosting a Holiday Buy Night Shopping Event.  Cozily situated inside a festive market hall with entertainment, activities for the kids, hot cocoa, beer, wine and creative gifts from local businesses and artists - it’s the best mall-ternative you could ask for. More details to come, so keep checking back here!

Save the date!  Add this event to your Outlook Calendar here.

The Crucible is hosting its annual Holiday Gifty Art Sale and Open House during the weekend of December 12th and 13th.  Here is a great opportunity to support local artists and community arts education while shopping for unique holiday gifts for everyone on your list!  Local artists selling clothing and accessories, jewelry, gifts and more (including some of our very own Oakland Unwrapped vendors) will be present.  The days also feature snacks, glass blowing demonstrations, a visit from Santa, and more!  You won’t want to miss this!  Get more details at the Crucible’s website.

Oakland Unwrapped would like to introduce you to the latest additions to our online marketplace:

Baby Girl Designs: fine artwork by Jeanette Madden on notecards, journals, gift bags and boxes, and more.

By Nieves: all natural handmade body care products made with essential oils.

CC Star: original and custom-made handmade cuffs and snap bracelets, coin purses and pouches made from vintage neckties.

East Bay Express eDeals: gift certificates to local stores, including bath & body, food & drink, books, music, and more, sold at 25% off the certificate face value.

Envirodryz: low-tech, eco-friendly clotheslines.

Ezme Designs: funky, unique, and custom-made ceramic bowls, mugs, and dishes.

Kristine Online: unique and fun collectible toys, dolls, and gifts.

Looks Good From The Front: handmade hair accessories and birdcage veils.

Pushcart Design: a graphic design studio that creates politically and geographically influenced t-shirts and posters.

Sarah Swell Jewelry: nature-inspiried handcrafted fine jewelry.

Steppen Simply: necklaces and earrings to make you look and feel “simply” beautiful in any outfit for any occasion at any time.

YB Timepieces: high-quality fashion watches.

More stores are being added all the time, so keep checking www.oaklandunwrapped.org for more fun and unique Oakland-based businesses!