By NANCYE TUTTLE, Sun Staff
LOWELL Cousin Suzy graduates from college next week. Maggie and Tom get married in June. Your best friend Billy and his wife Jen expect their first baby any day now. And Aunt Sally and Uncle Frank celebrate 50 years of wedded bliss at an anniversary bash later this summer.
Who said the biggest shopping season of the year comes when the weather turns cold, dark and damp and Christmas and Hanukkah are right around the corner?
Not you, or anyone else whose spring-into-summer social calendar is crammed with showers, weddings, graduations and other events that demand a gift.
Creative shoppers have discovered the shops of downtown Lowell with their well-stocked shelves, windows full of ideas and pleasant salespeople eager to help you pick a gift.
And, with easy walking from shop to shop, they need only park once to start their spree.
Our recent junket started at Found, a new antiques and vintage shop in the storefront of the Moller's Lofts building on Middle Street.
The attractive emporium includes all manner of funky finds accumulated over 30 years by proprietor Tom Lynch, who grew up in Lowell.
"It's a work in progress," says store manager George Blance. "We are going for an eclectic vibe and people are responding well."
When you walk in, you see an inviting melange of open shelves and glass cases full of knick-knacks, vintage goods, antiques, jewelry, artwork and more, perfect for accessorizing a loft, gifting newlyweds or treating yourself to a treasured trinket. Our favorites included vintage glassware in a tulip design ($14 for eight) or green stemware resembling Depression-era glass ($24 for four). Two seats from Ebbets Field, home of the long-departed Brooklyn Dodgers (priced in the thousands) are a find for a baseball fan with deep pockets.
A stack of Jadite cake stands in pale green ($29-$65) look like they've jumped out of the pages of Martha Stewart Living, and whimsical reproduction mini-lunchboxes ($8) offer images from the '50s and '60s, like Mad Magazine, The Munsters, Dick Tracy and the Candy Land game.
Folk art and outsider art (a Southern style created on sides of buildings and with found materials) is shown on the walls. Jewelry is a find at Found. Vintage sterling silver rings, bracelets and pins can be had for $5-$30. And the celluloid plastic doggy pins ($12-$17) evoke fond childhood memories for this shopper.
A short jaunt up the street is Van Gogh's Gear, opened by sculptor Steve Syverson last October on the Middle Street end of the trendy Revolving Museum building. This is primarily a place for local artists to stock up on supplies. But shoppers looking for unusual, artsy items will like the mini-scrapbook and photo album kits ($4.25-$8.25) for crafty friends who like to make things. In addition, handmade books ($15-$28) by artist Traci Olsen are an attractive choice.
Across Shattuck Street is haus, Mirja Troppenhagen's bright little oasis of gift ideas for brides, babies, loft dwellers or anyone seeking something different.
Committed to selling unique, high quality gifts that support smaller companies, Troppenhagen strives for a metropolitan, European feel. Her store has been compared to trendy places in New York's SoHo section.
"I sell things that you don't find everywhere and love selling items that have value in all price ranges," said Troppenhagen, who opened haus in March 2003.
Her children's area is growing by leaps and bounds, with quality clothing ($4.50 and up), wooden toys from Germany ($3 and up) and plenty of appealing books ($5 and up).
She is a proud purveyor of Steiff stuffed animals ($16-$150).
"They are 100 years old, affordable, collectible and the best in the world," she said, noting that she can order any Steiff item from the catalogue.
Wedding and housewarming gifts include lovely decoupage buckets in a French flower design ($24-$45), adorable Sabre cutlery in brilliant paint box colors, including cocktail forks, spreaders and openers ($12-$24), and functional Soho stainless spice racks ($42-$180).
Troppenhagen likes to help customers put together gift baskets using various themes. A pasta focus might include bowls, a platter, server, napkins, cookbook and pasta for around $100, depending on the number of bowls and other items. She also enjoys assembling baby buckets with little books, socks, stuffed animals and toys.
"I love helping people find gifts," she said.
A block and a half away on Merrimack Street, Welles Emporium is a longtime favorite for those seeking quality gifts, jewelry, housewares, clothing and children's items. In fact, Welles helped to start the great downtown turnaround when Janet and Bill Pitzer opened the store 16 years ago.
The merchandise changes constantly to please their steady stream of repeat customers, said Janet Pitzer.
New this season are whimsical whirligigs in copper ($18-$42). These moving sculptures, which age naturally, catch the breeze when hung in a tree or on a deck or patio. Glass hummingbird feeders ($52) are another find for nature-loving friends. Graduates can be gifted with hand-painted mirrors featuring images of their school ($195) or music boxes ($56-$220), some imported from Switzerland.
Collectible paperweights in jewel tones ($28-$125) are another clever gift, while pewter napkin rings and salad forks in a king and queen design ($36-$46) make a statement at the table.
The museums of Lowell also offer wonderful choices in their attractive gift shops.
At the New England Quilt Museum on Shattuck Street, you can browse to your heart's content through quilted clothing and wall hangings, books, note cards and gift ware, many with a quilting theme.
The Brush Art Gallery and Studios in Market Mills on Market Street offers paintings, prints, wearable art, jewelry, pottery and quality crafts made by the resident artists and others in the area.
Besides textile items woven on the museum's looms, housewares and items for children, the American Textile History Museum on Dutton Street is stocked with tropical table linens and other quirky items to highlight the current show, Let's Go Hawaiian. Finally, if you'd rather make gifts for your friends, the shops in downtown Lowell will help you there, too.
The recently opened Lush Beads on Merrimack Street has the supplies and fixings to make beaded bracelets and necklaces from $5 up to $300.
"You can make a stretchy string bracelet for as little as $5," said owner Liz Stewart.
She also custom designs jewelry and will offer classes for aspiring jewelry makers.
Across the street at Friends Fabric Art, mother and daughter Ann and Sonja Lee and their friend Maxine Farkas help people turn fabric into inventive clothing items and household goods.
The shop also sells dyed wearable art, including scarves and T-shirts ($15-$50) and other small gift items, too.
Found, 33 Middle St., 978-455-5495
Van Gogh's Gear, 200 Middle St., 978-970-2100
haus, 17 Shattuck St., 978-458-4287
Welles Emporium, 175 Merrimack St., 978-454-4401
New England Quilt Museum, 18 Shattuck St., 978-452-4207
Brush Art Gallery & Studios, 256 Market St., 978-459-7819
American Textile History Museum, 491 Dutton St., 978-441-0400
Lush Beads, 122 Merrimack St., 978-459-7240
Friends Fabric Art, 177 Merrimack St., 978-458-4200
Nancye Tuttle's e-mail address is ntuttle@lowellsun.com .