Gift Giving Ideas Vol. 2
Sue Hoxie, Better Middlebury Partnership
As I started to write Vol. 2 of this blog series with gift giving ideas for men, an old Monty Python song was rattling around in the head—“Men, Men, Men”. My parents let me stay up late on Saturday nights in the early 70’s to watch Monty Python’s Flying Circus. I can only imagine their embarrassment at how completely inappropriate this song was for a pre-teen. You’ll have to Google it yourself.
That said…with the exception of men’s underwear you can find something in Middlebury that will please the men in your life. Barware? Check. Both Kiss the Cook and Danforth Pewter have glasses, mixing tools, etc. If your man is king of the grill—plenty of barbeque tools and accessories at Kiss the Cook. Vying for Middlebury’s best-dressed award? Danforth Pewter makes unique cufflinks.
Just a few doors down, stop in to Green Mountain Adventures. They carry casual clothing brands such as Prana and Patagonia that’ll make the fashionable, outdoorsy kinda guy happy. If he’s into fly fishing or Nordic skiing, same stop. There’s outdoor gear, hats, coats, base layers, and back packs. Oh, and lots and lots of Darn Tough socks (see Vol. 1 regarding the plethora of socks available in Middlebury). And, don’t forget Middlebury Agway for an extensive selection of Carhartt work and casual wear. Yep, Agway has socks too.
If you’re shopping for a sportsman, head over to Forth ‘N Goal. In addition to SOCKS(!) they carry a wide range of Vermont-themed t-shirts, sunglasses, and watches. They can custom design shirts, shorts and bags—and put a Middlebury College or MUHS logo on pretty much anything. If your man is one of the town’s many pickle ball players, you can buy a racket here as well as rackets for squash, tennis and ping pong. There’s also swim gear, soccer balls, pads and mouth guards. Forth ‘N Goal carries local products whenever possible and they’ve just started carrying a new product line, Vermont Glove.
Guys like to be pampered too! Has your college student not had a haircut since September? Consider a gift certificate from Parlour for your young man who’s home for the holidays.
Is he a gamer? Sweet Cecily carries beautiful handmade cribbage boards in addition to lovely scarves (men’s & women’s) and handcrafted pottery coffee mugs. Or, if he’s more into board games, Tinker & Smithy has an extensive selection for family game nights.
I’ll end this blog with a much more suitable song lyric from Tom Petty–“It’s good to be king of your own little town.” Make the man in your life feel like he’s the king of Middlebury.
