Lake Country This Month

By Katherine Michalets Special to The Freeman DELAFIELD — There's always one person on every- one's holiday shopping list who is hard to buy gifts for and another person who shuns the traditional gifts bought at the big box stores. Local retailers — and even a municipality — have unusu- al and quirky gifts for sale this holiday season. Signs of their times What's more unusual and even sentimental than a sign bearing the name of your childhood street? The city of Delafield is selling its old street signs and other traffic signs like "no parking," arrows and stop signs that it had to replace when the fed- eral guidelines changed. Available for $15, the signs can be a fun and unexpected gift. Delafield Public Works Foreman Paul Zellner said a lot of people have bought the signs as gifts. It's the second year the city has been sell- ing them, and while the signs are available year- round, the city clerk puts a reminder about them being for sale on Facebook and in the city's newsletter, which stirs additional interest. Last week Zellner said he sold about six or eight of them. When the federal govern- ment changed the laws on sign sizes and reflectivity, Delafield began to systemat- ically replace them to meet the mandates, Zellner said. To learn more about pur- chasing a sign, call City Hall at 262-646-6220. A list of available signs is also posted on the city's Facebook page. Giving the unexpected The Gallori in Oconomowoc carries vari- ous gift items that could be given to the guy looking to complete his "man cave" to a person still in touch with her inner child. Owner Lori Boldig said she has the Ultimate Cookie Spoon for sale for $3.25 that allows the eater to dip a cookie into a glass of milk without getting their fingers wet. The made-in-the-USA spoon has a curved part that fits around the cream of the cookie. The Ultimate Cookie Cup, made with cookie dunking in mind, is also on sale. Another unusual item The Gallori carries is a rock dis- penser for liquids with a stainless steel tapper that is perfect for the man cave, Boldig said. Other fun items are tavern puzzles made of forged steel that come in a variety of skill levels, and which truly capture a person's attention, she said. Whether it's a handmade item like animal-shaped pil- lows made by a woman in Montreal or elves made by two sisters from Maine, Boldig likes to sell the unusual. "I think it's the unique- ness that people don't know where it's from," she said of why these items make great gifts. "When I am giving a gift, I want to make sure it's unique and unusual and it's not seen everywhere." A gift from childhoods past When people shop for gifts at Fox Lake Country Antiques Mall in Oconomowoc, they often gravitate toward items a per- son had as a child. "It seems like people still like what reminds them of their past Christmases," owner Cindy Budde said. Whether that's the big, sparkly ball ornaments that hung on their childhood Christmas tree or the toy Santa left for them when they were 6 years old, such as a vintage version of a Barrel of Monkeys game or Cootie game, they like to recapture memories, Budde said. Toy purchasers often like to simply display the old toys under the Christ- mas tree as decorations. Sometimes what sells sur- prises Budde. She said a lot of women have been buying rusted toolboxes and simi- lar items that have worn paint and are in "original condition." "That is the stuff that sells first. The rougher, the more banged up it is and in original condition, they want it," she said. "That rustic simplistic look is still really huge." Other popular gifts are vinyl records, such as clas- sic Santana or The Beatles, especially with turntables back in style, Budde said. For holiday decorating, Budde said people like to buy original department store boxes with Christmas illustrations and keys that they repurpose into gift tags. Delectable gifts Jon Rasmussen, owner of Great Harvest Bread Co., wants his business "to be the farmers market when the farmers market is not up and running." For the holidays, people can purchase gift baskets full of treats made by Wis- consin and northern Illi- nois food artisans, such as soups and honey. Items made in-house that also serve as fun hostess gifts include animal-shaped breads and bread trios. The honey bear is made of honey whole wheat bread, which Rasmussen said is also versatile because people will carve out its belly to place dip inside. "We have gotten some nice reception in that we have been open for three years and we have cus- tomers who come in and request those," he said, adding they are festive and kids enjoy seeing them. Another delicious item is Great Harvest Bread Co.'s trio of sweet breads: pump- kin chocolate chip, ginger and egg nog. Rasmussen encourages people to shop local and find unique items. "Obviously it supports the local. When you are shopping downtown Delafield, it benefits the local community," he said. "The trend is people are stepping away from the big box stores." In fact, Rasmussen said, he sold out of bread on Black Friday. www.cityofdelafield.com www.thegallori.com www.foxantiquemalls.com ghdelafield.com FREEMAN & ENTERPRISE LAKE COUNTRY • Page 3A DECEMBER 2014 Dr. Murphy and his team: Dawn, Lien, Suzanne, Jannie, Amy and Tammy Conveniently located just south of Woodman's at the corner of Hwy 164 and Coral Drive. 1700 Coral Drive, Waukesha, Wisconsin 53186 Call to schedule an appointment 262-650-3000 • Check-Ups • Emergency Care • Cosmetic Dentistry • Implant Therapy • General Dental Procedures Accepting New Patients 241035001 James F. Murphy, DDS (formerly of Your Family Dentist) Member ADA and WDA The end of the year will be here before you know it. Don't let your flexible spending funds or insurance benefits go to waste. Call to schedule an appointment. 2 3 6 6 4 4 0 0 3 K i t c h e n s | B a t h s | D e n s | C a b i n s | O f f i c e s | R e c R o o m s Work With Experienced Design Professionals "We Specialize in Cabinetry" 1005 Richards Road, Hartland | 262.367.9439 www.kitchencreators.com Cabinetry For every Room, Every Budget! WE OFFER: NORCRAFT CABINETRY MID CONTINENT CABINETRY OMEGA CABINETRY DYNASTY CABINETRY WOODLAND CABINETRY 241623005 HUGE SHOWROOM CLOSEOUT SALE Displays must go to make room for new displays *Call Kitchen Creators today for details while supplies last! We Beat All Big Box Stores and all Competitors | Visit Our Showroom By Appointment SUSSEX — Quad/Graph- ics confirmed Dec. 4 it will be closing its direct mail production facility in Atlanta by Feb. 1 — a deci- sion that will affect about 100 jobs. Claire Ho, director of cor- porate communications for Quad/Graphics, said the decision to close the plant was part of the company "optimizing our direct mail production platform to pro- vide our customers with the widest variety of audi- ence-engaging direct mail formats and faster in-home delivery, among other bene- fits." Quad/Graphics will invest in additional plat- for m enhancements that support the company's cus- tomer base. Direct mail pro- duction operations will be centralized in Pewaukee; Effingham, Ill.; Chalfont and York, Penn.; and West- ampton and Monroe, N.J., plants, complemented by two commingling super centers in Wisconsin and New Jersey. The platform and build- ing in Atlanta require sig- nificant, costly upgrades to keep them productive and competitive, Ho said. Oper- ations will begin ramping down in January. "We will help employees transition from their jobs. They will have the opportu- nity to review job openings at other Quad/Graphics facilities. We also have print-production facilities in Augusta, Ga., and The Rock, Ga., as well as across the country. Of course, we know job transitions are never easy and we thank all the employees in Atlanta for their dedication to serv- ing our clients well," Ho said in the email. Additional mailing vol- ume will be processed through Quad/Graphics' New Berlin commingling center. www.qg.com — Katherine Michalets, Special to The Freeman Charles Auer/Freeman Staff Want a keepsake from the street you grew up on? Delafield is selling old street signs for decorative purposes. Thinking outside the big box store Quirky and unique gifts available locally Quad/Graphics to close Atlanta facility, move some operations to Pewaukee

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