Times Call Holiday Gift Guide - Volume One

GIFT GUIDE

VOLUME ONE

A TIMES-CALL PUBLICATION

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VOLUME ONE A TIMES-CALL PUBLICATION

Special Features Coordinator

GIFT GUIDE The Best Housewares this Season ....................................4 3 Best Cocktail Books ........................................................6 Santa’s special mailboxes return to Longmont ..............7 Gifts for Creative Spirits ...................................................8 3 Ways to Decorate Your Holiday Table .....................10 What to Cook When You’re Hosting Family

Misty Kaiser, 303-473-1425 kaiserm@timescall.com

Contributing Writers

Emma Castleberry, Misty Kaiser, Nancy Mattia, Lisa Futterman, Erik J. Martin, Erik J. Martin, Lisa Iannucci

Check out our digital edition at timescall.com/magazines

for the Holidays .........................................................11 Not Another Gift Card Christmas ..............................14 Great Reads for the Young Bibliophile .......................... 18 Dress It Up for the Holidays.......................................20 Shop Local ....................................................................... 22 This Year’s Hot New Toys .................................................. 23

Holiday Fun ..............................................................25

November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 3

The Best This Season THESE GIFTS HELP YOU PEEL A BOILED EGG, FRY WITHOUT GUILT AND COOK IN PEACE

By Nancy Mattia, CTW Features Buying a loved one a kitchen-related gift is a great idea for many people. Who doesn’t want a new gadget or small appliance to make cooking easier or more fun?

Here are five that anyone would be thrilled to unwrap:

Cuisinart Digital AirFryer Toaster Oven, $270

How can you not love cookware that makes eating fried chicken wings or French fries a non-guilty pleasure? Besides the usual toaster-oven capabilities — toasting, baking, broiling, and warming — this updated appliance air-fries foods, meaning it uses air instead of oil to make the crispy magic happen. It also proofs bread and dehydrates food and can handle up to three pounds of food or six bagel halves at once. A large viewing window, interior light, and digital readout are handy extras; cuisinart.com.

LONGMONT

DECEMBER 5, 6 & 7

GIFT OF HOME TOUR

This self-guided tour, a benefit for Longmont Meals on Wheels, features 3 homes professionally adorned for the holidays with decorations available for sale.

Thursday is Opening Night with dinner at 1 of 4 restaurants. Tickets also include a luncheon at the Gift of Home Cafe on Friday or Saturday. Opening Night tickets are $45. General Admission tickets are $20/$25 at the door. Volunteer tickets are $10.

1201 S. Sunset St. Longmont, CO 80501 303.776.6605 Open M, W, F, Sa: 9am-6pm Tu & Th: 9am-7:30pm

Happy OVER 90+ DEALERS!

For tickets or info visit thegiftofhome.org 4 Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1

ys

Holida

frontrangefleamarket026@gmail.com

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Items & Gifts for Ages 0-99 FURNITURE • GIFTS NEW & USED HOME DECOR

November 28, 2019

Le Creuset New Calm Collection Skillet, $150 and up

Cooking will be a relaxing endeavor when you give a special someone a skillet or other cookware from LeCreuset’s New Calm Collection. The muted colors underscore the chill vibe: Sea Salt (a soft blue-green), Meringue (a rich ivory), and Fig (an earthy violet-brown); the popular Coastal Blue (a powdery blue) is also in the grouping. Besides the skillet, the Collection includes a Dutch oven, casserole, and salt and pepper mill; lecreuset.com.

OXO Good Grips Punctual Egg Timer with Piercer, $20

Braun MultiQuick Spiralizer and Hand Blender, $100

Do you know someone who’s trying to eat fewer carbs and more vegetables? If so, help them in their quest for a better diet with Braun’s new spiralizer and hand blender which will, among other tasks, julienne zucchini to look like pasta. It promises speedy results since there’s no laborious handcranking needed—it slices at 21 different speeds and in three thickness levels. Using the extra blade provided, the multipurpose spiralizer can turn into a chopper, ice crusher, or blender; braunhousehold.com.

An egg-cellent stocking stuffer!

OXO Punctual Piercer Egg Timer eliminates the horror of overcooking or undercooking soft- or hardboiled eggs ever again. Based on the eater’s doneness preference and the egg’s size, it’s a cinch figuring out what setting to use to cook the egg with.

The progress bar tells how much longer it’ll be. The timer has a builtin piercer, which helps avoid making a mess when peeling off the shell; oxo.com.

S’nack (containers) by S’well, from $20

A longtime crusader against single-use plastic consumption and best known for its reusable water bottles with graphic designs, S’well has the perfect gift for the friend who takes food to work every day: S’nack, a line of stylish food containers. These environment-friendly storage keepers are double-layered and vacuum insulated, which ensures that hot food stays hot and cold food stays cold. You can get them in two sizes: 10 ounces for nibbles like nuts and grapes and 24 ounces for more substantial sustenance like soup or last night’s leftovers. And there’s no shortage of fun designs, like cute avocados and gummi bears; swellbottle.com.

November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 5

3 COCKTAIL BOOKS for Home Bartenders of All Ability Levels

By Lisa Futterman, Chicago Tribune (TNS)

Making cocktails at home, while an elegant treat for your guests and yourself, can be a bit overwhelming. To help, we chose three new books to aid those of different levels of bartending skill and aspiration. Whether your goal is to stir up a quick after-work gimlet, to perfect your Sazerac or to master the classic mai tai, each of these books will help build your cocktail crafting.

BASIC SIP: 100 Gin Cocktails with only 3 ingredients

The “Know-How” chapter of this satisfying new book from the founders of London’s Sipsmith Distillery starts like this: “One of the secrets of great drinks … is balance … balancing strong against weak (spirit against dilution), sour against sweet (usually citrus against sugar), and modifying these further with spice (bitters or vermouth).” Following those simple guidelines, the founders offer loads of doable recipes for imaginative yet approachable gin cocktails. Sipsmith’s Master Distiller Jared Brown also has a passion for reviving lost drinks, like the bijou, a 19th century cocktail that resembles a Negroni made with green chartreuse. Reach for this book when you want to put together a simple drink for a simple situation: “I have gin, I have chartreuse, what shall I make?”

INTERMEDIATE How to Cocktail

America’s Test Kitchen has finally come out with an encouraging bar manual that’s as trustworthy as its cookbooks. Packed with straightforward, unromantic, no-nonsense information, this technique-driven tome offers perfect clarity for the home bartender. As with ATK’s cookbooks, each drink has a “why this recipe works” column that explains the process. If you want to make your own tonic syrup, vermouth, clear ice or bitters, they’ve got thoughtful recipes for those. (I am tempted to make the “fruits of the forest” berry liqueur for everyone on my holiday gift list this year.

Cleverly, it calls for freeze-dried fruit.) But for those who just want to craft a well-tested margarita with no pretense, this is the book. Unsurprisingly, all the classics appear, but the addition of lesser-known cocktails adds whimsy — check out the Bichon Frise, a cuter version of the classic greyhound. Plus there’s a unique recipe for clarified milk punch that sounds completely doable, and completely delicious.

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ADVANCED “The NoMad Cocktail Book”

Taken straight from Manhattan’s renowned NoMad Bar, these recipes from author and award winning bar director Leo Robitschek keep no secrets — he offers exact formulas, complete with all the brands specified, so that home mixologists can replicate the 300 complex cocktails within. Most of the drinks contain numerous ingredients — when I first paged through the book I found only one recipe I could mix without going to the liquor store (and I have a well-stocked drink writer’s liquor cabinet). And many call for elaborate syrups, tinctures and the like, whose recipes are also provided, for maximum precision of flavor.

The cocktails are credited to each NoMad employee by name, where appropriate, and, true to form, specify the proper glassware and ice size for success.

NoMad staffs a busy bar prep team to prepare the fresh juices, garnishes and syrups detailed in the book, which feature ingredients like kumquats, kombucha squash, chicken jus, olive oil washed tequila and rum infused with raisins. You may need to hire a crew, or at least plan ahead, to recreate drinks like the spiced carrot colada or the topanga, a tequila Tiki concoction that features a chai yogurt syrup. But the rewards are great. This book exists for the adventurous barkeep, the exacting bar scientist or the armchair mixologist who wants to read and dream about drinks they may never mix up.

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November 28, 2019

return to Longmont Misty Kaiser for Holiday Gift Guide Santa is already on the lookout for letters from all the best boys and girls and the best way to make sure he gets them is to drop them off in any of his specially decorated white mailboxes now in several of Longmont’s favorite retailers.

Letters left in the festive mailboxes require no postage or exact address thanks to the honorary elves at Hover Senior Community.

They have promised Santa and Mrs. Claus that they

will personally deliver all letters from his special mailboxes straight to the North Pole. And since they don’t want anyone to miss their chance, there will be

stationery and envelopes available at each of the boxes.

Children who write their holiday wishes in a letter and drop it off by

December 1 will receive a reply directly from Santa Claus! Mom and Dad, be sure to include a return address with your child’s letter so that Santa knows where to send his reply.

Santa wants to say a special thank you to his friends at Hover Senior Community, Ziggi’s Coffee, Ace Hardware, Lucky’s Market, Brown’s Shoe Fit and Scrumptious., for watching over his mailboxes. And, a hearty “Ho, Ho, Ho” to his helpers at Hover Senior Community — they are most certainly on the “Nice” list!

Make It A Cozy Holiday Ugg Fluff Yeah Slide Fuchsia

Ugg Ansley

Ugg Mini Bailey Button

Slate

Chestnut

Old Friend Slipper

Old Friend Slipper

Wool Clog

Nakiska Bootie

Chestnut

Chestnut

Buy 3 get 1

Free

Wool Clog

Good on regular price socks, not valid with any other offers.

Expires 12/31/2019

Spirit Eggplant

373 Main St. • Longmont

303.776.2920

GZL, Charcoal

Camel Brown

Gift Cards Available We no longer accept checks

Mon. - Fri. 9:30-6 • Sat. 10-5 | Convenient Parking In Back

November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 7

GIFTS FOR

If you know someone with a creative side (someone who wishes they had one), you know how diďŹƒcult they can be to buy for. Fortunately, these Longmont retailers have you covered.

The Presser Foot

Know someone who loves to sew? The Presser Foot is an award-winning BERNINA dealer with over 500 years of combined sewing experience. Because your sewing, quilting and embroidery time is special to you, they believe in selling only products used in their own sewing rooms. Their staff is composed of skilled service technicians, garment sewers, quilters, embroiderers, and instructors with years of experience, training, and patience.

They are experts at helping customers select which machine is the right one for them, and they are committed to guiding customers through every aspect of their new sewing machine.

2430 Main Street, Longmont, (303) 485-6681 1833 East Harmony #1A, Fort Collins, (970) 484-1094 thepresserfoot.com

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November 28, 2019

Indigo Sky Trading Company

Indigo Sky offers an impressive number of handcrafted items such as jewelry, textiles, stained glass, and many more gift ideas from over 35 local artisans.

Consignors also offer many unique and interesting antiques, collectibles, and other great items for your home. On top of all that, they offer items for creators including quality, affordable supplies for stained glass artists and traditional painters.

If you are looking to learn how to craft or create art, Indigo Sky hosts a variety of classes including glass fusing, jewelrymaking, oil painting, weaving, and watercolors. Gift certificates are available.

212 Mountain Avenue, Berthoud (970) 532-0790 indigoskytradingco.com

Front Range Mercantile Indoor Flea Market

Since 1989, the Front Range Mercantile Indoor Flea Market has offered a warm, open environment for shoppers to browse. Boasting over ninety vendors, they specialize in antiques, vintage items, collectibles, home decor, furniture, costume jewelry, toys, quilts, artwork, ornaments, and other fantastic gift items. Whether looking for inspiration or raw materials, artists and crafters can find a lot to work with among their many aisles. If you know an artist who specializes in upcycling art or home decor, this is the place to be. New inventory is being added constantly.

1201 S. Sunset Street, Longmont, CO (303) 776-6605, frontrangeindoorfleamarket.com

THIS HOLIDAY SAY EVERYTHING

WITHOUT SAYING A WORD

Ron R. Hogsett, Owner

452 Main St., Longmont 303-651-1125

Tue-Fri. 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Sat. 9:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 9

3 Ways To Decorate Your Holiday Table Sophisticated Glam

By Erik J. Martin, CTW Features You’ve trimmed the tree, hung up your stockings, and strategically positioned the mistletoe. But there’s still one item waiting to be crossed off your checklist: Your holiday table.

Whether you plan to provide a festive feast or have it simply serve as a decorative focal point noticed by visitors, a handsomely appointed holiday table can make all the difference.

“Typically, the layout of a home has the table or dining room as a center of attention. Much like the centerpiece on a table, the table itself is the centerpiece of the house where everyone gathers when not in the kitchen, so it pays to make it visually awesome,” says Brian Worley, owner and creative director of B. Worley Productions, an Atlantaheadquartered event planning company.

Karen Crouse, a Napa, Californiabased vintner says the large and flat dimensions of a family table provide an excellent platform for making a Yuletide statement.

“The dining table in particular is where stories are shared and memories are made,” says Crouse.

But simply plopping down Poinsettias and a couple of candles atop your table isn’t necessarily a good strategy.

To create a more impactful impression,

10 Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1

the pros recommend adopting a decorative scheme.

“It’s important to plan properly because you want your table to reflect any guests you invite as well as the tone of the occasion. Plus, you want to think about the type of function you may be preparing for — is it a formal dinner or a more relaxed and casual occasion?” asks Brian Gluckstein, interior designer with Gluckstein Design Planning in Toronto.

Three popular adornment approaches for your holiday table are:

Earthy And Casual

This esthetic, also known as “casually rustic,” incorporates natural elements, including branches, fur, and pinecones, in order to set a relaxed tone. To accomplish this look, Crouse suggests using a farmhouse style table, if possible, along with burlap, plaid or linen placemats, stone or pottery dishes, hobnail glassware, wood-handled flatware, and twine to tie a small ornament onto each place-setting napkin.

Worley advises using a table runner if you plan to have an extensive centerpiece “so that you don’t have to constantly take everything off the table to wash it.”

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Yearn for a more chic approach that brightens up your table? Sophisticated glam is just the ticket.

“To get a sophisticated and glamourous look for your table, use pieces like silver candlesticks, silver or glass chargers and embroidered napkins. Add sparkle with crystal place card holders, and decorate the table with glittering ornaments,” says Gluckstein.

Worley’s version of this table would emphasize white, ivory, and champagne hues complemented by gold and silver metallic sheens.

“I would use lots of candles, both tapered and pillared in different heights within glass cylinders to reflect the light. Mix in inexpensive ornaments, and then pepper in some very nice, expensive ornaments that have detail and embellishments. Aim to keep it simple, yet styled and tailored,” notes Worley.

Mercury glass chargers with white dishes and silver, gold, and white marbled napkins with red napkin rings deserve a place on this table, too, insists Crouse.

Kid-Friendly

If your home is host to young’uns, make them feel welcome by creating a kid-themed seasonal table.

“Incorporate some of your children’s favorite toys into the design of the table,” Worley suggests. “Use whimsical colors, and play up some decorations that evoke a youthful feel.

Wrap some boxes with fun printed wrapping paper, and stack a few on your table with a stuffed animal resting against the box. Then, accent with a few ornaments that harmonize with the color scheme you’re working with.

“Have them make the place cards for everyone,” recommends Gluckstein.

“Also, add oversized nutcrackers, use table linens in Christmas-themed colors and patterns, and finish the table with little twinkling low-voltage holiday lights mixed into garland that you can run down the table for a whimsical touch.”

CTW Features

November 28, 2019

when you’re hosting family for the holidays

By Erik J. Martin, CTW Features You’ve decided to take one for the team and summon the entire clan over for dinner and festivities on Thanksgiving or Christmas.

The invite was the easy part. Now you’ve got to figure out what will be on the menu — not an easy task, you deduce, considering your kin’s different palates and preferences.

But prepping, cooking and serving the holiday meal doesn’t have to be a dreaded or frustrating endeavor.

With the right food planning and ample lead time, you can ace this banquet, sidestep the stress, and conquer the kitchen with culinary cleverness. This positive process starts with the right mindset.

“This is a chance to be creative, to brainstorm, to really think about

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what you want the experience of a holiday meal to be. This is a chance to make a memorable gathering for your friends and family, to create a day worth reminiscing about,” says Quelcy Kogel, Pittsburgh-based author of “The Gluten-Free Grains Cookbook” and a freelance food stylist.

Jamie McFadden, executive chef for Cuisiniers Catered Cuisine & Events in Winter Park, Florida, agrees.

“All too often, we find ourselves in a panic because we procrastinate on projects that can alleviate entertaining stress and kitchen nightmares,” he says. “Advanced meal planning, recipe research, prepping items that can be frozen or refrigerated a few weeks prior to an event,

Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 11

as well as utilizing detailed shopping lists that can be delegated are just a few examples of proper planning techniques that will reduce stress and anxiety.”

Allison Stowell, a Bethel, Connecti-cut-based registered dietitian for the Guiding Stars Licensing Co.,

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suggests that the key to holiday meal success — and taste bud and gastrointestinal congruence — is to start planning at least a few weeks ahead of time and communicate with guests about the foods you plan to serve.

“No one wants to visit a host who seems overwhelmed. You also

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want to ensure your menu allows for adequate cooking time and that your kitchen can support your menu,” notes Stowell.

“Planning menus that have something for everyone is crucial for keeping harmony. When hosting others, it’s nice to take traditional foods into consideration, as well as any food-related concerns such as allergies or certain eating styles.”

Once you’ve ruled out any ingredients that could disagree with guests, it’s time to narrow down the dishes.

Kogel recommends a menu filled with classic cuisine choices as well as a few unique flavors. Her ideal holiday meal starts with an appetizer cheese board with savory parmesanherb granola. The latter “pairs best with a soft cheese like burrata, and the granola can also be used as salad topper instead of croutons. Be sure to include vegetarian options on the board such as nuts, olives, and artichoke hearts.”

November 28, 2019

Next up is a fall harvest soup with quinoa and crispy sage, which is “easy to make — it’s creamy and comforting with fall spices, so it’s especially amenable to feeding a crowd,” adds Kogel.

For her main course, Kogel opts for roasted turkey, surrounded by a perimeter of root vegetables like golden beets, turnips, carrots, rutabaga, and sweet potatoes. Side dishes on Kogel’s table also includes a roasted squash and grape salad with bacon and burnt honey vinaigrette; mashed potatoes; garlic green beans; stuffing; cranberry sauce; and roasted carrot cheesecake with a ginger oat crust for dessert.

McFadden’s menu, meanwhile, forgoes the gobble in exchange for a main course of beef tenderloin with horseradish sauce. He would preface that with roasted butternut squash soup with cinnamon churros and escarole Caesar salad with gingerbread croutons, and fill out the sides with green bean casserole, twice baked potatoes, and a palate-pleasing chocolate Kahlua cake.

Kitty Broihier, a South Portland, Maine-based registered dietitian and

adjunct faculty member of Southern Maine Community College’s Nutrition Department, recommends spotlighting fall colors and healthy food choices on your holiday table. She suggests kicking off the eating event with a grand salad loaded with baby arugula, sliced fennel, grapefruit or orange segments, and thinly sliced red onion — served with a citrus-based dressing on the side.

Broihier’s prime entrée is either beef rib roast or ham, complemented by a vegetable lasagna; sautéed garlicky green beans or sliced Brussels sprouts with slivered almonds and dried cranberries; oven-roasted beets tossed in olive oil and garnished with chopped pistachios and goat cheese; and a pumpkin cake roll for dessert.

CTW Features

TIMESAVING TIPS

To make your big day run more smoothly, don’t be afraid to cut a few corners. Try these suggestions: • Prep and freeze a few dishes well ahead of time.

• You don’t have to start from scratch, but you can make it look like you did. “Start with some prepackaged foods, like a can of cranberry sauce that you top with a bit of orange zest and a sprig of rosemary,” says food stylist Quelcy Kogel.

• Ask family for help. Get volunteers to make some of the side dishes and bring a bottle of wine.

• When in doubt, trust a pro. Get a quote from a local caterer, “because it’s often more affordable than you’d think,” Kogel adds.

• Set the table the day prior to avoid feeling rushed.

• Keep your guests out of the kitchen before the meal. “Give them something to do, like grab a lite bite at an appetizer station or indulge in a drink while you put the last dish in the oven,” says Kogel.

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November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 13

NOT OT ANOTHER GIFT CAR CARD

WHAT TO BUY FOR THE LET-ME-PICK-IT-OUT GENERATION

By Lisa Iannucci, CTW Features

Ask any pre-teen, tween and teen what they want for the holidays and most will probably respond, “a gift card.”

In 2018, consumers spent more than $130 billion on gift cards per year, according to advisory company CEB TowerGroup, but it said roughly $1 billion went unspent. Sometime those gift cards get lost in your wallet.

If you’re tired of buying such an impersonal gift, but want to please the youngster in your life, there are alternatives.

1. Give an experience

“Buying gifts for the gift card generation requires a little thought,” says Cherie Corso, parenting expert. “Teens today like ‘experience gifts’ so instead of a gift card, buy them tickets to a concert or show or event.”

Corso also explains that many parents are remembering to include the friends as well, organizing groups of children to go to concerts as holiday gifts instead of just purchasing one ticket for the child.

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2. Think out-of-the-box.

Well, out of their room, that is. Kids don’t typically buy things that mom and dad supply such as pictures and bedding, etc.

“Teens like these items because it’s fun to do a mini-bedroom makeover,” Corso says. “Some gift examples include a fuzzy pillow, picture, bean bag, a cool makeup mirror and artwork for their wall.”

Corso says to remember that today’s teens also enjoy status items they can post photos of on Instagram.

“Gift cards are fun but not as much fun as seeing Justin Bieber or posting a photo with your new designer purse,” Corso says.

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November 28, 2019

3. Think charitable

“Instead of going holiday shopping this year, go holiday ‘giving’ by choosing gifts that benefit children and families in need from around the world,” says Christine Connolly Bell, Public Relations Manager at World Vision. “A retail gift card gives a pre-teen, teen or college student pleasure for a short period of time, but a charitable gift, like a child sponsorship through World Vision, ensures that the young person learns about and stays connected with important global issues.”

Through World Vision’s #GenerosityEffect movement, your teen will go online and send a stuffed goat to a friend. “We’ll match that gift with a real goat sent to a family in need,” Bell says. “The chain reaction of generosity will be viewable online through a tracking tool — truly bringing the gift’s impact to life and showing each individual’s influence.”

World Vision also offers a gift catalog on their website.

4. Think indie

Despite the perception that nobody — especially young people — reads today, Nicole Brinkley, an independent bookseller and founder of YA Interrobang, says kids and teens today are reading more than ever, between the stories available on their phones and the hardcovers they collect for their shelves.

“We see this in the success of events like BookCon and subscription boxes like Parnassus’s ParnassusNext book box,” she says. “ParnassusNext sends a first-edition signed YA hardcover to its teen subscribers once a month.”

She also suggests that if you have to buy a gift card, buy one to an independent bookstore, where they can use the card in-person or online. “With this and ParnassusNext subscriptions, it keeps kids and teens actively reading and excited to build their own little library.”

5. Think gift cards Wait, what? We just said to think about ideas other than gift cards, but it is still OK to give some out.

“These days, gift cards and eGifts are the norm, but that doesn’t mean they have to be boring,” says Elisabeth Vezzani, the CEO and co-founder of Sugarwish, an online candy store where recipients purchase the candy they want with their gift card.

Vezzani explains that many e-gifts and some gift cards provide an interactive experience, not just a purchase.

“This allows them to compete with traditional gifts in a way that they never could before,” she said. “This gifting trend is all about keeping it simple for the buyer while delighting the recipient in unexpected ways … and these are exactly the types of gifts that today’s teens are looking for.”

© CTW Features

November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 15

Happy Holidays From BERTHOUD

Visit us at one of our two locations

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16 Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1

303-774-9880 1350 Ken Pratt Blvd Longmont, Co 80501 Times-Call—TimesCall.com

November 28, 2019

Come Shop Historic

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 17

Great Reads for the Young Bibliophile Books make a great gift for the young adults on your shopping list. Not sure what to buy? Anything from the Young Adult Library Services Association’s suggested list of 2019’s Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults is sure to please.

The Poet X

use those poems to fight back.

Elizabeth Acevedo // 2018 // Harper Teen Xiomara Batista struggles with, well, most things in her life- her mother, her twin, and her place in the Catholic church. In the past, she’s used her fists to solve problems, as well as secretly writing poetry, but now it may be time to

What If It’s Us

Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera // 2018 // Harper Teen After the universe brings Arthur and Ben together outside the post office, neither make a move and both leave wondering if they missed a chance at love. What

sisters.

if they were meant to be?

The Cruel Prince

Holly Black // 2018 // Little, Brown and Company Violently taken from her human home, Jude has struggled to navigate the dark world of the Fae. Jaded from years of being viewed as inferior for being human, she publicly challenges the wicked Prince Cardan and his friends, unleashing the prince’s wrath upon her and her

Dread Nation

Justina Ireland // 2018 // Balzer + Bray In post-Civil War America where the dead have refused to stay buried, Jane has spent her entire life training in a special combat school for African American children, preparing to save the lives of the wealthy.

When entire families go missing, she learns her combat skills are incredibly usefulagainst both the dead and the living.

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A Heart in a Body in the World

Deb Caletti // 2018 // Simon Pulse After a traumatic incident, Annabelle manages to finish her senior year with the support of her friends and family and the comfort of routine: school, work, cross-country. One night, she reaches her breaking point and she begins to run — across the US. Along the way she becomes a reluctant activist.

Monday’s Not Coming

Tiffany D Jackson // 2018 // Katherine Tegen Books When Claudia’s best friend Monday suddenly disappears without a trace, Claudia knows something is up and will not stop until u she uncovers the possible horrifying truth.

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Darius the Great is N Okay Not

Adib Khorram // 2018 // Dial Books D Darius is not okay with his im mpossible-to-please father, his mother and sister’s shared Farsi m siisterhood, and his “Fractional Persian” heritage. A family trip to o his mother’s homeland means leearning more about his family, himself, and the man himself many fforms love can take.

Foolish Hearts

Emma Mills // 2017 // Henry Holt & Co. H When Claudia finds herself eensnared in a school production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, o she must also navigate the politics of her private girls’ school, her o budding friendship with prickly b Irris, and a charming, tentative ro omance in addition to family drama in this funny funny, fee feel-good contemporary novel.

N Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe D

Preston Norton // 2018 // Disney H Hyperion Aaron is the star of Happy Valley High School until he suffers a concussion after a boating accident, or receives a visit from God, depending on who you believe. God gives him a to-do list and tells him he will need the help of Cliff Hubbard (a.k.a. Neanderthal).

Frankie F

Shivaun Plozza // 2017 // Flatiron Books.

Frankie Vega’s half-brother suddenly presents himself, and just as she begins to get to know him, he disappears.

Frankie is the only one who seems worried about his whereabouts so she sets out to find him.

48

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 19

F O R T H E H O L I D AY S

By Emma Castleberry, Holiday Gift Guide — The holiday season is often packed with festive events from a dinner party with friends to the black tie occasion and every level in between. But, what to wear, what to wear? These multifunctional pieces could be the perfect addition to your holiday wardrobe and a thing of beauty through the holidays and beyond.

Keeping Warm

An oatmeal-colored cover-up with faux fur detailing makes the perfect outfit for an aprés-ski dinner or over a chic cocktail dress. Wear it again to dress up jeans and heels, Colorado style. (Available at Snow Apparel, 520 Main St Unit B1, Longmont, snowapparel.us/)

Red Hot

When your average blazer just won’t do, a lipstick red jacket will make a statement paired with almost any outfit.

(Available at Snow Apparel, 520 Main St Unit B1, Longmont, snowapparel.us/) Image by Joseph Ribkoff

Image by Joseph Ribkoff

LBD PDQ

No closet is complete without the Little Black Dress (LBD). This one features gold button details for channeling the ultimate elegance.

Pair it with a gold clutch and a silk scarf for an instant classic.

(Available at Snow Apparel, 520 Main St Unit B1, Longmont, snowapparel.us/)

20 Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1

Kid Friendly

When the party invitation includes the kids, they’re going to need an outfit that isn’t covered with juice and mud stains. Sweet Nightingale carries a sweet children’s tunic for girls in three colors: cream, pink and grey. The tunic features tired ruffle accents and can be worn as a top or a dress. Available in sizes 2T to 5/6T. (Available at Sweet Nightingale Boutique and Home Decor, 439 Main Street, Longmont, sweetnightingaleboutique.com)

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Stepping Out

No outfit is complete without the perfect shoe.

For men, that’s the Naot Chief, which takes the classic men’s dress shoe and gives it a twist with a contrasting counter. It also features a cork footbed that offers great support. (Available at Brown’s Shoe Fit Coompany, 373 Main St, Longmont, Longmont, stores.brownsshoefitcompany. com/longmont)

Getting the Boot

For ladies, the Pikolinos Rotterdam Low will make a perfect match with any holiday dress. A classic dress boot, it can also be dressed down and used casually. The soft leather upper and multifunctional heel make for a comfortable fit. (Available at Brown’s Shoe Fit Coompany, 373 Main St, Longmont, Longmont, stores. brownsshoefitcompany.com/longmont)

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 21

Misty Kaiser, Holiday Gift Guide The holiday shopping season is here, ready or not. Maybe you’re an organized shopper with a detailed list from stocking stuffers to the big ticket items, or perhaps you’re more of a browse until something strikes you kind of shopper, but either way, downtown Longmont wants to make your holiday spending more fun this year.

Winter Passport

Get started now with the Downtown Winter Passport and get more for your dollar. Now through January, pick up a passport at a participating Downtown business, make your purchases from businesses with the Winter Passport logo in front of their entrances and collect passport stickers in your passport pages. When you’ve completed a page, tear it out and turn it in to St. Stephen’s Plaza or 320 Main St. Prize drawings will be held weekly and entries submitted from November 8 through January 3 will qualify for the Grand Prize drawing.

Check out downtownlongmont. com for a list of participating businesses and more information.

Small Business Saturday

Shop small and make a big impact. Since 2010 Small Business Saturday has been a way to draw attention to unique local retailers and see the impact your holiday spending has on business in your own neighborhood.

This year on November 30, visitors can watch ice-carving demonstrations, listen to roving carolers, enjoy street performers and live entertainment and maybe even win a prize or giveaway.

If you haven’t picked up your Winter Passport, Small Business Saturday is the perfect time to do it!

#LONGMONTELFIE

And if there weren’t already enough ways to win by shopping downtown—meet the Longmont

Elves. St. Vrain students created colorful elves that are now hidden throughout downtown. There’s no predicting where you’ll find them.

They might be keeping warm inside your favorite businesses or in their window displays. They might show up at this season’s holiday events.

They might even be easily spotted out in the open ground, but wherever you spot them, be sure to take an elfie and post it on Facebook or Instagram with #LongmontElfie.

Every time you do, you’ll be entered to win a prize. Several winners will be chosen throughout the holiday season. Fine one or find them all, the more you find and post the better your chances of winning are.

Just don’t forget to include #LongmontElfie to be entered!

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THIS YEAR’S

By Nancy Mattia, CTW Features

Toys and the holidays go together like hot chocolate and marshmallows. It’s a sweet moment when your child rips the wrapping paper off a box and starts grinning when he sees what he’s inside — hopefully he’ll have many hours of fun playing with this much-longed-for toy.

In case you don’t know what the children on your to-buy-for list are pining for, take a look below at some of the hottest toys for the upcoming holiday season:

Fingerling Light Up Narwhals, from $15

The latest incarnation of Fingerlings, the interactive collectible toy you wear on your finger, is a narwhal, and there are five in pretty colors: Nelly (purple), Nikki (turquoise), Raya (green), Nori (periwinkle blue), and Rachel (pink).

The narwhals, made by WowWee, contain sensors and respond to motion and touch with blinking eyes, flapping tails, and cute noises. Each has a mood horn that lights up in a different color that tells you how they’re feeling. Hold a narwhal on your cheek and it’ll give you a sweet kiss! For ages 5 and up; kohls.com.

November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 23

Imaginext DC Super Friends Transforming Batmobile R/C, $80

Gotham City has no shortage of notorious criminals wreaking havoc everywhere. It’s Batman to the rescue in his tricked out Batmobile! Boys and girls can use their imaginations and use the remote control to send the vehicle left, right, and in circles. With the push of a button, it transforms to full battle mode, complete with lights, sound effects, and projectiles, to catch the bad guys and throw them behind bars. For ages 3-8; fisher-price.com.

Love to Hug Elmo, $30

Treasure X Aliens, $15

Who needs a hug?

Elmo does, and he’s ready for a good squeeze. This beloved Sesame Street character with the plush red fur raises his arms when you squeeze his belly and asks for a hug in either English or Spanish. When someone gives him a hug, the cuddly creature from Playskool responds with a phrase, song, or kiss. For ages 18 months and up; target.com.

Looking for buried treasure takes on a whole new meaning when the hoped-for riches may be hidden in the body of a slimy alien. Kids become treasure hunters/autopsy technicians with collectible Treasure X Aliens, which involves opening the alien’s stomach, removing the rib cage, and digging through the gooey innards to unbox the goods—a mystery figure or prize. The gross-but-good fun from Moose Toys comes with a bag of reusable ooze. For ages 5 and up; target.com.

Nerf Fortnite RL MicroShots Dart-Firing Toy Blaster, $10

If your kids are into the popular Fortnite video game, tempt them into some non-screen-based play with these mini blasters.

Inspired by the video version’s rocket launcher, the Fortnite RL MicroShots Dart-Firing Toy Blaster, part of a collectible series, comes with two darts that fire one at a time. Bonus for parents: The blaster is hand-powered — no batteries required. For ages 8 and up; hasbro.com.

CTW Features

24 Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1

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November 28, 2019

GIFT OF HOME G TOUR December 5- 7

courtesy of Home Depot.

Sip hot cocoa by the fire pits scattered throughout the millions of lights sparkling in the park, and when you’re done taking in the sights, visit the local food trucks at the Longs Peak parking area.

The City’s Ice Pavilion will have “Open” skating from 12:30 to 7:30 p.m. (regular admission fees apply).

Take in live entertainment at the Senior Center and stick around for the fireworks at 7:45 p.m. (weather permitting.)

Wrap it up with the Parade of Lights on Saturday, December 14, along Main Street in Longmont. Stake out your spot early and get a little shopping done in the meantime.

The Downtown Winter Wonderland will be in full swing from 3 to 5 p.m. at St. Stephen’s Plaza. Have fun with interactive activities, music and more!

Benefitting Longmont Meals on Wheels.

With over 1,500 attendees last year, The Gift of Home is Colorado’s largest Christmas home tour. This year the self-guided tour will feature three festive homes throughout Longmont.

Homes will be “dressed up” for the holidays by local decorators and home decor retailers. Attendees can gather decorating ideas and, with many items available for purchase, they may even come home with a new piece to deck their own halls.

The December 5 evening View three beautifully decorated homes for the holidays at The Gift tour includes dinner with of Home Tour. (Photo courtesy Longmont Meals on Wheels) one of four Longmont resday meal and a wellness check allow taurants and the December individuals to remain in their home, 6 and 7 tours will include a lunch at experiencing “the gift of home” for BERTHOUD the Longmont Senior Center at the as long as they can.

Gift of Home café from 11 a.m. to 2 SNOWFEST For more information visit thep.m.

December 11-14 giftofhome.org.

Longmont Meals on Wheels has Once again this December, Berthoud a tradition in Longmont almost as will be hosting their annual Snowfest at long as the Christmas Home Tour Fickel Park.

LONGMONT LIGHTS itself. The agency prepares and delivSnow making will begin several ers meals to seniors, people with Dec. 13-14 weeks prior to the event. The snow will disabilities and people returning The annual favorite, Longmont be moved to Fickel Park where they’ll from a hospital stay, having served Lights, is a two-day family-friendly, build cylinders of snow to be sculpted.

122,796 meals last year. But the community affair, kicking off on Friday Volunteers will then start stomping agency is more than a meal, offering night, December 13 in Roosevelt Park down the snow on Monday, Decema wellness check and a daily point of in Longmont. ber 9 and Tuesday, December 10. If contact for some of Longmont’s most Meet Santa at his workshop from 5 you’d like to climb into these cylinders isolated individuals. Providing a midto 7:30 p.m. to make a take home craft, to stomp some snow, please let the

November 28, 2019

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Holiday Gift Guide, Vol. 1 25

December 14 from 10 a.m. to Berthoud Area Chamber of Commerce know by calling 4 p.m. at New Freedom Out970-532-4200. reach Center, 250 Mountain Attendees can vote for Avenue, Berthoud. their favorites sculpture Then, to wrap everything by purchasing stickers to up, there will be a spectacular place on posters near the Parade of Lights on Decemsnow sculpture. The poster ber 14, beginning at 5 p.m., with the most stickers colproceeding down Mountain lected will determine who Avenue. wins the People’s Choice Deanne Mulvihill, Award.

Berthoud Area Chamber of The winner of the snow Commerce Executive Direcsculpting championship will travel to the US Snow tor, sings the praises of this Sculpting Competition. holiday community event and Judges will determine encourages everyone to come which team will qualify for out and see and experience nationals. snow art, “The festival has The Colorado Snow something for everyone, no Sculpting Championship Snow sculptures adorn the streets at Berthoud Snowfest. matter what they celebrate will be held December 11 (Photo courtesy Ben Price, AdSortium Media) during this time of year!” through 10 a.m. December More information about 12 – sign-up online at berthoudcolo14. There will be profesBerthoud Snowfest can be found at rado.com. sional snow carving teams participatBerthoudSnowfest.com.

A unique holiday shopping oping (including a couple of high school portunity will be set up in downtown teams). There will also be a free Kids’ Berthoud with an Artisan Market on Snow Sculpting Contest on December

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