1. Berkeley: Every year, the owners of Castle in the Air, a boutique where you can buy craft supplies for virtually any DIY project (and take classes on how to do it), commission their resident artists to transform their shop into a holiday wonderland. This year, they've outdone themselves with a mouse castle/wonderland. Feast your eyes!
2. Hayes Valley: Yes, "Kindred" is yet another holiday mart happening in December in the Bay Area. But its organizers promise a small, well edited gathering of "makers" rather than a craft fair taken over by feather earrings and fringed T-shirts.
3. Everywhere: American Giant, makes of the the "greatest hoodie ever made," has a new, snap-front hoodie coming out tomorrow! You, or someone on your gifting list, probably needs it under the tree. It will be available exclusively on the American Giant website tomorrow, Thursday December 13, at 9pm Pacific time.
4. Mission: Yet another spankin' new shopping establishment has sprung forth on Valencia Street. It's called Aggregate Supply, and it's literally an aggregate of three shops: Heliotrope, which is moving from its Noe Valley location to the Mission, Turk + Taylor, and Acacia, a new offshoot of Heliotrope that sells rustic modern furniture and housewares.
5. Union Square: Shreve & Co.'s holiday windows in Union Square shatter their formal image with wonderfully whimsical holiday windows.
6. Western Edition: The Divisadero Art Walk is on for December, and they'll do it holiday-style this month with art, food, shopping and open houses up and down the street. More than two dozen businesses on Divsadero will offer special discounts, food, design pop ups and, naturally, art for sale. The bars will be hopping, and the restaurants will be buzzing, so take a walk down Divis tomorrow night, Thursday December 13 between 6pm and 12am to join the festivities.