5 local shops in Springfield to find beautiful holiday gifts

The turkey has been eaten, the pies devoured and now it’s time for the next holiday ritual: shopping.

But you don’t have to hit the big box stores to score an amazing gift. You can support local stores, local artists and find a unique present to put under the tree. This Saturday is Small Business Saturday, a day when the country unites to support small businesses. If you’re in the shopping mood, here are five places in Springfield you can find beautiful holiday gifts.'

Waverly House Gifts & Gallery

Eunice Wallar has been showcasing regional and national artists for the last 35 years. Wallar owns Waverly House Gifts & Gallery. She started as a gift shop with an emphasis on locally made gifts, but quickly expanded to carry an impressive line of local, regional and national artists. Many of them are award-winning.

Waverly House has a Christmas room open year-round, so there are several local artists who make beautiful ornaments. If you know an ornament collector or love to gift ornaments, this is a great spot to find one from ceramic, glass to paper.

If you miss Terry Bloodworth’s blown glass — he used to own Springfield Hot Glass Studio downtown, which closed in 2018 — you can still find his exquisite pieces at Waverly House. Wallar sells hundreds of his ornaments a year. His baubles are stunning.

Kevin Kloppenburg is an educator, but on the side, he’s been making cast paper ornaments for decades. And he has amassed quite a following at the gallery.

But you’re not limited to ornaments at Waverly House. The gallery showcases jewelry, fiber art, mixed media, ceramics, glass and watercolors.

Kara DeBacker is an award-winning fused glass artist who creates sculptural pieces as well as jewelry, boxes, wine stoppers and more. She’s a popular artist at the gallery.

Wallar opened the gallery after she left teaching, and it has been a rewarding endeavor.

“I have enjoyed getting to know a large variety of artists both regional and national and providing a welcoming and appropriate place for them to sell their work,” said Wallar.

Farmers Market of the Ozarks

This Saturday, the Farmers Market of the Ozarks is the place to be.

“We have an extended day where we have a huge craft event and bring in local artists. That (Shop Small Saturday) is our biggest gift event of the year,” Jesse Stone, market manager.

What can you find?

Tea towels with lewd and funny sayings, pillows, charcuterie boards, stained glass, cutting boards, candles, bath and body products, jewelry, leather work and more.

Kelsey Kivett sells headbands at her business, Lilac Market Headbands.

The idea started when Kivett decided to make her own headband, frustrated by what was on the market.

“I was looking for a headband that was functional, affordable and reliable, not to mention cute and comfortable. I couldn’t find any that met that standard — so I made a new one,” Kivett said.

Before she knew it, friends and coworkers wanted to buy some, and she eventually opened an online business and storefront. The name Lilac Market was inspired by her mother, who passed away in 2015 and loved gardening.

“Growing up, I can fondly remember helping her plant lilacs in the yard,” Kivett said.

A very popular vendor is Swan Creek Crafts, owned by Mike Weber (he will not be there this Saturday but will be at every other market before Christmas).

Weber carves wooden spoons, chopsticks, earrings and more. He works with 150 different woods. Weber learned basic skills in junior high Shop class.

He spent 29 years in the Marine Corps and, when he retired, took up woodworking. He’s known for his spoons — as his mother was “an avid wooden spoon user.”

Three years ago, his daughter recommended he make wood earrings.

“I said, ‘I can’t do earrings. What do I know about earrings?’ I looked into it, and it turns out I can knock out earrings pretty fast. My wife and daughter helped me get started, and now I’ve sold 3,000 sets of earrings. They sell like crazy,” Weber said.

The Local Bevy

Andrea Petersburg owns The Local Bevy, a favorite shopping spot in the Rountree neighborhood that promotes local artists. It began as a pop-up spot during the pandemic, but was so popular it stuck around. 

“I was gung ho. I knew this would take off,” she said.

The shop is small— around 700 square feet of retail space — but she showcases the work of nearly 30 artists. Their talents and crafts range from hat makers to painters, stained glass, jewelry, candle makers, embroidery and even handmade greeting cards.

And that was the goal all along.

“I wanted to give everyone a chance,” Petersburg said. “I wanted to sell local art and goods.”

Her offerings are more eclectic and unconventional than a traditional gallery.

The embroidery by Four Eyes Fibers is very popular. Leslie Berry hand embroiders sweaters, jewelry, wall hangings, Christmas ornaments and more.

Berry is self-taught. She began following an embroiderer online and then decided she could do it herself. She’s been selling her wares since 2018.

“It’s very relaxing for me. As far as needlework goes, I think embroidery is more forgiving if you make a mistake, it’s easy to correct compared to some of the other ones,” Berry said.

Some of her best-selling creations include bookmarkers and wall décor signs.

Formed: An Artist Collective

Local artists Laura Ingalsbe and Grace Huckfeldt met at a pop-up shop during COVID that The Downtown Springfield Association had organized to support local artists.

“We were like ‘I really want to keep doing this. Do you want to keep doing this?’ She was like ‘Yeah.’ The space was up for lease, so in four weeks, we scraped it together. We started with nine artists from that popup and now have 45,” said Ingalsbe.

In February 2021, they opened Formed: An Artist Collective.

“We have a vast variety of talented people here,” she said.

Huckfeldt is a potter, Ingalsbe is a painter and creates resin sculptures.

Formed Gallery displays works by local artists, crafted in all types of media.

Here you will find the woodwork of Mike Ilkiw, the man behind Bowls for Breasts. Ilkiw donates a portion of his proceeds to the Breast Cancer Foundation of the Ozarks, in memory of his first wife Connie, who passed away from breast cancer. The foundation helped them, and it’s his way of giving back. But there’s another reason to love his work: he uses wood from salvaged trees, many damaged by storms.

Another artist in this collective is Sherri Davis, a longtime professional painter. She has painted murals in homes and businesses, but she also adorable farm animals and pets.

5 Pound Apparel

At 5 Pound Apparel, you can snag awesome t-shirts, onesies and other merchandise, all while helping others. The business was founded in 2010 with a philanthropic mission. For every company-branded item sold, the owners donate five pounds of food to Ozarks Food Harvest. It all started in 2010 as a small screen-printing company with a heart for local charities.

Brina and Ben Thomas bought the business in 2017, as she graduated with a merchandising and fashion design degree from Missouri State University. Brina designs many shirts and also uses local designers.

Brina said their slogan is “Goods that Give Back.”

Since taking over, they have continued to find ways to enhance the philanthropic mission. They added 5 Pound Pup to their line and donate five pounds of dog food to Humane Society of Southwest Missouri for every one of those branded items sold. The line includes dog toys, bandanas, shirts and accessories.

During COVID, they created a Support SGF line of shirts and $15 from every shirt sold went to a local business that the customer designated. This was in early stages of COVID and was their way of helping other local business owners.

They have donated more than 50,000 pounds of food to Ozarks Food Harvest, Brina said.

Putting the charitable contributions aside, their products are cool, fun and brimming with Springfield and Missouri pride. They have adorable onesies — like Santa Claus is coming to Springfield, or 417 Babe.

If you know someone outdoorsy, a shirt from the MO Active line might be a good fit. There are shirts that read Bike MO. Float MO. Camp MO. There’s a series of Missouri is Awesome Shirts. And who wouldn’t love the Springfield shirt that reads: Cashew Chicken Capital of the World?

Happy shopping.