24 Gifts of Pittsburgh: Silent Night Ornament

I think I first learned of the Light of Life Christmas ornaments from Jane Pitt’s holiday gift guide a few years ago. After I had spent most of December searching for a beautiful ornament that had some sort of story to go with it, and I found nothing. I have included this ornament on our list in case you are looking for a way to send someone a little bit of Pittsburgh for their tree.

This is so much more than just a Christmas ornament. This is a gift that benefits the Light of Life Rescue Mission, a Pittsburgh nonprofit that provides housing and other resources for homeless in Pittsburgh. This is a word of art that was designed by Barb G., a graduate of the Light of Life Women’s & Children’s programs. This is an ornament that was made locally by Wendell August Forge.

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Shop: You can buy this Silent Night Ornament by making a donation to Light of Life here.

Follow: Follow Light of Life on Twitter @LightofLife and Facebook.

Source: Thanks to Jessi Marsh for the suggestion. Follow Jessie on Twitter @LemonScarlet.

24 GIFTS OF PITTSBURGH

Each day in December we are sharing a different Pittsburgh gift suggestion.

24 Gifts of Pittsburgh: Everybody Loves Pittsburgh T-Shirt

This is the perfect gift for just about everyone. This shirt is printed in Pitttsburgh by our friends at Commonwealth Press. They love Pittsburgh as much as we do, maybe more. If you are looking for more Pittsburgh t-shirts, sweatshirts, beer koozies or stickers check out their shop on Carson St., in Mt. Lebanon or at CompressMerch.com.

24 Gifts of Pittsburgh: ‘Raymond Carver Will Not Raise Our Children’ by Dave Newman

Books. Books about Pittsburgh. Books by Pittsburgh authors. But books in general are probably the best gifts to give. I am hold out on the Kindle. I am surrounded by computers, phones, TV screens, treadmill screens (ok, the treadmill screens are few and far between). I still like to buy, read and give real paper books. Please add your suggestions for Pittsburgh reading in the comments below. I would love to add some more local books to the 24 Gifts of Pittsburgh.

Raymond Carver Will Not Raise Our Children is one of those books that has been on my radar. I have seen this book for sale at East End Book Exchange. I knew I wanted to feature a book for today’s Gift of Pittsburgh, so I could also have an excuse to remind you that Sunday is the 3rd Annual Small Press Pittsburgh Holiday Book Sale. Littsburgh, one of Pittsburgh’s newest blogs about all things literary, has a great preview of the Holiday Book Sale here. Raymond Carver Will Not Raise Our Children is one of the recommended books on the list. This afternoon while I was browsing the New Guild Studio Holiday Open House another friend mentioned the author Dave Newman. (I am only mentioning this because this was my first visit to New Guild and it is an incredible hidden gem. New Guild does iconography for churches across the country.)

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Shop: Your Favorite Local Book Store or Amazon.

Follow: Dave Newman on Facebook, @Littsburgh @BookstoreMemoir

More about Raymond Carver Will Not Raise Our Children

In the words of Reading Rainbow’s LeVar Burton, “you don’t have to take my word for it.” Here is what some others have said about Dave Newman’s book:

With pointed humor, Dave Newman’s new novel portrays the life of a lowly college writing instructor. // Pittsburgh City Paper
‘Raymond Carver Will Not Raise Our Children’: A Pittsburgh writing teacher’s tender tale // Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Dave Newman’s Raymond Carver // Tears in the Fence
Writer on Writer: Part Two, Alex Kudera Interviews Dave Newman // Karen The Small Press Librarian

Pittsburgh books make good gifts. #shopsmallpgh #24giftsofpgh

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Small Press Pittsburgh Holiday Book Sale

Sunday, December 6, 2015
12pm-5pm
Stephen Foster Community Center
268 Main Street, Lawrenceville
Facebook Event

24 Gifts of Pittsburgh

Each day in December we are sharing a different Pittsburgh gift suggestion.

24 Gifts of Pittsburgh: Fair Trade Coffee from Building New Hope

Building New Hope has been one of those things that has sort of been on my Pittsburgh radar, but not something I have blogged about before. Building New Hope is a Pittsburgh non-profit organization that imports coffee beans from El Porvenir, a worker-owned coffee cooperative in Nicaragua. The coffee is roasted locally by Coffee 19 in Washington County. Proceeds from the sale of coffee are used to fund two schools and other youth programs in Nicaragua.

Sample Building New Hope at the Fair Trade Marketplace at ECS

There are so many great ways to shop local this weekend in Pittsburgh. Saturday, December 5 is the Handmade Arcade at the Convention Center. Kerf Case, #3 on our list of 24 gifts of Pittsburgh, will be there as well as OttoFinn, #1 on our list. The blog Design Crush, which covers art and design from around the world, (but is conveniently located here in Pittsburgh) has published a preview of the 2015 Handmade Arcade here.

This weekend is also the annual Fair Trade Market at ECS (ECS is short for Environmental Charter School) in Regent Square. On Saturday and Sunday you can shop their huge marketplace of fair trade gifts. Building New Hope is one of the vendors as well as several other fair trade brands. You can see a preview of some of the items that will be for sale here.

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Shop: Building New Hope Coffee is available in regular ($13/lb) and decaf ($14/lb) and can be purchased online here.

Follow: Follow Build New Hope on Twitter @building_new_hope and Facebook.

24 Gifts of Pittsburgh: Spalted Maple Wood iPhone Kerf Case

Spalted Maple Kerf Case for iPhone 6

When I think about buying gifts, I want to buy someone something that is really beautiful, something that is useful and that they might not buy for themselves. Many beautiful items are often saved for special occasions, so finding a gift that can be used daily, that isn’t something like a blender, can be hard to find. This Spalted Maple Wood iPhone Case is just that item, its beautiful and it is something that can be used everyday.

I first met the Kerf Case team at TechShop a few years ago. The woodshop is tucked in the back corner of TechShop Pittsburgh and is often overlooked by people who want to see 3d printing and laser cutting, you know the techy stuff. But there is something kind of magical about woodworking. One of my most favorite classes in grade school was woodshop. As a kid, I am sure I could have cared less about types of wood. Most of the time people talk about wood is hardwood floors, but unless you are remodelling house, you probably don’t get that intimate with the different types of wood.

One of the things I like most about the Kerf Cases is that is brings this incredibly detailed pattern that is created in nature right to the palm of your hard. And it is a delightful experience. Not only are the cases beautiful, each unique, but they are incredibly durable and protect your phone.

: Cork

: PurpleHeart

: Yellow Box Burl

The iPhone cases that Kerf has been creating are stunning works of art. The photos on this post and on the Kerf Case website don’t really show you the beauty of the wood. The Spalted Maple is my personal favorite, but the case is offered in 15 other different types of wood, and all are equally as beautiful.

See the Kerf Cases in Person at Handmade Arcade this weekend

You can order a Kerf Case online, they will even custom engrave your case with a name, website, photo or any other design you choose.

If you are in Pittsburgh on Saturday, December 5, make a point of heading to Handmade Arcarde to meet the Kerf Case team and see these products in person. Kerf Case will be there selling cases and wallets. Kerf Case will also have a cell phone charging station, so you can power up while you browse.

We’re Giving Away a Kerf Case & Wallet

A huge thank you to Kerf Case for sponsoring IheartPGH this month. Not only are they supporting this site and helping us to share more stories of Pittsburgh, but Kerf Case is giving away a case and wallet to one of our lucky readers. You can get all of the giveaway details here.