With supply chain issues and shipping delays almost constantly appearing, now is the best time to leave the Internet and do holiday shopping IRL. In addition, independent stores have been hit hard during the pandemic-induced closures-so what better way to support (and promote) their survival than patronizing them to meet all your gift-giving needs?

The number of high-quality local stores in New York City is staggering, and narrowing our must-visit list for the 2021 season is a challenge-but it is our attempt. All of these Dwell-approved stores have at least one physical store. They offer products ranging from art books and antique furniture to plants and ceramics, so we guarantee that you can find something that suits everyone on the list.

Fishs Eddy is located at the corner of East 19th Street on Broadway. It is the first choice for home chefs and waitresses for shopping.

A desktop pillar for more than 35 years, Fishs Eddy is your ideal place to find gifts for people who *impossible* shop. Although the storefront created and owned by Julie Gaines and David Lenovitz started with (and still sells) old-fashioned restaurant dishes and glassware, the original works of Fishs Eddy with charming illustrations and playful proverbs are truly irresistible. Choose a rainbow-embroidered dish towel for your niece who just went out with the words "Everyone is a little gay" or choose an RBG mug for your grandmother. If in doubt, choose the Urban Landscape series-no one can resist the bowl wrapped in the Manhattan skyline.

Coming Soon is full of design fun, from ceramics and textiles to flower pots and pillows.

From the ever-changing hand-blown glasses and terrazzo-like cutting boards made from colored scraps, to puppet pillows and bare-top flower pots, everything you will find at Coming Soon is full of surprises and fun. Owners Helena Barquet and Fabiana Faria plan and constantly change the selection of products. They purchase products through personal relationships and collaborations with manufacturers such as ceramic artist Farrah Sit of Light + Ladder, textile studio Cold Picnic, and home furnishing designer Anna Karlin.

A selection of Astoria Bookshop's "Best of 2021" list.

When you don’t know what gift to give, a book is usually the answer, and the knowledgeable staff at Astoria Bookshop can help you find the right book, whether you are shopping for the restaurant owner’s uncle, eight-year-old nephew, Or a neighbor who loves music. Since opening in 2013, the owner Lexi Beach and her partner Connie Rourke have been meeting the needs of their different communities, increasing their inventory according to requirements and ethical considerations (Beach bluntly stated that it does not hoard Kobe Bryant’s children Reading material because he dealt with the rape accusation against him in 2003).

The Sill has four stores in New York City and also offers a direct delivery plant subscription service.

Eliza Blank, the founder of The Sill, can be considered the original plant influencer. She founded the company online in 2012, opened her first factory store in the Lower East Side two years later, and since then developed the brand to 7 (and soon 8!) physical stores across the country. Not only will you find a wide variety of leafy friends - from easy-to-care ZZ and snake plants to pink aglaonema wishes and fashionable juicy banana bunches - but they also provide sculptured flower pots, candles, greeting cards, and Plant-inspired wall art. 

Lichen recently sold an LC4 leather recliner on the store's Instagram, and they first started selling their products. 

Jared Blake and Ed Be launched Lichen in 2017 after a sales meeting through Craigslist. Neither of them had an interior design background, but they soon discovered that they shared a passion for excellent design, art and music. They started selling vintage furniture through Instagram and opened their first store in 2019. Partly an art gallery, partly a cafe, and partly a home design store, Lichen is a community center that reflects the different tastes of Blake and Be. They sell furniture designed by themselves, as well as Noguchi lamps and mid-century modern works in Brazil, as well as decorations such as incense stands, coasters and flower pots designed by different independent designers such as Yusho Nishioka and Alvaro Ucha Rodriguez. The best part? Everything is very affordable, most stock prices are less than $250.

231 11th Avenue and 38 St. Mark's Square, Manhattan

Printed Matter opened in 1976 and contains a catalog of works by artists such as Kathy Acker, John Baldessari, Laurie Anderson, and Edward Ruscha.

For a truly unique gift, head to Printed Matter, an independent non-profit bookstore that has published and sold artist books for nearly 5 years. Not to be confused with art books or monographs (covering artworks created in different media, such as paintings or sculptures), an artist's book is itself a work of art. They are usually mass-produced, making them affordable and easy to obtain works of art-an ideal gift for those who have everything. The collection is huge, with works of more than 9,000 artists—from iconic figures such as Sol LeWitt and Jenny Holzer to rising stars such as Diane Zhou and Hugo Rocci—so give yourself plenty of time to browse.

The artist is sold collectively in Brooklyn on a three-month contract, so the selection is constantly changing.

This store on Columbia Street was opened by Tessa Williams in 2004. All merchandise is made by local Brooklyn artists and designers, usually in a studio located at the back of the store. Members sign a three-month contract, so the products are constantly rotating (there are more products in the store than online), but they hope to find everything from personalized earrings and ceramics to giclée prints and greeting cards.

Peace and Riot's Uganda Kazi woven basket and wall panel series.

Interior designer Achuziam Maha-Sanchez planned her Bed-Stuy store (named after the alternative soul band she once owned with her husband) to reflect her global tastes and African and Caribbean traditions. Elegant textiles and service utensils, woven baskets from Uganda, handmade Ankara ornaments and mud cloth upholstered armchairs, as well as interesting and novel gifts such as prayer candles featuring AOC and Beyonce, and rainbow bagel making Kits and card decks featuring hip-hop artists like Biggie and Jay-Z.

Although Home Union is known for collecting antique furniture, the store also sells various gifts.

Since the launch of Home Union in 2016—first operating in their apartment and then moving into the Williamsburg store—Daniel King and Megan Lafrey have become media darlings in the retro world. And for good reason: their impeccable taste and knack for predicting trends make Home Union a powerful player in purchasing 20th century furniture. Although it may be impractical to give away one of the store’s famous vintage sofas, Home Union also offers a large number of designs that can be given away, such as the Ring-A-Date calendar designed by Giorgio Della Beffa, handcrafted ceramic cups in Tel Aviv and the 1970s Thick wall hooks, to name a few.

In addition to the Soho outpost (pictured), the MoMA Design Store is also located next to the museum in the city center.

Of course, the MoMA Design Store is essentially a museum gift shop (although there is an outpost about 50 blocks south of the actual museum), but it offers more than just art reproductions and coffee table books. This store is a veritable design mall and a great place for holiday gifts, from OXO kitchen gadgets and IZIPIZI sunglasses to neon lights, Mondrian-style vases and colorful Dusen Dusen bath towels. This is indeed the ideal place to shop for people who like things in your life, because every product must meet eight (!) standards and be approved by the MoMA curatorial department. The goods you buy will help fund the museum’s educational programs and conservation efforts, which will make you feel good.

From Here to Sunday, the owner, Diana Ho, is committed to "cultivating empathy" and makes it easier for people to access art through her Gowanus store.

This lovely gift shop is located between the Gowanus Canal and a coffin manufacturing company on the rather industrialized street of Union Street. It is a pleasant surprise. Owner and artist Diana Ho brings a clever touch to daily life with a cheerful product portfolio. Its mission is to "enhance the image of marginal artists through the lens of decolonization". Paintings, magazines, jewelry, ceramics and other merchandise are mostly made by local artists in Brooklyn, and creators in Los Angeles and Chicago also provide them. Ho regularly exhibits new artists in rotating exhibitions. One of the most recent exhibitions is Miwa Neishi's abstract works, including a rainbow-colored mobile phone series suitable for any adult bedroom.

Jung Lee at her Nomad store in Manhattan.

Designer and event planner Jung Lee’s store of the same name feels more like your chic aunt’s loft than a homeware store, which is intentional. These vignettes are meant to show you how it feels to actually live with the decorations that Lee has sourced from all over the world. Whether it is a whimsical hodgepodge or well-proportioned wine bottles, each one exudes an elegant atmosphere, making this an ideal shopping place when you need a gift-for your boss, mother-in-law or your very picky cousin- This will definitely impress you. 

GRDN is open from Wednesday to Saturday from 11 am to 6 pm, and Sunday from 12 noon to 5 pm.

We all know that someone has achieved great success in a pandemic, and GRDN is the place to find gifts for that person. Susanne Kongoy opened a storefront in a former furniture repair shop in 2004, turning the space into a fantastic secret garden. There are piles of bulbs in clay flower pots with handwritten note cards on them. Unusual flowers filled the table, waiting to be arranged into eye-catching bouquets. The whole wall is covered with hanging plants. In addition to flowers and green plants, you will also find Sepua soap, hand-dipped cone candles and flower pots by artists such as Ben Wolff. 

Wanderlustre owner Kathryn Grogan Ivanfy in front of her Cobble Hill store.

After a year and a half of limited travel, everyone has a bit of wanderlust, so when you walk into Wanderlustre, be prepared to give yourself almost everything. Owner Kathryn Grogan Ivanfy's passion for travel-she has visited more than 30 countries and the number is increasing-is the guiding force behind carefully curated choices, from the Palosanto applicator in Southern California to the handprints made in New Delhi Napkins, then to the woven English basket.

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