Every week until Christmas I'll be featuring unique gifts you can find all around uptown.
This week's focus? Museum gift shops. There are so many great collections to visit uptown, and each has its own store filled with gems that somehow reflect their exhibits or mission statements. Here are just some items that caught my eye.
ICYMI: The Shop Harlem Gift Guide
lapel pins with a cause at The Schomburg Shop
The renovated shop at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture (a division of the New York Public Library) is an amazing place to find books and gifts related to the black experience. These clever lapel pins from Radical Dreams let you show your support for modern-day icons with important messages like quarterback Colin Kaepernick and Congresswoman Maxine Waters.
ALL-NATURAL SOAP at The STUDIO MUSEUM SHOP
The Studio Museum is all about artists of African descent, so it only makes sense that its shop features this black-owned, made-in-Harlem business. Harlem Soap uses all-natural goat's milk to hand-craft its skin-soothing product. And the soap is made in batches of 180!
ALEXANDER HAMILTON 3-D PUZZLE at The HAMILton grange Gift shop
There's no better place than Alexander Hamilton's historic home in Harlem to find gifts relating to the founding father, like Wizhead's paper bust based on Hamilton's image on the $10 bill.
AFRICAN-print FABRIC APRON at The Schomburg Shop
Among the Schomburg Shop's stacks of books are fun accessories like this cheery apron from Royal Jelly Harlem, a mother-daughter team that creates its products using eye-catching African fabrics.
FRIDA KAHLO socks AT LA TIENDA AT EL MUSEO DEL BARRIO
While the galleries at El Museo del Barrio are closed for renovations until next summer, you can still pop into the museum's shop to find gifts with Latino flair. Express your love for Mexican artist Frida Kahlo with these colorful socks from Socksmith.
Medieval Stained glass coasters INSPIRED BY The Met CLOISTERS
Resembling a medieval European monastery, The Metropolitan Museum's outpost dedicated to medieval art is one of the city's most inspiring spots. And of course there's a shop to match, selling items like these glass coasters featuring designs from the museum's stained glass collection.
DRAG Queen pocket mirror at The Schomburg Shop
The Schomburg Shop wants to make sure you remind yourself that you're fabulous–every time you use this Drag Queen pocket mirror from The Found.
