The Kirikiriroa Gift Guide
What do get the busy eight year old who already has a legally listed company? Steal inspiration from the slightly-more-corporate-than-they-care-to-admit Hamilton East boho, who annoyingly has pretty good taste, and who will think nothing of dropping $200 on a really mint picnic. We give you plenty of options for your gallery hopping big sis type, who loves a dirty martini every night at six. And lastly gifts for your brewing enthusiast relative who you know wants beer or something beer-adjacent, but would rather die than receive anything from a certain, now ubiquitous local brewery.
Everything on the page is from a Hamilton business, and a lot of it is made locally too.
The Rural Brewer
BYO bbq anywhere you go this summer with the Steven Raichlen Cast Iron Tuscan Grill, $149 from BBQs & more. By now you would have had Luke’s eggs at Cream, of Garden Place - you can buy the seasoning! Luke’s Spice Mix, $9.50. Ditch any number of streaming content providers needed to swap for a Grey Roasting Co coffee subscription - the roaster’s pick starts at $20 for a weekly delivery of a 250g bag of the chef’s choice. Mackay Construction is a building co with some very cool Kirikiriroa-centric merch - our favourite is the ‘fog city” print - pay what you think its worth on a tee or hoodie.
You are spoilt for choice in terms of locally made beers. The Workshop Brewing Company’s Raglan Pale Ale won bronze this year at the NZ Beer Awards. Don’t let the non-descript packaging fool you - the Brewauracy Liquid Wages, $19.15 for 1.25L, is a top-shelf, drinkable summer beer - with malty with bananas notes. Lastly, Bootleg Brewery’s Munich helles larger, $89 for a case of 12, is a crisp lager that the Maatangi outfit say “pairs well with lederhousen”. It won silver at the brewers guild awards in 2021.
High Octane Gen Alpha
Kid Math: Ecosplat reusable water balloons, from Go Eco, $29, pay for for themselves - in fact, your parents should pay you to play with them. Also from Go Eco: the Honeysticks ultimate bath fun set, $39.95 includes their crayons we all know and love (but for the bath!) and bath colour drops. Tokoroa sisters and early childhood teachers are behind Expression of Winter, who sell these handmade geo boards, $45. Allow 2-4 weeks for delivery.
The masterminds behind JellyCo are Neo (10) and Anja (8) - who wanted to learn about business. Their woodless pencils are $26 for the pack of 12, and $60 for the tin of 24.
Aaliyah, 9, came to our attention plugging her hierloom tomatoes, left, which she sells at markets and through her facebook page Pop Up Seedling. Her green thumbs have raised more than $105 for the Royal Albatross Center, and she loves hearing about how her seedlings get on once they’re grown up and moved out of home - so keep in touch.
Lastly, Wee Woonden Wonders (Te Aati Awa) bring some welcome diversity to your toy cupboard - sets include a Maaori whaanau; Maui and his four brothers in a waka, and a Pasifika sets complete with fale and vaka. You’ll be pushing it to get one in time for Christmas.
Raglan Sea Witch Glam
This Pharlain crochet shirt is the real deal: made by hand, which makes its $449.90 price tag a bargain, really. You’ll find it stocked by Found, as are the CLED Periwinkle Single Earrings, in blue jay matte, $399. The Manuka Honey Lip Balm, $12, hails from Raglan outfit Miel des Collines. The Davines volu hair mist gives you that salty sea breeze volume, whether you’ve been to the beach or not: $49, from Fabrik.
Whanganui tea house Kaputii make a range of tea and infusion - the Good Gumboot. $14.50 is your “breakfast lunch smoko and tea tea”, which sounds great to us. The range is available at the Morrinsville Art Gallery.
Both of the following were introduced to us via Framing House in Lovegrove Lane.You may recognise Kirikiriroa Artist Alice Alva, who has work all over the show, both locally and internationally. Originally trained in painting, it is the incorporation of textiles that’s become her signature. Pictured is The Beginning, 2021. (Cotton, linen, acrylic paint on custom frame), but see her website (alicealva.com) or instagram @alica_alva_art for available works. And then Hamilton-based potter Lauren Wu’s bespoke ceramics feature deep pigments and luxurious glazes, that anyone but a sea-hag glam would drown in.
The Sleek Chic Gallery Girl
Kirikiriroa gel nail brand Friday gel polish are swatched here in Wednesday, July, and August. while the top right image features May, for $23.95 each. Modelled is the kowtow parasol hat, $139, in greige demin, at Tauranga’s Paper Plane. By the Bottle Hamiltonian old boys Pete and John Connell have the kind of selection within which you can’t go wrong with - pictured is Hasting Distillers Albertine Gin 500ml, $95, bythebottle.com, for the perfect dirty martini. Courtney Marama (Tainui, Ngaati Koroki Kahukura, Ngaati Ranginui) produces bespoke jewellery from her Waikato studio - her latest collection dropped December 6th, but by the time of writing had sold out. Keep an eye out for her work, here. Melbourne designer Corey Ashford’s beautiful brass oyster incence holder, $96, narrowly made this gift guide because he had the good sense to stock it at The Flower Crate in Hamilton’s East’s Lovegrove Lane. Lastly, Larissa Goodwin of Goodwin ceramics practices out of Matamata, and can also be found at Framing House and online.
The Steele Park Sunday Sloth
Slow life picnic bag from The Flower Crate, $220. Ortiz Sardine from Vetro $16.99. Don’t forget about the Duck Island sandwiches - perfect for a picnic and you get to skip the queue for scooping. Pictured is the vegan peanut butter and jelly sando which is vegan, $9. The Over the Moon cheese bundle includes their creamy blue, the red plant, the black truffle brie and the camembert for $51. The NZ made Napoleon Goods wine chiller, $79, is selling like hot cakes from Found. PIctured here with the Deep Down Chardonary 2022, $42, from bythebottle.co.nz.
