Each year we go to our regular Journal advertisers, all those locally owned mom-and-pop stores, with the question, "What do you have in your store that would make an unusual or clever gift?" We want to give our readers some thoughtful ideas for holiday gifts that are available at stores owned and operated by their neighbors. We are not calling for a boycott of the chain stores, but economists will tell you all of dollars spent with a local merchant will stay here and be re-spent many times over, rippling throughout the community in the form of employment and new purchasing.

Many of these stores also carry handmade items by local artisans. If you purchase locally made gifts from locally owned stores, well … so much the better.

And please don't forget to patronize the many area crafts fairs this season. There were several early ones, but they seriously kick-off this weekend in a neighborhood near you. Stores often need to charge up to 40 percent in overhead to display and sell the work of local artists and crafters. At crafts fair, these artisans get to keep a bigger share of the proceeds of their creative work.

Every year since we began publishing — 1990 — the Journal Gift Guide has grown in size and popularity. Last year, because of the beautiful full color capability of our printers, the Gift Guide was published as a special section every week from Thanksgiving through Christmas with many new items each week. Think of it as Humboldt County's weekly catalogue of cool ideas. If you are an artisan or merchant and want to be included, call 826-2000 and ask for advertising information.

Happy Holidays from all of us here at the North Coast Journal.