Coming up with original Christmas gifts every year can be a challenge, but its easier in Kyiv than in many other places, as the Ukrainian capital offers a variety of locally made products that will delight friends and loved ones.
The Kyiv Post has picked some of the best stores, markets, and brands worth visiting to find some special Christmas gifts this year.
Vsi Svoi Gift Market
A regular organizer of various goods markets in Kyiv, Vsi Svoi, has gathered together a range of Ukrainian brands for its last market of the year, offering Christmas gifts for all tastes. The Vsi Svoi Gift Market in a five-story building on Desiatynna Street will house producers of all kinds of presents: crockery, textiles and home decor, clothes, accessories (including hats, bags and jewelry), lingerie and pajamas, books, toys for children, cosmetics, perfumes and food.
The organizers promise to have presents for any budget, including small stocking-fillers like mugs and socks for less than Hr 200. In the food section, visitors will be able to purchase wine, cheese, jam, honey and various sweets made by local producers. There will also be a corner where “Santa’s assistants” will wrap products bought at the market in festive packaging for free.
Apart from gifts, attendees can purchase artificial Christmas trees and holiday decorations. And after a long day of shopping, visitors to the Vsi Svoi Gift Market can try some mulled wine and other hot drinks on the venue’s terrace.
The gift market will be open on Dec. 22–25 and Dec. 29–30. Those who can’t attend on these dates can shop at the two Vsi Svoi stores on Khreshchatyk Street. They both have smaller assortments than the market, but are open every day. While one store sells clothing, shoes and accessories for women and men, the other offers home decor, furniture, textile, crockery, lights, bed linen, kitchen supplies and more household goods.
Vsi Svoi Gift Market. 12 Desiatynna St. Dec. 22–25, 29–30. 10 a. m. — 8 p. m. Free
Vsi Svoi Store (clothes, shoes, accessories). 27 Khreshchatyk St. Vsi Svoi Store 34 (home decor). 34 Khreshchatyk St. Mon-Sun. 10 a. m. — 10 p. m.
Shtuki
This small yet well-stocked store is located in the home goods department of the Metrohrad underground shopping mall in the city center. Shtuki offers hundreds of useful and pleasing little gifts. The store has a wide choice of socks with various prints by such brands as Dodo Socks, Sammy Icon, Happy Socks, and more. Customers can also find here artsy mugs and plates, thermo mugs, and lunch boxes.
Apart from that, Shtuki sells scratch posters and maps, notebooks, calendars, passport covers and wallets, as well as personal care products for both men and women. There’s also a choice of local-made sweet foods such as chocolate, jam, marshmallows and fortune cookies. Those looking for more than just a small gift can get themed sets of a couple of these packed in elegant boxes. In addition, the store has plenty of cards of all sizes, designs and types of greeting inscriptions.
Shtuki. Metrohrad underground shopping mall. 8 Velyka Vasylkivska St. 10 a. m. — 8:45 p. m. Or shop online at www.shtuki.ua
Narodniy Dim Ukraine
Those traveling abroad for winter holidays may want to stop by Narodnyi Dim Ukraine on Prorizna Street to buy some goods and souvenirs with a traditional Ukrainian cultural flavor. The store stocks locally made products from all over Ukraine. The product range includes traditional local clothes such as vyshyvanka embroidered shirts or dresses. They also sell a choice of crockery made of clay, wood or porcelain — some with Petrykivka-style folk paintings on them, which is on the intangible cultural heritage list of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO. Customers can also get here souvenirs such as a traditional motanka doll, a painted sopilka — a Ukrainian woodwind instrument — and embroidered towels.
Narodniy Dim Ukraine. 4 Prorizna St. Mon-Fri. 8:30 a. m. — 8 p. m. Sat-Sun. 9 a. m. — 8 p. m.
Books
There’s no better gift than a book, and those in Kyiv can check out what’s on offer from Ukrainian publishers Osnovy and ArtHuss. Osnovy offers English-language books from its “Awesome” series of guides to Ukraine, Kyiv, Kharkiv and other cities. The books, which cost Hr 200 each, are packed with interesting facts about the people and places of the country or a city. Under a current deal, shoppers can pick up two books from the “Awesome” series for Hr 300. Osnovy also sells the art book “Decommunized: Ukrainian Soviet Mosaics” and “Kateryna,” an illustrated book of poems by Ukraine’s national writer Taras Shevchenko. Both books are in English.
ArtHuss publishing house offers various photography and art books about contemporary Ukrainian artists and design. Their “Nomina” book tells the stories of outstanding people of various origins whose works have earned them a place in Ukrainian history. The book is in English and Ukrainian and it costs Hr 620.
Osnovy. 7 Heorhiivskyi Lane. Mon-Fri. 10 a. m. — 6 p. m. Sat-Sun. 11 a. m. — 6 p. m. Or buy online at www.osnovypublishing.com
ArtHuss. 5 Shakhtarska St. Mon-Fri. 10 a. m. — 7 p. m. Sat. 10 a. m. — 3 p. m. Buy online at www.arthuss.com.ua
Personal Care
To shop for universal gifts — personal care products — look out for Ukrainian brand Dushka, which makes natural cosmetics for men and women. The brand offers products for body, face and hair, including various creams, scrubs, soap, shampoos, bath bombs, shower gel, masks, hair oil and more.
Their soap choice, for instance, includes over 80 types, including such scents as lemongrass, honey with milk, pear with vanilla. Made in various forms and patterns, Dushka’s soap costs Hr 20–115. The brand’s products are packed in aesthetic transparent bottles and jars. On the eve of the winter holidays, the Dushka is also offering discounts on their gift sets. Their prices range from Hr 180 to 751 depending on the number of products included. For an additional charge, the sets can be packed in attractive carved wooden boxes.
Dushka. Gulliver Shopping Mall (1A Sportyvna Sq., 0 floor). Ocean Plaza Shopping Mall (176 Antonovycha St., 1st floor). 10 a. m. — 10 p. m. Buy online at www.dushka.ua
Sweets
To accompany any gift, shop for all sorts of sweets at Lviv Handmade Chocolate. One of the most popular confectionery producers in Ukraine, this brand has seven cafes in Kyiv serving both hot drinks and sweets, and selling them to go. The chain stocks a wide range of sweets including candies and chocolate bars. Their sweets are more expensive than the ones from regular stores — candies, for instance, cost Hr 9–16 each, but they are worth the price. Lviv Handmade Chocolate offers over 60 kinds of candies for any taste, including the ones with nuts, coconut flakes, marzipan, truffle, chocolate and caramel. Apart from that, the chain sells white, milk and black chocolate bars of various sizes — plain or with fillings, nuts and fruit. In addition, Lviv Handmade Chocolate makes candy sets packed in artsy boxes.
Lviv Handmade Chocolate. 2B Andriivskyi Uzviz St. 45 Antonovycha St. 36 Tarasa Shevchenka Blvd. 10 a. m. — 10 p. m.
