Local in focus: 5 spots for seasonal gifting

Since we are now in the midst of the festive season, weddings, anniversaries and the Christmas holidays are no doubt set to spur a flurry of gifting.

Add to the mix any visiting expats and festive homes to decorate, there are a whole slew of retail and online establishments set to cater to all such needs.

Here is a selection of a few on our radar.

Ensemble Home

Originating in Karachi, this brand has since expanded to Lahore and Islamabad and features a presence online. It houses a variety of local decoration, household, beauty, jewellery and clothing lines under one roof to facilitate one-stop shopping.

Check out their variety of local marble-ware designers, as well as servingware, candles and cushions. They also have a line of their own paper products, ready to wrap and package instore, as well as curated gift baskets.

Prices range from Rs1,000-50,000.

Allure Beauty

This beauty and fragrance store located on the ground floor of Dolmen Mall Clifton boasts a variety of luxury brands, not otherwise available. Shop here for Creed and Tom Ford, along with Huda Beauty and Bobby Brown without worrying about dupes.

Prices range from Rs1,000-200,000.

Koel Shop

This art gallery, boutique, cafe and lifestyle store has everything under one roof. The store is veteran art doyen Noorjehan Bilgrami’s ode to Karachi and traditional crafts – having pioneered the revival of hand-block printed fabrics in Pakistan.

The brand has since expanded into lifestyle products also. Shop here for homewares produced by skilled artisans, take in the classic block-printing techniques and experience the homegrown organic beauty line.

Prices range from Rs1,000-10,000.

Viel Lifestyle

A relatively new lifestyle brand on our radar, shop here for quirky, contemporary artworks, artisanal trays, furniture and servingware.

It is an online store and some bulky furniture items are made on order, so make sure you spare some time for that. Enquire within for individual pricing.

Creo Home

Another relatively new brand on our radar, this quirky home decoration brand is also stocked at Ensemble Home. Shop here for trays, tissue box holders, candlesticks, utensils and bookends.

For a wider range of their accessories, shop directly online.

Prices range from Rs4,000-85,000.