Where to Shop in the Fox Valley for Black Friday

Now that we’ve dried the last of the Thanksgiving dishes, the holiday shopping season can really get underway! Aside from ordering handmade quality coffee mugs from our Amazon Handmade page, there are plenty of options within our hometowns. Here are some local shops you may want to visit in the Fox Cities to find the perfect holiday gift.

Primitive Gatherings Quilt Shop

This little shop up the road from us in Menasha has a massive presence. It’s a popular place for quilters to find supplies. However, there are a few surprises you might find in their webstore that are perfect for the mug collector and the quilter in your life.

Some all-season mugs are available online. However, the customers at Primitive Gatherings like their mugs on the larger side—most of the stoneware you’ll find on their website is our Java Taster in colors like Deep River Haze and Oatmeal.

Primitive Gatherings also releases a special-edition Christmas mug with us every year. The design changes regularly, making each mug a real collector’s piece when the quilt shop releases them. Some past medallions for these holiday mugs include pieces in Red adorned with a candy cane and in Desert Night with a gingerbread man. Although we’ve already made this year’s holiday mugs for Primitive Gatherings, you’ll have to tune into their website and social media pages to see the final product for yourself.

Blue Moon Emporium

Based in the heart of Appleton outside Lawrence University, Blue Moon Emporium is a gift shop with a twist. Much of the designs and artwork you’ll find in this shop comes from independent artists. Many of the T-shirts, sweatshirts and dish towels they offer have a unique Wisconsin flair, but there are other pieces for your friends from out of state, too. A few of our favorites include designs with bicycles, screenprinted bee designs and a complete map of supper clubs throughout the state.

To top it all off, they also have some classic Potbelly mugs in Galaxy Night. Each of these sleek little mugs features pine trees for a north woods vibe. It also has the name of our favorite state, so whether you’ve got friends who are new to Wisconsin or some who have moved away over the years, they’ll always have a piece of home with them.

You can check out a selection of Blue Moon Emporium’s products on their website.

Hometown Pharmacy

Aside from being a great place to get your flu shot for the year or getting cold medication, Hometown Pharmacy has everything from Christmas decorations to unique gifts. There are Hometown Pharmacy locations all over Wisconsin, but the stores in Oshkosh have some special treasures inside.

Amid some great holiday baubles for the last-minute decorator, you might find a Java Taster in Galaxy Night with our home state on the medallion. Each mug also features one of many possible cities, depending on which Hometown Pharmacy location you’re visiting. These mugs are an excellent option as part of a Wisconsin-themed gift package,  along with some locally roasted coffee or maybe some craft beer from the Badger State.

Although we’ve highlighted just a few stores in Oshkosh, there are dozens of Hometown Pharmacy locations throughout Wisconsin. Find your nearest location on their website for a chance to find one of their stoneware coffee mugs from the true heart of Wisconsin.

Red Door Mercantile

In the middle of Neenah’s picturesque downtown area, Red Door Mercantile is a gift shop full of unusual finds. Even when the store isn’t decked out in Christmas cheer, there are plenty of home décor pieces that add a rustic flavor to even the most urban of houses.

We can’t help but be proud of the stoneware beer steins we make for Red Door Mercantile. With their Brick Red glaze, these Double Barrel steins are a perfect way to drink local brews or a concerning amount of coffee. For us, the biggest draw is the medallions. Each one features the silhouette of the woods, plus the geographic coordinates for our hometown. It’s the perfect gift for any beer lover or if you want to give something special from America’s Dairyland.

Bedrock Coffee Roasters

Being a college town, Appleton is full of coffee shops. Found on College Avenue in downtown Appleton, Bedrock Coffee Roasters burst onto the scene in 2018. With little more than an air popper at home, Bedrock Coffee Roasters started as a study of what coffee can be when it’s high quality and freshly roasted. Now they’re a mainstay for anyone looking for fresh coffee in the Fox Valley.

Their coffee is ideal for the small-batch lover in your life. Four of their roasts from around the world are available in their online shop, along with a very handsome Executive Slim mug in Midnight Black so you can take your locally roasted coffee with some added panache first thing in the morning.

Our mugs are in hundreds of businesses across the Fox Cities, Wisconsin and beyond. Whether you’re looking for a gift for yourself or you’re putting together a present that truly shows you care, you can check out our Online Store for some quality mugs and steins, or see our interactive Mug Map to find the latest additions around the country and the world.