Best gift shops: Carroll Gardens

Skip the Evite and go old-school by picking up invitations at this stationary store, started by Cali transplant Raegan Hirvela. Its walls showcase paintings from local artists, and the ceiling is adorned with paper airplanes. Wrap a present with Seltzer Recycled’s funky skull-and-crossbones gift paper ($3 per sheet) or Art with Heart’s robot-patterned paper ($8); then personalize it by filling out one of Snow & Graham’s assorted watercolor alphabet note cards ($12 for a box of five cards with envelopes). Or just skip the stress of gift giving altogether, and buy yourself a silk-screen-covered journal to pour your heart out ($12).

Owner Lara Fieldbinder is switching up her womenswear boutique (which has been named Dear Fieldbinder since 2005) to appeal to customers who were looking for threads a little less trendy and a little more urban business professional. This location now acts as a showroom, where you can try on clothes from brands such as Paul and Joe Sister and Mink Pink, and accessories including those from labels including Jeffrey Campbell and Cheap Monday.

In a big ol’ eff-you to the proverbial Man, Brooklyn Collective opened its doors to artists who wanted to showcase their work without the pressures of corporate retail. Members bear the brunt of the rent and keep 100 percent of their profits. Check out the whimsical illustrations by Lisel Ashlock or impossibly delicate gold-leaf earrings by Jess Yam.