Alameda Headlines

• WHEN & WHERE: Shop at two places! South Shore Shopping Center  – Tue-Sat 11am-8pm; Sun & Mon 11am-6pm. At 2062 Lincoln Ave @ Willow – Thurs-Sat 10am-8pm. Mon-Wed 11am-6pm. Extended hours start in December!
• WHAT:  Get your Free Whale Ornament on Black Friday!

Christine Gonsalves and Steve King founded the Whales & Friends on Lincoln Ave in Alameda that you know and love. Christine is the buyer and really knows our tastes and what will enhance our lives and the lives of the friends we care about.

In celebration of Whales & Friend’s 32nd anniversary on Lincoln Ave, they thought it would add to the whimsy and fun for the holidays to bring you a second location for all your gift shopping needs. So they  popped up your favorite holiday store at South Shore Center across from Trabocco Kitchen & Cocktails.

“Opening up the Whales & Friends popup means we can bring more joy to our Bay Area friends,” says Christine. “Over the years we became famous for having a delightful gift for anyone on your gift list – even the crazy uncle.”

Steve designed the popup space. “Filling such a large store front space was a challenge, but I think we’ve been able to capture the flavor of our original smaller Lincoln Avenue store at the South Shore Center, at least that’s been the feedback we’ve gotten from our customers.”

The beauty of this new space is that it is large and airy with lots of windows providing natural light and enough room for an art museum displaying the fantastic sculptures of artist David King.

SHOPPING:
Hurry down to Whales & Friends at either 2062 Lincoln Ave or to the pop up store and gallery at South Shore Center and get in the holiday spirit! The shops are full of magical surprises for everyone.

Between both stores you will find an eclectic collection of Tiffany-style Lamps, garden sculptures, fun and educational toys and books, vases, knitted wool sox, scarves, lots of hats, eclectic purses and so many more nature inspired gifts. And of course, there are many Friends from the Sea – whale, seahorse, dolphin and sea turtle earrings and necklaces. And their friends come in many sizes and shapes.

Whales & Friends offers a curated collection of hand crafted jewelry including – their own exceptionally beautiful Bamboo Jewelry, which is hand crafted by fusing kiln fired powdered glass onto a sterling silver foundation, a centuries old process known as cloisonné – showcasing favorite birds, marine animals, panda bears and butterflies.

Whales & Friends also has two other unique creations –  ask about the iMac shelf and famous stylus.

Look forward to the Winter Wonderland spirit with Trees filled with themes of mermaids, kitchens, retro, peacocks, underwater, animals and birds. Lots of hand crafted ornaments from around the world!

More about Bamboo Jewelry

Being made of glass, the cloisonné jewelry’s colors will never fade and each color is outlined with a fine braid of silver wire. Ear wires and necklaces, which adjust in length from 16”– 20”, are sterling silver. Crystals are made by Swarovski in Austria.Each piece of BAMBOO Jewelry is packaged in an environmentally friendly bamboo gift box lined with anti-tarnish and can be used as a jewelry box.

• WHEN: Now Open Daily: M-Sa 11am-8pm; Su 11am-6pm
• WHERE: South Shore Shopping Center in the Plaza behind Trader Joe’s
• WHY: In celebration of Whales & Friend’s 32nd anniversary on Lincoln Ave, owners Christine Gonsalves and Steve King thought it would add to the whimsy and fun for the holidays to bring you a second location for all your gift shopping needs. So they are popping up your favorite gift store at South Shore Center across from Trabocco Kitchen & Cocktails.

Christine Gonsalves and Steve King founded the Whales & Friends on Lincoln Ave in Alameda that you know and love. Christine is the buyer and really knows our tastes and what will enhance our lives and the lives of the friends we care about. “Opening up the Whales & Friends popup means we can bring more joy to our Bay Area friends,” says Christine. “Over the years we became famous for having a delightful gift for anyone on your gift list – even the crazy uncle.”

Steve designed the space. “Filling such a large store front space was a challenge, but I think we’ve been able to capture the flavor of our original smaller Lincoln Avenue store at the South Shore Center, at least that’s been the feedback we’ve gotten from our first customers.”

The beauty of this new space is that it is large and airy with lots of windows providing natural light and enough room for an art museum displaying the fantastic sculptures of artist David King.

GALLERY EXHIBIT: Striders and Totems

The Striders sculptures by sculptor David King bring to life an eclectic combination of objects fitted together into walking and standing figures. They seem smooth and yet rough textured, lithe and blocky, delicate and strong, human and alien – all at the same time. The striders are individuals caught in mid stride going somewhere or maybe they have stopped to give us a moment of their time. The Totems, also made of a combinations of eclectic materials, exude strength and profess a statement of its unique story.

SHOPPING:
Hurry down to Whales & Friends at either 2060 Lincoln Ave or to the pop up store and gallery at South Shore Center and get in the holiday spirit! Halloween spirit is happening now as they start bringing in the ornaments and gifts for the rest of the holidays. This shop is full of magical surprises for everyone.

Between both stores you will find an eclectic collection of Tiffany-style Lamps, garden sculptures, fun and educational toys and books, vases, knitted wool sox, scarves, lots of hats, eclectic purses and so many more nature inspired gifts. And of course, there are many Friends from the Sea – whale, seahorse, dolphin and sea turtle earrings and necklaces. And their friends come in many sizes and shapes.

Whales & Friends offers a curated collection of hand crafted jewelry including – their own exceptionally beautiful Bamboo Jewelry, which is hand crafted by fusing kiln fired powdered glass onto a sterling silver foundation, a centuries old process known as cloisonné – showcasing favorite birds, marine animals, panda bears and butterflies.

Whales & Friends also has two other unique creations – the iMac shelf and famous stylus.

Look forward to the Winter Wonderland spirit coming soon with Trees filled with themes of mermaids, kitchens, retro, peacocks, underwater, animals and birds. Lots of hand crafted ornaments from around the world!

More about Bamboo Jewelry

Being made of glass, the cloisonné jewelry’s colors will never fade and each color is outlined with a fine braid of silver wire. Ear wires and necklaces, which adjust in length from 16”– 20”, are sterling silver. Crystals are made by Swarovski in Austria.Each piece of BAMBOO Jewelry is packaged in an environmentally friendly bamboo gift box lined with anti-tarnish and can be used as a jewelry box.