The best last-minute gifts to get for the Wichita lover on your list
Christmas is just a few days away, and if you aren’t done with your shopping, there’s still time to give the gift of ICT.
The trend that started back in 2015, when Janelle King first started selling Wichita “flag swag” at the The Workroom in the form of a few T-shirts, coffee mugs and porch flags, has positively exploded since then. King’s shop is now overflowing with unique, high-end Wichita-centric gifts, and she now has a long list of imitators who are selling their own collection of ICT pride gear.
There’s really almost nothing you can’t get with some kind of Wichita emblem emblazoned on it. Bar ware, stickers, jewelry, ornaments, statues, T-shirts and hats decorated with images of the Wichita flag or the Keeper of the Plains statue are perhaps the most common.
But there’s so much more.
Some of the stuff out there this year is pretty cheeky. Some of it is rather useful. And some things might soon qualify as collectors items since they’re emblazoned with images of Lawrence-Dumont Stadium and Century II.
We recently took a tour of six local shops stocked with ICT gear that you can grab as last-minute gift items while you finish your shopping this week. Here’s a guide to who has what.
The Workroom
150, N. Cleveland, 316-295-4520
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Wednesdays and Saturdays; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
What it has: King’s gift shop will overwhelm your senses with good taste, and she might have the best and most sophisticated collection of ICT gear in the city. In addition to a large selection of Wichita T-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies and hats, she has Wichita lunchboxes, magnets, ornaments, socks, purses, cutting boards, mugs and glasses. She also has the best array of high-end decorative pillows that feature things like Wichita’s longitude and latitude and are worth their heftier price tags.
Top finds: If your pocketbook will allow it, you’ll want to splurge for the $130 couch pillow that’s embroidered with incredibly detailed images of Wichita’s landmarks, from Century II and the downtown skyline to the rocket in Riverside Park to the Keeper of the Plains surrounded with dancing flames. It’s available in white with black stitching or black with white stitching.
Also awesome are the shop’s many black-and-white wall hangings that have names of specific Wichita neighborhoods on them, including Delano, Crown Heights, Old Town, Indian Hills and more. The small ones are $30 apiece.
Bella Luz
300 N. Mead, suite 105, 316-440-2590
Hours: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; noon to 6 p.m. Sundays. Open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
What it has: Old Town Square at Second and Mead is known for the whimsical Lucinda’s, and we’ll get to that shop in a bit. But don’t sleep on Bella Luz, a smaller gift shop on the other side of the square that is positively packed with ICT gear. This is the place to get your metal Keeper of the Plains replicas, and it also has Wichita-themed jewelry, T-shirts, hats, throw blankets, ornaments, mouse pads, wine charms, coasters, post cards, decorative plates and guitar pics. The shop also sells stunning framed photographs of The Keeper of the Plains taken by local drone photographer Drone-tography.
Top finds: One of the best gifts you can give a Wichitan or Wichita fan is one of the decorative metal Keeper of the Plains replicas, and the shop has them in five sizes. The smallest costs $38 and sits comfortably on a desk. The largest is $150 and stands three-and-a-half feet tall. There’s also a sweet hand-crafted Century II ornament that could become a treasured memento, depending on how things go.
Lucinda’s
329 N. Mead, 316-264-1080
Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; noon to 6 p.m. Sundays. Open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
What it has: Lucinda’s, like we mentioned, is a shop known for gifts that are silly and whimsical and also classy and unexpected. Their Wichita and Kansas gear is largely T-shirts, but they have several no one else does, including one that shows a kitty with lasers shooting out of his eyes and the words “Ad Astra Purr Aspera.” There are also ICT license plates, flag stickers, decorative pillows, and candles branded with individual Wichita neighborhoods.
Top finds: Lucinda’s carries a T-shirt that pretty much sums up how loyalists feel about Wichita detractors. It features an outline of the state of Kansas and the words: “Wichita doesn’t suck. You do.”
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Doo-Dah Market
220 E. Kellogg, 316-779-8847
Hours: The market will be closed for Christmas week starting on Monday. But you can still get there this weekend. It’s normal hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
What it has: This little market, which sits right next door to the popular Doo-Dah Diner in downtown Wichita, exists to sell take-and-bake version of the diner’s most popular dishes. But it also has a big selection of ICT gear provided by ICT Makers , most of it displayed in its own sectioned-off room. It has a nice-sized collection of T-shirts, hats, ornaments, stickers and magnets, plus it has some of the smaller Keeper of the Plains replicas.
Top finds: The market has some cool metal wall hangings, the best of which is the cutout of the city skyline complete with the Keeper, the Epic Center and the Garvey Center. It’s $50. Another must-have: Wine glasses that feature a picture of a hatchet-wielding Carrie Nation on the front.
Bungalow 26
613 W. Douglas, 316-440-4846
Hours: Holiday hours are 10 a.m to 6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays. Open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
What it has: This super classy Delano gift shop is full of carefully curated jewelry items, bath products and home decor, but it has a decent selection of Wichita gear. It’s known as the home of the neighborhood-identifying T-shirts and candles and carries both labeled with College Hill, Delano, Old Town, Riverside, Eastborough and Crown Heights.
Top finds: Don’t miss this shop’s T-shirts and drinking glasses boasting the words “East Side” and “West Side,” in case you know someone who’s passionate about that age-old Wichita competition.
Vortex Souvenir
2721 E. Central (inside Revolutsia)
Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; Noon to 4 p.m. Sundays. Open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
What is has: This shop, which is as tiny as it is quirky, doesn’t have a whole lot of Wichita stuff, but what it does have is worth a trip to see. It’s mostly a few T-shirts, hats and some stickers. Some very, very interesting stickers.
Top finds: We can’t really print what some of Vortex’s stickers say. (One of the most unprintable mentions Kirby’s Beer Store). But they’re certainly intended for Wichitans with a sense of humor and a thick skin. Example: “Your mom looks like the Troll by the Keeper.”
Other places that have Wichita stuff
Best of Times, 6452 E. Central
Clifton Collective, 3700 E. Douglas
Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum gift shop, 204 S. Main
The Spice Merchant, 1300 E. Douglas
The T-Shirt Kitchen, 3700 E. Douglas
This story was originally published December 20, 2019 at 5:01 AM.
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