I’m a sucker for a quirky gift shop full of unusual, hand-picked items. So it’s no surprise that I fell for the Green Gecko in Lyndhurst, Ontario—about 90 minutes southwest of Ottawa in the Rideau Lakes—after discovering it on a country drive earlier this year. (Well, “discovered” is a bit misleading; I got a hot tip from Mariska Kriebel at Denaut Mansion Country Inn in nearby Delta, who raved about the store.)
The Green Gecko sells a wide range of locally made pottery. Photo by Laura Byrne Paquet.
Many of the decorative plaques on sale made me smile. Photo by Laura Byrne Paquet.
Mariska’s recommendation was a good one. The Green Gecko is packed with fair-trade jewellery, clothing and gift items from Thailand, India and other Asian countries, which store owners Terri and Peter Dawson carefully select on their frequent trips to the region. You’ll also find pottery, decorative items, gourmet foods, scarves, bath products and more by Canadian producers; I came home with a cupcake-shaped bath bomb for my daughter and a ethereally blue frosted glass candle holder (made by an artist in northern Ontario) for me.
These bath bombs look good enough to eat…but don’t! Photo by Laura Byrne Paquet.
This photo doesn’t really do this gorgeous little candle holder justice. Photo by Laura Byrne Paquet.
Terri thrives on unearthing cool products and finding out about the people who made them. “Part of the joy of it is a treasure hunt,” she told me. “I want to meet people. I want to hear their stories.”
If starting (or finishing) your Christmas shopping isn’t enough incentive to head to the Rideau Lakes, here’s more: every Saturday evening from now until Christmas, Lower Beverley Lake Park in Delta (a 10-minute drive from Lyndhurst) will be glowing with 75,000 Christmas lights, and the Old Stone Mill (a National Historic Site of Canada) will be offering guided tours at 5pm and 7:30pm.
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If you go
The Green Gecko is open from Tuesday through Sunday at 436 Lyndhurst Road in Lyndhurst (it’s on the village’s main drag; you can’t miss it).