If you think Christmas shopping should be a fun experience, then experience Dahlonega for all of your gift giving needs!  It will provide a hassle-free experience with plenty of personal choices, and unique gifts.

Leave the city, the traffic, the malls, the harried store clerks and the crowded parking lots behind.  You will find some of the friendliest shopkeepers in the South right here on the Dahlonega square.  Walking around the square is like stepping back in time.  The historic buildings, with their decorated store windows, will surely fill every shopper with the spirit of the season.  The brisk mountain air will invigorate the Santa Claus in everyone.  You will find gifts in all price ranges for everyone on  Santa’s list.  Many of the shops will gladly wrap your purchases and make them ready to place under your tree.  The following is an offering of some of  the shops I find interesting and unique on the square.  There are many other shops as well, where you will find the perfect gift for that hard to please person.

I am sure there is someone on Santa’s list with a sweet tooth, maybe even Santa himself.  Paul Thomas Chocolates, www.paulthomaschocolates.com is the perfect place to find the sweetest gifts in the area.  Lori and Paul Thomas have made fine quality chocolates since 1975.  They have two locations, the original shop on Chestatee Street and their recently opened “chocolate wonderland” on the North Public Square.  They offer sixty mouth-watering chocolate temptations, including their signature Yahoola Snappers and Dahlonega Gold Bar.

The Fudge Factory, www.dahlonegafudgefactory.com, is another fine confectioner in Dahlonega.  It is operated by second-generation “candy-makers” offering over twelve varieties of fudge and caramel “Dahlonega Nuggets”, praline brittle, and hand-dipped chocolates.  For twenty-seven years, they have created their handmade southern confections using time-tested recipes and quality ingredients.  They offer sugar-free chocolates that taste as great the real thing.  For Christmas, consider an assortment of “holiday pop-up gift boxes” of Truffles or Fudge.  Try their  Appalachian Assortment, or Favorites of the South Tower: sweets that are sure to please.  The Fudge Factory is located on North Park Street.

Todd and Amy Strickland are the proud proprietors of  Hummingbird Lane Art Gallery, located on the North Public Square.  Their second floor gallery is full of unique, one-of-a-kind original paintings, jewelry, ceramic and wood sculpture, and books about Dahlonega and the north Georgia mountains.  They have recently added studios for several talented artists, where you can meet and talk to the artist about their work.  On any given day you might see Amy “tossing pottery”, Margret von Keiser painting, or any number of artists and  photographers busy at work.  On a recent visit, they had two Alpacas from a local Alpaca farm in the center of the gallery.  A visit to Hummingbird Lane Art Gallery is always fun.  www.hummingbirdlaneartgallery.com

Quigley’s Rare Books and  Antiques, www.quigleysbooks.com, is located on the North Public Square.  This is truly an amazing shop, offering rare and hard to find books and unique antiques.  Relax and take your time browsing the shelves stocked with old books on almost all subjects.  They have an entire section dedicated to old “Look Magazines.”  Be sure to check the very rare classic books in their glass cases.  Recently, they had a rare first edition of Margaret Mitchell’s,  Gone With The Wind (May 1936), and a signed first edition of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged.  They also had a first edition of John Steinbeck’s, The Grapes of Wrath, and a first edition, (1938) of Dr. Seuss’, The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins.  You can find a perfect gift for anyone from the most discerning collector to the child on your holiday gift list.

Imagine shopping for toys in a relaxed, hassle-free, friendly atmosphere.  Village Toys, www.myvillagetoys.com, on Chestatee Street,  is the perfect place for ease of shopping.  They have toys, toys, and more toys!   Village Toys is a unique specialty shop featuring top name brand toys and trains.  Some of the toys offered include dolls, stuffed animals, educational toys and games, as well as Lionel trains and outdoor toys.  For the future architect in your family, they carry a wonderful line of building and science toys, and arts and crafts project kits.

Gayle Jones is the proud owner of Jones & Company, (706-864-6282), on the North Public Square.  Gayle has been a merchant in Dahlonega for many years.  Her shop carries a complete line of Brighton handbags and jewelry, perfumes, and other fine accessories that is sure to please the special woman on Santa’s list.

Studio Jewelers, on the North Public Square has long been the jewelry shop of choice in north Georgia for unique, custom gold jewelry.  Owners, Thomas Scanlin and Larry Lohman, design and make many of the original gold pieces found in their showroom.  They can create wonderful jewelry pieces, from a gold necklace fashioned with an original Dahlonega gold mint coin to a diamond ring to grace Mrs. Claus.  Call 706-864-4234 for more information.

For truly unique north Georgia mountain gifts, visit The Dahlonega General Store, www.dahlonegageneralstore.com,  on the South Public Square.   Proprietor C. Jon Stone has preserved the early general store atmosphere and ambiance.  They carry a large selection of gourmet goods, jams and jellies of every variety imaginable and a variety of whole bean coffee.  They have a great gifts for the prospector and the prospector at heart; authentic metal gold pans, gold bars, vials of gold flakes, and of course,  a coon-skin cap.  They also have a variety of metal signs, old-fashioned toys, and marbles by the pound.

Great Fynds, www.greatfynds.com, is located on Chestatee Street next to the Glassblowing Shop.  The proprietors will greet you with a smile and be happy to show you their goods.  They carry a variety of handbags, jewelery, hats, shawls and other fine accessories that will make the perfect Christmas gift for Mrs. Claus.

The Glassblowing Shop, www.theglassblowingshop.com, on Chestatee Street,  is home to a fourth generation glassblower – Chris Kennedy.  The shop has daily demonstrations of the craft and offers a range of handmade Christmas ornaments and decorations.  It  also  sells barometers and glass figurines, such as butterflies, dragonflies and fairies.  Windchimes and hummingbird feeders are also available.  They will be happy to personalize glass gifts for anyone on Santa’s list.

As an architect and builder in north Georgia, I have enjoyed shopping and working in the Dahlonega area for well over a decade.  Please visit my website www.henryzuckerman.com.

I wish you a very Merry Christmas, and may Santa make all of your dreams come true !