When we moved to Wilmington seven years ago, the biggest draw for us wasn’t the beaches or the coastal weather. It was downtown – the historic homes and buildings, the restaurants, the shopping, the Riverwalk, the festivals and the occasional star sighting (maybe not so much for Steve). Downtown has been a prominent setting in our lives. We got engaged here, married here and now run a business from here.

It’s hard for us to believe there are people who live in New Hanover and northern Brunswick counties who do not take advantage of downtown. Yet we come across people all the time who never set foot there.

Why? Is it the parking? You won’t find cheaper parking in a downtown area (i.e. Charlotte, Charleston, Savannah…). Is it safety? Well, I don’t like being downtown after 2 a.m., but I feel that way about any city or town.

Do It Downtown is asking these same questions in a grassroots effort to promote downtown to locals. It’s an effort Bon’s Eye Marketing strongly supports, because, as Joan Loch, owner of Crescent Moon in the Cotton Exchange, said at the first Do It Downtown forum, “We need a thriving downtown 12 months a year.”

With five theatres, five museums, 20 galleries, 50 restaurants, 100 shops and more, downtown has so much to offer. It’s why Bob Jenkins, owner of Wilmington Adventure Walking Tour Company, moved downtown more than 30 years ago.

“Why did I move?” he said. “The history, culture, architecture, the people. There’s not another city in North Carolina that has the diversity that downtown has. I’ve had to find 23 different translators. What’s incredible is that they’re all Wilmingtonians.”

Jenkins called the Do It Downtown movement a “dream come true” for him. He pointed to a wood beam in the middle of The River Room, a meeting and event space where the first forum was held.

“That beam is 500-700 years old,” he said. “This room is held up by that. People come from all over the world to see this city’s history. A lot of locals take that for granted.”

Do It Downtown hopes to educate people about the uniqueness of downtown and to dispel any misconceptions about the area.

“It’s about community,” said Richard Davis, president of the Brown Coat Pub and Theatre. “We are strongest when all businesses downtown are strong. We need each other, and we need the people of Wilmington.”

If you don’t often go downtown or try to avoid it all together, why is that? The folks behind Do It Downtown want your input.

What do you get your parents for Christmas when they have everything? A gourmet meal cooked by a fabulous chef – Kevin DeMarco, owner of DeMarco Studio.

When mom and dad (x2) opened their gift, I’m sure they didn’t know what to expect. We had the fortune of being invited to a dinner party catered by chef Kevin but no words could adequately describe what was to come.

After some drawn-out matching of schedules (on our parents’ end, of course), the big dinner finally arrived two Saturdays ago. Chef Kevin showed up to our house around 2 p.m. with boxes of ingredients as well as plastic bins full of plateware and cutlery. He buttoned up his cooking jacket, heated the stove eyes and started creating culinary masterpieces.

Steve, Grayson and I left the food artist to his work, driving off in search of ways to keep a 20-month-old occupied for six hours. The cold and rainy day meant I could suggest “walking” around the mall without much fussing from Steve. In my old age, though, I had forgotten about the weekend habits of American nine to 14-year-olds – the mall was crawling with packs of them, requiring evasive stroller maneuvers.

I offered an escape plan but was immediately shot down. If our path veered toward a store entrance, the temper tantrum began (Steve, not Grayson). After a couple of laps, we grabbed an Auntie Anne’s cinnamon pretzel and settled on a cozy bench for some prime tween/teen watching.

While Steve entertained Grayson, my sister and I played host of “Is That What Kids Wear/How Kids Act Today?”  At the same time, our parents were indulging in our holiday gift of food Nirvana. Over the next several hours, they lived it up in the Bon family dining room, sipped wine and enjoyed what they later proclaimed to be the “best meal I’ve ever had.”

(1) Appetizer
Citrus grilled tuna sashimi
Sage toasted pecan farro
Blueberry fig mostarda
Vanilla-infused EVO

(2) Salad
Winter’s Harvest
Prosciutto-wrapped greens
Pumpkin rosemary vinaigrette
Manchego roasted garlic panini
Toasted pumpkin seeds
Pomegranate syrup

(3) Entrée
Mahi Mahi ravioli
Smokey sautéed escarole
Marinated shitake mushrooms
Roasted garlic and butternut squash nagé
Spiced squash chips

(4) Dessert
Chocolate tower
Fallen chocolate angel cake
Malted milk chocolate sauce
Fresh cherry gelato
Chocolate shards

By the end of the night, we had learned our lessons. (1) Never go the mall on a Saturday late afternoon. (2) Invite ourselves the next time chef Kevin cooks for our parents.

Is it motherhood, breaking the 30 barrier last year, being stuck indoors because of the “cold” weather…? Whatever the reason, I recently entered a crafty phase in my life. Please, don’t laugh – even though this is coming from the girl who can’t sew a button, tie a decent bow, cut a straight line, etc.

I’ve always looked up to those craftier than myself, which is just about anybody. My mom can sew, paint, make jewelry, marble… My sister Katie definitely inherited the artsy genes out of the three girls – I say that without a hint of jealousy:) My mother-in-law recently started her own custom jewelry business, and her queue remains full. My aunts can turn trash into works of art. My neighbor, Dawn, can wrap a gift that would be fit to give to royalty. I could go on and on.

So this year when my mom asked what I wanted for Christmas for the nth time, I half-jokingly said, “Um, how about a metal jewelry stamping set?” The night before I had been admiring some necklaces on Etsy.com and thought, “How hard could it be? Besides, I’m not paying $30 for that. Maybe $10 or $12…” Yes, I could have just put the necklace on my list. But like I said, something had brought my crafty cells to life.

What the heck was I thinking?!

So on Christmas morning instead of opening a jewelry box containing a necklace with Grayson’s name stamped on it, I received a Rubbermaid plastic bin filled with all the tools needed to make my own bling. Inside was a hammer, steel letters and numbers, BLANK sterling silver, brass discs as well as squares.

With a head full of ideas, names and quotes, I was ready to stamp. WRONG! It’s not as easy as it looks. First, there’s figuring out how to hit the stamp on practice Post-it’s (note: it’s nothing like hammering a nail). Then it’s trying to somewhat align the letters. The good part is that it doesn’t have to be “perfect,” which is part of why this could be the craft for me. Finally, you try not to psyche yourself when the actual metal blank is on the stamping block. My first piece: a nametag for Cohen. Luckily, he’s a dog and doesn’t care how bad it looks. I’ve done a few more, and while I have a ways to go before wearing anything I make, I’m having fun. I’ve also discovered pounding on metal works as a great stress reliever.

I assumed I was a one-craft woman until last weekend. While Grayson and his friend Sophie played, I interrogated Sophie’s mom about how she made the nameplate strung above her little one’s crib. I’ve kept one of Grayson’s walls blank, waiting to buy something to hang, stick, paint, etc. This was it! And Hilary assured me it was easy.

With a list of supplies, I headed to the craft store. I bought everything I needed and then some, coming out a card-carrying A.C. Moore Rewards member. That night I stayed up past 10 p.m. armed with paint, tape, scissors and glue. Success!

What’s next for this aspiring Martha Stewart? Maybe I’ll start a blog called Sarah and Martha that will chronicle my attempt to create my way through Martha Stewart’s Encyclopedia of Crafts: An A-to-Z Guide with Detailed Instructions and Endless Inspiration. Ha! I know my limitations. I’ll stick with one or two crafty aspirations – at least for now.

We wish we could be like Oprah and give the audience our “Favorite Things.” When we appear on Forbes’ billionaire list, we’ll make it happen Until then, you’ll have to cover the cost with the checks Santa hopefully left in your stocking.

All of this year’s picks just so happen to be Wilmington products/stores/etc. Don’t forget to shop local. It’s not just a statement, it’s a movement. Check out the grassroots campaign Buy Local ILM on Facebook and Twitter.

In alphabetical order:

Boca Bay, Brasserie du Soleil, Circa 1922, Grand Union Pub, Osteria Cicchetti
www.bocabayrestaurant.com
Ash Aziz is the Midas of restaurants in this town. Every establishment he opens is gold – from the food to the atmosphere. When we can’t decide where to eat out, we always end up at one of his places. Of course, then it’s tough to pick which one (maybe we need a rotation schedule). Some of our favorite menu items: everything on the Sunday Brunch (Boca Bay), Steak Au Poivre with Pommes Frites (Brasserie du Soleil), Tapas (Circa 1922), Papardalle Bolognese (Osteria Cicchetti) and the Carolina burger with pulled pork, vinegar slaw and pickles (Grand Union Pub).

Children’s Museum of Wilmington Family Fun Pass
www.playwilmington.org
If you have kids, this is a great place to take them. For less than $100, you can buy a pass to get you, another adult and your child(ren) in all year. Grayson’s grandparents got this for him this Christmas. He loves hanging out in the Toddler Gallery, and we get a hoot out of watching him “talk” to the other kids.

Crescent Moon
www.crescentmoonnc.com
Located in the Cotton Exchange downtown, Crescent Moon sells fine, hand-crafted glass and metal art. Their aim is to “to offer an affordable selection of fine handcrafted art glass by renowned artists in North America, and to make your art-collecting or gift-giving a pleasurable experience.” Mission accomplished!

DeMarco Studio
www.wilmingtonhealthcoach.com
We were fortunate to be invited to a five-course dinner prepared by chef extraordinaire Kevin DeMarco. I never knew healthy food could be so good! Kevin, who also happens to be a personal trainer, believes in the 60/40 Philosophy: 60% healthy eating and 40% exercise. We were so impressed with his food that our Christmas present to our parents was a gift certificate for a five-course meal prepared by Kevin.

Glynne’s Soaps
glynnesoaps.com
Soaps – for people and their four-legged best friends – lotions and more, Glynne’s products are all natural and earth friendly. They make a good bar of beer soap. Who knew hops could also be refreshing on the skin? They happen to use beer from one of our favorite downtown hangouts – Front Street Brewery – as well as from FootHills Brewery and RJRocker’s.

“How to Massage Your Pregnant Partner”
www.relax-productions.com
When we decide to have another Baby Bon, this DVD will be loaded in the player at all times. Gretchen Rivas, a local licensed massage therapist, teaches partners how to properly massage moms-to-be. Lower back pain, leg cramps, pounding headaches, etc. can make life pretty uncomfortable. Tylenol never did the trick. But the techniques Gretchen teaches can offer much needed relief. This DVD makes a great gift for you or for someone else.

Mama Lou’s BBQ Sauce
www.mamalousbbq.com
Never one to pass up BBQ, we know our sauces. While we like all styles – whether the base is tomato, vinegar, mustard, ketchup, a dry rub… – there’s one sauce that has made it to the top of our list. Mama Lou’s is sweet, spicy, smoky – it’s the best of all kinds in one bottle. You can find it at local shops, including Fire and Spice Gourmet in the Cotton Exchange.

The Metropolitan Opera Live in HD
uncw.edu/caic/events-cultural.asp
You don’t have to fly to New York City to see some fantastic operas. Just hop on over to UNCW to catch one of the last two showings of the season – Der Rosenkavalier or Carmen. The first transmission of this Peabody and Emmy Award-winning series was a condensed English-language version of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte on December 30, 2006. To order tickets, call (910) 962-3195.

Peaceful Beginnings
www.peacefulbeginningsnc.com
Amy is not only a good friend, but she also is a great massage therapist. My back and “arthritic” hands can attest to her skills (yes, I know I’m not even 40 and shouldn’t be dealing with these ailments). She also taught us how to massage Grayson – back in the day when he was immobile. We had no idea that baby massage techniques not only relax these little ones, but also relieve gas pains and help with digestion.

Sawgrass
When Rare Cargo closed shop, downtown was left without a place to find unique and affordable gifts. Then Sawgrass opened on Market Street and filled that void. Owners John and Val, who are both artists, keep the shelves stocked with cool finds – from jewelry and home décor to books and handbags.

South ‘n France Bon Bons
www.southnfrance.com
If you haven’t experienced the taste of these handmade, golf-ball sized chocolate drops of heaven, order some now! We always get the sampler because all the flavors are so yummy! Café au Lait, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Coconut, Fudge Brownie, Peanut Buttah and Pistachio. The bon bons alone are fabulous, but what really separates this product from any other containing chocolate are the owners of South ‘n France – Charlene and Pascal. Read their story here http://www.southnfrance.com/le_mariage

Spectrum Art & Jewelry
www.spectrumartandjewelry.com
Walking into Spectrum Art & Jewelry is like stepping into a museum – surrounded by color and beauty in the paintings, glass sculptures, jewelry and other pieces. The only difference is you can buy these works of art. Besides selling the creations of more than 100 American artists, the gallery, located in The Forum, also offers custom jewelry design, fine jewelry repair and monthly events.

Thalian Hall
www.thalianhall.com
Built in 1858, this still-working downtown theatre is a venue for plays, music, movies and more. The Cinematique series offers area residents a chance to see art house films that don’t make the rounds at our local movie theaters.

Vic’s Corn Popper of Wilmington
www.alwayscorny.com
For nearly 20 years, Vic’s has been popping some of the best popcorn you’ll ever eat! People ask why I carry such a big purse. Well, it’s so I can sneak a bag of Vic’s into the movie theater. We’re still working on our holiday canister filled with Half Salt, White Cheddar and Carmel.