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Summer's winding down, and whether you've been invited to spend Labor Day weekend at a friend's house or are already planning your fall-winter holiday gift lists, a worthwhile pit stop in curious-commodities hostess-gift-land is Kiosk. Situated on the second story of a zoned artists-only loft building in the middle of Manhattan's SoHo, Kiosk specializes in an always-changing inventory—and items are available to purchase online. Owner and curator Alisa Grifo travels the world buying ordinary-but-extraordinary objects to sell in the shop—right now, Kiosk is all-American, but previous seasonal merchandise has come from Iceland, Finland, Sweden, and Mexico.
· Ideal notebook set, Mexico, $12
· Shrimper, USA, $5
· Who Will Comfort Toffle? book, Finland, $35
· Coffeetime coffee syrup, USA, $5
· Slim pot, Japan, $65
· Red sugar bowl, Portugal, $26