I'm going to Alaska at the end of June with my brother and want to bring back a nice gift from there for wife. Any ideas??

Is there any type of stone that you can get that's cheaper up there? If so, a nice pair of earrings is always a good gift idea.

A nice sweatshirt is a fun gift to receive from a vacation destination.

Does your wife collect anything? Maybe you could find a special item with an Alaskan theme to add to the collection. For instance, a tea cup collection, spoon or charm collection, etc.

There is a lot of jewelry available made of Alaska jade and gold, often so-called "nugget" jewelry (look hard for tasteful pieces.) Other popular gift items include native-carved ivory (not terribly PC,) ulus - pie-wedge shaped eskimo knives, often sold with cutting boards, various native artwork items including Tlingit or Haida indian designs from Southeast Alaska (wonderful graphic designs - used on totem poles, etc.) made into apparal or rugs, textiles, or beautiful silver jewlery (bracelets and the like) or Eskimo designs on baskets or "spirit masks" or other artworks. There are also a number of excellent artists working in Alaska or painting Alaska themes, visit the Artique shop in Anchorage for a good selection.

Other possibilities include custom-made parkas, or more kitshcy stuff like painted gold pans, moose nugget swizzle sticks, or lots of other lower-brow offerings.

But flat out the best thing to bring back (along with something nice for your wife) is reindeer sausage, available in supermarkets all over. Yum. (Really.)

A popular gift we bought was a handmade purse (small) from a Inuit craftswoman. Moose Hide, with porcupine and antler decorations.

We saw them made in Northway, AK at a little one-stop-typical-Alaskan- gas station-laundromat-grocery store-RV-gift house.

Inside the Tetlin National Wildlife Center there were two women making other crafts from moose... including muck-a-lucks and many other things.

Thanks for all the gift ideas. I can't miss with jewerly and the handbag sounds good too.

We puppysat for a friend during an Alaska trip. Our "thank-you gift" was an ivory walrus and a native style curved knife for the kitchen. Both were pretty cool.

There's something called qiviut, the undercoat of musk oxes (oxen?) that the native Alaskans weave into scarves and other such things. Pretty expensive, as I recall, but pretty unique. There's a Web site (www.qiviut.com) for a cooperative that sells the qiviut items; they've also got a store in downtown Anchorage.

Just hurry up home to slip her the ol' "totem pole," if you get my meaning...

while in sitka i found some loose stones that could be set at home. they were blue topaz and amethys. for her kitchen bring her an uloo. it is a round bladed knife. easy to use and handy. (my son-in-law skins a deer with it. very sharp). have a good time. very beautiful scenery.

Go to the Alaskan Fur Exchange in Anchorage. They have the best native Alaskan things around!

Echoing John, who seems to have a line on the items that are available throughout the state. Gold, jade, crafted ivory and baleen, even moose nuggets are for sale in jewelry form!

As for "rudeboy" We do also sell walrus "appendages" that are called oosiks.