The Hilton Head Art League will open the holiday season with its annual Holiday Arts Boutique. The Boutique will open with a reception Nov. 25 at the gallery in Pineland Station, Suite 207, from 5-7 p.m.

The Boutique offers a variety of seasonal items, including ceramics, Christmas tree ornaments and decorative pieces for the home. Fine art is always a welcome gift, and the Art League's member artists provide a broad array of paintings, sculptures, woodturnings, photography and high quality prints from which to select. In addition there are notecards, jewelry, bottle stoppers and much more.

Very popular are the Art League Gift Certificates that are available for those who are hesitant to select a piece of art for friends or family. The gift certificates can be in any denomination to fit any holiday shopping budget. There are also marvelous sweatshirts with the colorful Art League sunburst logo. These come in a variety of sizes to accommodate everyone on your shopping list, including youngsters.

Another great gift idea is a year's gift membership to the Art League for friends or family members. Membership provides a year of enjoyment with invitations to all special Art League events, a monthly newsletter and other art-related activities. Individual memberships for the 2004 calendar year are $40, and family memberships are $75. Or, gift-wrap a brochure featuring the art classes at the Hilton Head Art League Art Academy, or the week-long workshops sponsored by the League and held at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina. Nationally recognized instructors teach the workshops, and the instructors at the Academy are all well-known local artists. For the person who always wanted to paint, or cultivate existing art skills, a gift of an art class is a gift they will truly enjoy and continue to use throughout their lives.

The artists who participate in the annual Holiday Arts Boutique have been planning all year to come up with new, creative and fun items to make the holiday season seem brighter. Remember last year's oyster shell angel Christmas Tree ornaments made by Kathy Quarles? We're hoping to see some new versions on that popular item this year. Holiday wreathes have presented in cork, oyster shells and other seasonal materials. Who knows what clever idea and variation on the theme Nancy Wittke will provide this time?

Approximately 30 artists will take part in the 2004 Boutique. Many names are familiar to our local art connoisseurs and include: Nino Belfiore, Anita Blewer, Betty Brodie Luntey, Joanne Burgess, Frances Camilleri, Susan Citron, Mary Lou Cost, John Diamond, Marilyn Dizikes, Sheri Farbstein, Dave Musial, Lynn Parrott, Doris Shay, Barb Snow, Sara Tiffany and Ann White, among others. The Boutique will be open Nov. 25-Jan. 3.

The Art League is a not-for-profit membership organization dedicated to promoting the visual arts in the community and enhancing the art skills of its members. The Gallery is a volunteer-managed facility, open all year long for the exhibition and sale of artwork by Art League Members. The Hilton Head Art League Gallery is open Monday-Saturday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. For more information call the gallery at (843) 681-5060.