Great knife maker in Buenos Aires, Palermo area. If you are looking for a traditional "gaucho"…read moreknife as a souvenir, or otherwise want an expertly crafted tool for kitchen or carry, the brothers that own this store make some of the finest knives possible. I especially like the fact that the majority of their knives are affordable and meant to be used. I bought 5 of their lower cost models to use as steak knives at home. Bonus: they are genuinely nice guys and will accommodate special requests.

Part of my work makes me travel to different countries and explore the local cultures. And in every…read morecountry I need to find something really unique that will forever remind me of this trip. And Violraviol is my souvenir of Buenos Aires: colorful, bold, yet playful and even a bit kitschy. I was wandering around Palermo (the Hollywood part) and then I detected this cute little shop. As a gay man I was right away attracted to the flowery aprons in the window and so I went inside to have a look at what other fabulous things they'd sell here. My eyes then caught the attention of a set of napkins in different designs...and I right away knew that this would be looking wonderful on my kitchen table. Gorgeous, darling...just gorgeous! Funnily enough, a couple months later I'm exchanging travel stories with a person I was having drinks with and when we came to talk about Buenos Aires, we soon discovered that we'd both been shopping at Violraviol...turns out, she was bold enough to buy that apron! The moral: be bold, colourful, playful and even dare to be kitchy!

Violraviol is an absolutely adorable shop in Palermo full of pretty table runners, napkins, aprons,…read moredish towels, coasters and the like. All are handmade using textiles that are local to Argentina. The owners are so sweet and when I came in recently looking for something travel-friendly they showed me to a striped bag that folds up small. Perfect! I've now been using it regularly on the road. Violraviol is a pleasant place to pick up a special gift from Buenos Aires for yourself or a loved one. And if your travel plans aren't taking you to Argentina anytime soon, they have an Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/VIOLRAVIOL