SUFFIELD-- Lorraine Mancini's Victorian-style bed and breakfast, called the Lily House, has a cottage industry growing from it, and it's all about the wicker.
No, there aren't tons of porch chairs, but there are lots of baskets.
Whether it's salsa, cookies or fudge, Lorraine's business is brimming with local flavor because every item that goes into one of her decorative gift baskets originates from Connecticut.
"Nothing goes into the basket if it's not Connecticut-made," Mancini said.
The grandmother of six began her business three years ago, and now "Basket Full of Connecticut" is sent in various shapes and sizes all over the country.
Mancini says she works with 47 different vendors to fill her gift baskets -- everything from artsy wine stoppers, to locally made biscotti, to the jams made at Lyman Orchards in Middlefield, she said there an interest in products from the Nutmeg State.
"I'm on a mission to find more and more," Mancini said. "It's a bunch of little companies all making a statement."
While putting the finishing touches on a basket being sent out West, Manicini added, "For the holiday season, give the gift of Connecticut."
