Sears tooling Kmart for the holidays

You know, of course, that Kmart carries Martha Stewart cookware and linens.

The names Martha and Kmart go together like the brown sugar and molasses in Martha's gingerbread cookies.

What you might not know is that because Kmart has merged with Sears, its stores also carry Craftsman tools. This holiday season, the Big K at the Gallery at Market East (9th Street) has a huge selection: utility knives, tool boxes, circular saws, work lights, laser levels, tool belts, tape measures, variable-speed drills, mechanics gloves and much more. There's even a 150 psi air compressor and a hydraulic shop stool.

It's almost beside the point which item of garage gear you choose. In our experience, Craftsman red is to men what Tiffany blue is to women. The color alone sets off a drool response, and the sparkly stuff inside the box - diamonds or wrench sets, respectively - is almost gravy.

Shopping for shop vacs and belt sanders at the Gallery is a giddy prospect for tool givers, too. You could buy a little red Craftsman something for every man on your list during lunch hour, avoiding the weekend parking snarl at the big box stores.

For the big gear, Kmart will deliver anywhere within the city limits, although there is a charge (starting at $39.75). Alternatively, the store sells a folding hand truck for $18.99 (alas, not from Craftsman) that can haul a load of up to 150 pounds. *

- Becky Batcha