Oh thank Christ, another gift guide

Gift guides always have the opportiunity to be fun, to share some rare find you’ve never seen but might love, but 99% of all gift guides instead are like “DO YOU KNOW MAN? GIVE MAN WHISKEY STONE!” or “All moms are Meryl Streep in One True Thing, so she’ll love these $250 gardening clogs” or, weirdest of all, “This $45 phone charger is a great coworker gift!” Who on earth is shopping for a coworker in this economy?! If you like your coworker enough to buy them a gift, you probably don’t need a guide because you’re going to buy them something they actually like, or some inside joke like a Jeff Goldblum desk calendar.

I’ve tried for gifts here that aren’t just ticking a box but are actually fun or beautiful or bespoke or handmade. I’m not going to group these by the intended recipient because I don’t know your life. Full transparency: some of these are things made by friends of mine, but I’ve personally bought them for myself and others — I’m not doing any courtesy linking. They’re also all small businesses or independent artists, and a lot of them are having sales right now. Aren’t I smug!

Some good things to give:

Meg Musgrove textiles: This is my friend, and she’s a very talented artist. When I first met her she had the coolest job of anyone I knew: she hand-designed wallpaper for rich people and boutique hotels. I’m forever mad at myself for not buying one of her paintings when I could still afford to, like circa 2006. She now silkscreens hand-printed, 100% cotton home textiles in vibrant happy colors from her basement studio in Millerton, NY. Napkins, hand towels, pillow covers, coasters, potholders, planter bins, schleppers, you name it.

Eleanor Roosefelt Felt Portraits: My mother always wants new family photos, but she wants them to be more posed and formal than any of the rest of us have the patience for, so recently I’ve been buying her these felt ornaments of her favorite pictures from the past year to hang on her Christmas tree. My friend Amy makes these amazing felt portraits of people, pets, houses, and Janets:

I have to say, the pet ones are truly art:

Custom family portraits: This is a great gift for anyone at any time (they make great wedding presents), but especially this year, when you can’t get together with family. Last year I commissioned (that’s the verb you get to use when you order a portrait, Mrs. de Winter) a custom family portrait from Etsy seller Kasey Cauliflower and I loved how detailed she was. I sent her multiple photos as well as physical descriptions (height, eye color, always wears Converse or bright red socks, etc.) and she sent me several drafts to approve. I went for a large group (she charges by the number of people/animals) and she sent the images in family clusters as well as all together, so while my parents got the big one of all of us and spouses/pets/offspring, each individual family also got an image of just their household. She sends it as a high-res file and you can print it on nice paper at FedEx or Costco. We actually repurposed ours as our Christmas card. (There are a limited number of these. they sell out early and take a few weeks, so I’d order ASAP.)

Here are a few other more stylized options from other artists I considered and still really like:

• Etsy user Myminifam
• Another style by Myminifam
• I’m a big fan of illustrator Siobhán Gallagher and she offers both ink and digital custom portraits

An admittedly twee but sweet idea is a custom family crest. I ordered one a few years ago from this Etsy seller who appears to have just returned from maternity leave — there are several others out there but I loved her attention to detail on a tiny scale. This is an incredibly personal gift so I don’t think you can do it for anyone besides a significant other, but my husband loved ours.

If you or someone you love is a member of the Big Head Club (Is the circumference of your head two feet or more? Is there a standard-sized hat on the planet that will fit you?), these DIOP facemasks are the best I’ve worn and the coolest looking, too. (Shout out to my friend Danielle for telling me about them.) They come in both head strap and ear loop options, they don’t make your glasses fog up, and don’t shrink or fade in the wash. If you like the patterns, they make clothing too.

Out of Character Quilts: My friend Erin has been making these modern heirloom quilts for years. I love to send them as new baby gifts and I treasure the one she made for us. You can personalize them and she has a million options and sizes but my favorite is the rainbow mosaic. (Heads up: the last day to order for Christmas delivery is December 5.)

Maurele stationery: I am a sucker for stationery and when I found this website this summer, I ordered some even though I had a brand new box of other cool stationery sitting on my desk already. You can personalize letter or notecard size with different typefaces, ink color, and paper texture. I went with the Taliesin notecards with my initials in Agentur, red ink on textured natural, and they arrived with a nice handwritten note from the owner.

A subscription to Culture Study, the Anne Helen Petersen Substack: I spend $5 on a month this and often forward the articles she both writes and rounds up to friends. I’ve been a fan of Anne Helen Petersen’s writing for years, from her first book on the Golden Age of Hollywood gossip to Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud, and of course that amazing Armie Hammer Buzzfeed piece. I especially love the way she dissects the makings of celebrity, but everything she writes is great, and her Substack forum is one of the last nice places on the internet.

Clouds and Ladders jewelry: I found this shop via Instagram Explore, which usually just shows me unfunny blonde women dancing or Adam Driver memes. I received one of her necklaces from my family for my birthday this year, and every time I look at her stuff I dream of being a more adventurous earring person.

Tuesday of California: Is there anyone on your list who would like brightly colored stationery, enamel pins, knitting supplies, a lavender satin jacket with a dripping dagger on the back, or a Happiness is Owning a Chainsaw sweatshirt? I highly recommend following both this shop and its owner Tuesday Bassen on Instagram. I love their transparency, size range, style, and sales — and they have a big one starting today.

Hi Wildflower Lipstick: Yes, I admit this is usually a huge gamble, buying lipstick for another person. But I feel like if you look at these amazing shades and a friend immediately springs to mind that would love or look good in them, they would love or look good in them. My friend Nalini was wearing one of these in an Instagram story a few months ago and it was so stunning I went back to look at the story three more times and then had to screenshot it so I could look at it some more. I am dying to smell their perfumes and candles so if you get one, please tell me everything. (This shop is actually having a huge sale as they’re relaunching under a new name in 2021, so things are selling out fast but also 40% off.)

Calendars: I mean duh, but: a decade ago my brother and I started my very favorite holiday tradition: seeing who can find the weirdest calendar. The rule is you both have to hang them up all year. Past winners include (a lot of these are definitely NSFW) Dragon Sex, Shitting Dogs, NYC Taxi Drivers, Nice Jewish Guys, Teen Wolves, Lost and Found Folk Customs of Britain, Social Justice Kittens, and I think everyone’s favorite, Apple Cabin Foods. If you need a good non-joke calendar, my two standards are the Paper Source Paint Chip calendar and good old Edward Gorey.

The Shortest Day: In 2016 I unfollowed all the influencers in my Instagram feed and instead followed a ton of women artists. I’ve since added back some influencers but the artist follows have made my daily scroll so much better. One of my favorite follows is Carson Ellis, and I have a few of her prints framed in my home. This Susan Cooper poem she illustrated about the winter solstice would make such a great gift — I would say for a child, but I want it myself.

If you need more ideas, you can never go wrong with a candle.