Wearing a scarf, beanie, and tights all from Sezane.
I have to admit something about myself: I am really good at getting gifts. For myself and for other people. I relish in any opportunity: birthdays, new businesses, engagements. I relish other kinds of opportunities too: when I’m out in the world somewhere, and I see something that instantly reminds me of somebody specific. It’s like a call to arms. I must buy it. There is no need for any specific reason to give a gift, and the gifts that are given just because are the best gifts of all. I wanted to compile a gift guide that was kind of for this holiday, but also for any time of the year.
I didn’t grow up receiving or giving gifts to my family much, maybe a function of our economic situation, but also our cultural one. Once, when I was maybe ten years old, I took about 20 of my mother’s tiny glass animal figurines (they looked a lot like this) that lived on top shelf of a display cabinet in our living room, next to a framed picture of the twelve apostles and a weird doll holding a heart my mother had bought from Vietnam that had a skirt you could lift to reveal its tiny penis. I took these glass animal figurines, and gave one to each of my peers at school, as a lavish invitation to a birthday party at my house that I had conjured up without telling anyone else, including my mother. When she found out, I had to ask for every single one of these figurines back, and I had to tell everyone I made up my birthday party. I don’t remember much from my actual birthday that year.
If you deprive a diva of feeling special on her birthday, it has a ripple effect. The ripple effect was that I am enormously into gift giving and receiving. So, let my trauma be a gift of sorts to you. Here’s a non-occasion-specific gift guide for somebody special in your life.
<$100
Fancy body wash adds so much luxury to a shower routine but I’m fairly sure nobody actually wants to spend $30+ on body wash, which makes it a perfect gift. My two favorites are Wonder Valley’s Hinoki Body Wash and OSEA’s Undaria Algae Body Wash.
I recently found out about Stevengraph bookmarks, which were apparently hand embroidered by nuns or something according to the woman who refused to sell me hers at the local vintage market in Helena while I was there over fall. I went immediately on eBay and bought this exact same one and discovered an entire new eBay search term obsession: vintage bookmarks.
Get a gorgeous vintage photo album (here’s one, here’s another) and fill it with pictures for somebody!
I love Yamako Iona’s creepy ass paintings of possessed dogs. She had a “Creepmas” sale going (she releases prints every so often), but I didn’t finish this on time so you’ll have to just sign up to her newsletter for the next drop. I also love Robert Roest’s print of possessed dogs - this one ends TOMORROW! (December 16)
A slight variation on the above is an oil-based unisex perfume roll-on. I use Wonder Valley’s as my sole vacation scent because it is so compact, and I also enjoy the one from Treadwell, which is a blend of eucalyptus and palo santo. These are great gifts for anyone, because they’re quite neutral scents. I have been to Burning Man one time, and one of the most special parts of it is the gift economy. It’s not bartering. You’re meant to just bring stuff to give freely without expecting anything in return. As it was my first time, I was barely alive the entire time let alone in a state to bring planned gifts but what I did have was a bottle of eucalyptus essential oils. I would go up to people, ask them cup their hands together facing up, and I would drop a little bit in and ask them to inhale. In the dusty wilderness of Burning Man, something as simple as the smell of eucalyptus was a gift, and that totally changed the way I think about gifting.
On a similar note, novelty vintage sweatshirts, I think, are always welcome, because 1) it doesn’t have to fit well, it just can’t be too small and 2) they’re comfy and we all want more comfy clothes. eBay search “Somebody loves me in [insert place]” or “vintage [insert hobby or interest like volcanoes/rats/cheesecake/rainbows] sweatshirt size X”
Last Christmas Cody bought me my current journal from this company called About Blanks. They take old book covers and make new beautiful journals that look inconspicuous on a book shelf.
For the smoker in your life: why not a beautiful silver antique cigarette case? Roll them some to give inside.
One of my favorite belongings, and for the weed smoker in your life: why not a joint holder in the shape of a woman’s body with 24K gold-tipped nipples? Elevate Jane is one of my favorite woman-owned weed brands and as well as being extra, joint holders are really useful to smoke roaches.
Also for the weed lover or smoker in your life, I love having a beautiful lighter holder. This one by Chen and Kai is great, as well as this very extra one by Edie Parker.
For the game lover in your life, there are sometimes actual records pressed for the soundtracks of games. I have both the Katamari and Stardew Valley soundtrack on vinyl.
There are great Japanese photo books from Shashasha, and some locally made ones from Pom Press and Friend Editions. They’re both always releasing new titles. Jason also told me about Charcoal Press Book Club - a subscription service for photo books.
One of my favorite belongings, and for the weed smoker in your life: why not a joint holder in the shape of a woman’s body with 24K gold-tipped nipples? Elevate Jane is one of my favorite woman-owned weed brands and as well as being extra, joint holders are really useful to smoke roaches.
This beautiful circular hand cream from Superegg and it’s gorgeous egg sack it comes with. This hand cream smells insanely good and is also good to fiddle with when you’re anxious.
I first discovered Bacha Coffee, a Moroccon coffee brand via a gifting suite run by the wonderful Oset called Prix Fixe a year or two ago. From there I ended up buying the Bacha Navigator Coffee Bag Taster for Cody. It’s really cute to choose the flavor you want to try that day and try it together over crosswords, and the packaging is soooo pretty.
Sometimes the simplest gift is the fucking best: A gift card to McNally Jackson/Leaves/Word Bookstore/Books Are Magic for the bookworm in your life (this was recently gifted to me for the first time), or Nitehawk/Alamo/IFC/Anjelika/Metrograph gift card for your NYC-based movie lover
Socks! Socks fall under the same category as luxury body wash: you want nice socks but you don’t want to pay for them. I like these Donni ones, and these Merino wool ones from Comme Si.
>$100
Sezane scarf + beanie set. The scarf is big enough to wrap around my head three times, which is not nearly enough to protect me from a very chapped chin that always seems to happen every winter. It does help though. It comes with a matching beanie. They even have a matching gift set.
I found a perfect hooded sweatshirt in a Second Street in Japan. I found out that it’s by a cult Japanese brand called McCoy that specializes in ripping off heritage golden-age Americana workwear and basics. I would get a hoodie-wear in my life this beautiful oatmeal hoodie. Price is a little crazy for a vintage sweatshirt but it is very well made and soft, the type of special impractical thing that is perfect to receive as a gift.
Most of my everyday jewelry is from: Long May Love Rule, Em Jono, Natura Human and I just got very cute earrings from Kara Yoo. On the custom piece side, I have received a very sweet gift from Cody from Soft Good Studio, a jewelry studio based in the Bay area that specializes in pieces that integrate family heritage symbols. I’m also partial to a tiny necklace like this one from Chan Luu. I also stumbled across a woman in Chinatown called Lucky Zhang who is now my go-to girl for gold and silver jewelry. I got two silver charms - one of my Chinese Zodiac sign, and one of my boyfriend’s. I also bought my first Jade bangle from Margaret, she has great options for any budget.
For the person in your life who washes their face with body wash (I’m not going to name names): a simple skincare set. I have used and liked Biossance, Youth To The People, and Beauty of Joseon.
One of my favorite places in the world to go with Cody is a hotel called Tourists in Massachusetts. Every room has a radio on that is tuned into their own private radio station that plays the most on-point ambient music after 11PM, and we loved the robes so much we bought them for each other. They’re sold out right now but who knows, they might come back.
Get them a gift card to a local framer so they can finally frame whatever random thing they never got around to framing. Again, something that is super useful and beneficial on a daily basis, and something nobody likes to spend money on.
Last Updated December 2025 - if you keep checking back I might just keep updating it when I think of or receive great gifts. :)
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