The Rose Period Gift Guide🌹

Dopamine dose, anyone? This year’s gift guide is for the visually obsessed - 157 gifts organized by color, from Matisse blue to Rothko red🩷❤️🧡💛💚💙💜Art lovers, get ready.

Holiday gifting is stressful enough. Why not make it fun? I’m organizing The Rose Period’s first annual gift guide by the thing that matters most to me when I shop (and, well, work): color.

So here it is: a ROYGBIV spectrum of holiday gifts for the art and design obsessed.

What you’ll find:

• Special, unusual, personal, and unexpected gifts for the art and design lovers (and let’s face it! Everyone likes to think they are).

• All price points - including free(ish) (because handmade is best).

• No branded or paid endorsements - these are truly OWN picks.

• A few fun stories along the way - learn something new AND make your gift personal!

OK, let’s get into it. Your holiday shopping list, in palette form. 👇

🌹 fact: red is the first pigment ever made. Read The Rose Period’s history of red here.

1. The Met Membership ($115): or any local museum of your choice (the MoMA, Frick, or Tenement Museum are fab NYC options). Best part - give them the present of skipping the lines!

2. Cashmere Socks ($75): THE BEST GIFTS ARE ONE-SIZE!!!! You cannot go wrong with Alex Mill’s 100% Cashmere socks.

3. Handmade in Australia Resin Vase ($240): from a cult Australian studio working with resin since the 1980s. Not cheap but a treat.

4. My favorite sweater ever ($178): If you gift ONE sweater this year, make it this one. The Taylor cardi (Alex Mill’s all-star) is cotton-cashmere with the sweetest rollneck. Literally looks cool on everyone.

5. Hand-Painted Monogram Tote ($175+): The Alex Mill Perfect Tote is THE gift of all gifts - 9 colors, one-size, and personalized with hand-painted initials by artists in Brooklyn. I’m addicted to gifting this!!!

   • Add in a fun keychain - I love these from Berlin designer Ina Seifart (made by hand!)

6. 2026 Art-of-the-Day Calendar ($23): my mom gave me this last Christmas, and it’s a true source of joy in my morning routine. Each tear-off is its own artwork - I’ve saved so many to rabbit-hole the artists later.

7. Vintage Candy Wrapper Design Book ($35): 500+ vintage candy wrappers in one brilliant book - a dream gift for the nostalgia-minded design lover (ME).

8. 19th century-esque Stationary ($266 +): Holiday wedding gifts, anyone? Jonathan Wright is the spot for old-school stationery - hand-printed in LA on vintage presses. Get it engraved with their newlywed names and you have WON!!!

9. Vintage Made in France Baby Clothes ($25+): for your friend who’s expecting - this charming Parisian vintage shop has one-of-a-kind baby pieces (shoutout to my girl Kate Snyder who let me in on this secret).

10. Artists At Home Coffee Table Book ($45): I got this for my bday and absolutely adore it - 30 iconic artists and the spaces where they lived/worked.

11. Florentine Incense ($30): from Santa Maria Novella, the legendary Florentine apothecary founded in 1221. As us art people know, change the scent change the mood.

🌹 fact: Elsa Schiaparelli didn’t just love pink - she invented her own shade. In 1937 she launched “Shocking Pink,” along with her instantly sold-out perfume Shocking.

1. Hand-painted Rock Art ($40 + shipping): I’m obsessed with these pop-art-style creations from NYC artist Elizabeth Saloka. She finds each rock in the wild and lets its shape guide the design. Talk about a gift that starts a convo!

   1. Elizabeth’s done taking commissions for the year, but DM her for her current rock inventory. I’m buying this HoHo rock for inside my fridge.

2. Helen Frankenthaler Stationary ($17): if they still pen thank-yous via pen & paper get them stationery featuring their favorite artist. (add artist stamps for a level up)

3. 1970-1990 Judd Furniture Book ($70): a look at Donald Judd’s iconic furniture era - and I love the bright fushia color.

4. Jean de Brunhoff’s Babar Posters ($40): for the new baby in your life - sweet Babar art by the iconic French illustrator. What an easy way to make a nursery feel storybook-magical.

   • Also obsessed with this vintage 1980s poster if you’re in a splurgey mood (or if YOUR baby is your giftee).

5. Pink Radicchio Serving Bowl ($98): Vegetable-shaped ceramics date back to 18th-century Europe. This is the modern - and oh-so-fun - take: Italian clay turned into a pink radicchio bowl from Porta NYC.

6. Charvet Slippers ($450): give them (or yourself) bespoke Charvet slippers - from the Paris atelier worn by Proust, Manet, Monet, and half of literary history.

   1. Charvet is still best shopped in person at their historic Place Vendôme storefront, but if you call or email, the boutique will sort you out.

   2. These pink velvet ones happen to be in my size — and if you’re shopping men’s, these are extremely chic.

7. Sophie James Wine Club ($238): I love a woman artist - and a female-run organic wine farm is basically the F&B equivalent. A membership is the ultimate treat. (My sister works there so I’m biased, but I truly haven’t had a better rosé.)

8. Handcrafted Pink Spoons ($9): so frivolously unnecessary but wow aren’t they fun? Pair them with an egg cup and you’ve got yourself a very chic little set.

9. Rose Scented Incense Papers ($8): Every creative NEEDS a good studio scent. Papier d’Arménie is my secret weapon (and just $8). Bonus!! It’s been around since 1885, which means it’s actually older than the Eiffel Tower.

10. Louise Carmen Pocket Notebook ($130ish): beautifully handcrafted in Paris - a keepsake for the artist or writer who’s always sketching on receipts

11. Japanese Neon Watercolors ($22): Get them a paint color they can’t find anywhere else. This neon set is notoriously hard to track down (I found mine IRL) and sells out fast.

12. Andy Warhol’s 1950s Hand-Drawn Books ($80): 5 books created before he was famous - and includes two Rose Period favorites, his wonderfully nonsensical recipe book, & 99 Cats Named Sam.

    1. Buy it used here

🌹 fact: Van Gogh’s sunflowers were once an even brighter yellow - the Cadmium Yellow he used has chemically faded over time. Read The Rose Period’s full history of yellow here.

1. Antique Art ($80): from a NYC hidden gem I learned about from Ali LaBelle - Fox Object - it’s a literal treasure trove of vintage art and objects

   1. [Ed note: one of you already snapped this piece up, but there are plenty of other treasures.]

2. Ripple Glasses ($35): designed in NYC by Sophie Lou Jacobsen & made from borosilicate glass (fancy but durable!).

3. Rare Giorgio Morandi Vintage Poster ($145): Omg this exhibition print from the Italian master has never been framed and was kept in archival storage. Buy it before I do!!!

4. Vintage Resin Bangle ($45): creative people need creative accessories - my stylish friend Sofia Corbo stumbled upon Marion Godart bangles on eBay and our text chain has been popping off since.

   1. Three more options here, here, and here (Sofia’s exact one!)

5. Japanese Glue with a Cult Following ($8): Fueki Doubutu Nori Glue is a historic character in Japan - beloved for over 40 years with an IYKYK reputation. Perfect for the kid (or crafty friend) in your life.

6. A Butter Yellow Sweater in 100% Cashmere ($298): Who wouldn’t want to unwrap cashmere?! I swear by ours at Alex Mill - it’s 2-ply, Grade A cashmere (aka the caviar of the cashmere world).

   • As we know, yellow is having a moment rn - perhaps gift them a Rose Period Subscription so they can learn about the history of yellow while we’re at it;) ily guys!

7. Handmade Striped Yellow Vase ($98): how fun are these sunny little stripes from Porta NYC? All art lovers will appreciate it - it’s basically waiting to star in a still life.

   1. Print out this Robert Motherwell piece as your card as the full experience!

8. 9th Street Women by Mary Gabriel ($14): TOP GIFT FOR ART LOVERS, HANDS DOWN. For anyone interested in art (or wants to learn but doesn’t know where to start), this is IT. It tells the story of the five women who shaped NYC’s Abstract Expressionist movement in the 1940s–50s - and omg it is life changing.

   1. It took me over a year to read - tell them it’s okay to take their time!

9. Fancy french butter ($9-$70): Antoine Vollon’s Mound of Butter is an IYKYK masterpiece devoted to butter itself. The French have always treated it like fine art - so why not gift the real thing?

   • French butter is notoriously hard to find, which makes it the perfect present. Maison Bordier is the crème de la crème - it’s tricky to source but you can order online (get a few to justify $50 shipping).

   • Other French favorites: Echiré, Isigny Sainte-Mère, and Le Beurre de Baratte - all available on Instacart or at spots like Murray’s Cheese.

10. Handblown Yellow Drinking Glasses ($15/each): handmade in Michoacán and impossibly charming - design lovers on your gifting list will SWOON.

11. Shane Gabier’s Vases ($250+): the best gifts are handmade. Gabier is one of the most exciting ceramicists out there rn - I fully expect future accolades. Think of this as an investment piece!!!

12. 100% Cashmere Beanie ($98): don’t know what to get them? You cannot go wrong with this beanie. It’s cashmere, it’s one-size (no guessing!!!), and it comes in so many fun colors.

🌹 fact: before the 1800s, “orange” wasn’t a color - it was just “yellow-red.” The color only got its name after the FRUIT became widely known in Europe.