Ask the Editor: Holiday Gifts, Pt. 1

Shortly before Thanksgiving, I asked readers to write in with their specific gift guide needs. This week, I’ll be tackling some of the requests that came in via e-mail, DM and blog comment. Let’s get started.

My family does stockings, not gifts. Everyone brings eight of the same <$40 gift and we drop it in the stocking. Any suggestions?

Fire blanket. The thing you never want to need. I keep one in the kitchen and one taped to my BBQ.

Gloves are another great gift for anyone who lives in cold climate. My husband loves Neumann football gloves because they provide warmth and flexibility if you’re working in the yard. My most-worn gloves come from Land’s End. I like both their fleece gloves (<$10) and their cashmere lined leather gloves.

Lastly, I think spices and condiments are great gifts. I love the Garlic Achaar from Brooklyn Delhi. It has a smokey, garlicky, slightly sweet, subtly spicy flavor that is great on anything. Spiceology is a local Spokane company that makes really great spice blends. Also, I adore peanuts, and recently got turned onto this Peanut Salsa Macha from Tia Lupita. It’s fantastic for adding spice and crunch to a shrimp taco or a salad.

Many of you asked for gifts for parents and grandparents who are downsizing. Some of you have relatives who can’t attend events. Some also have folks who don’t want food gifts like fruit baskets or chocolate, or you’ve just given that gift before. So let’s talk about gifts for older people.

The best gift for people who don’t want anything is to upgrade something they already use frequently. My Nana would never buy a $95 face cream for herself, but she is happy with it as a gift. Also, upgrading items allows you to piggyback on a well-loved item and replace something rather than adding a new thing to the pile.

The easiest area to upgrade is with home goods. A lot of older people have worn out towels and bathmats, because these items just never seem to get replaced when someone is on a fixed income and what they have functions. Gorilla Grip makes a no slip bathmat. I love these bath sheets from Target. Same goes for bed sheets, we love these ones from Macy’s. Costco also has a nice set.

Another thing that’s easy to replace: Spices. How many ancient bottles of dried oregano or dusty shakers of thyme are sitting in the back of cupboards making recipes flavorless? This McCormick three-tier spice rack gives you 24 spices for $75 dollars. For a more affordable option, try this one. Also, if your relative likes to bake, try this set of baking spices.

Also, if you’re going to give gift cards to parents and grandparents, don’t sleep on Costco. Some friends registered there for their wedding, and I thought it was genius.

I have TEN interns right now. They’re full year interns, so I need ten gifts, and I want to get them all the same thing but the group is mixed gender-wise, race-wise, age-wise, etc. Help me. My boss gave me this task and I want to do a good job. He gave me a budget of $75 an intern.

Woof. My first thought would be gift cards to a lunch place near your office, but if you’re trying to impress a boss, that won’t work. So let’s see what else there might be.

A friend is doing customized Yeti cocktail shakers for her junior campaign staff as a closeout gift. One of the best-received gifts I’ve ever given young staff were personalized passport covers. Mark & Graham makes great luggage tags and travel goods. Also, I still use the leather notebook cover I got as an intern.

Please help me find something for my mom who has all the picture frames, throw blankets, slippers, cooking vessels, wine decanters, and vanilla candles a woman could ever, ever, ever want. Budget $200.

I’m going to semi-spoil my Mother’s Christmas present with this suggestion, but so be it. Lingua Franca makes lovely cashmere sweaters that have pre-chosen messages (some political, some not). But for $150, they make the same trendy look in a sweatshirt.

This year, I am having a custom sweatshirt made for my Mother. I am also having one made for myself and one for Sloane. My friend had one made for her sister that says “Always” because she’s a big Harry Potter fan. I’m thinking about pulling song lyrics for sweatshirts for the teen daughters of Kyle’s best man. Last summer, an acquaintance ordered several for a reunion that said “the family jones” on them. There are lots of fun options, but the sweatshirts themselves are wearable, fashion forward, and usable.

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