Creative Gifts & Where to Find Them
Dear Consumer,
’Tis the season to pull out your wallet and show your appreciation to others (if your wallet is hospitable to such an action). If you are short on ideas, here are some creative and inspiring gifts to launch toward your loved ones. Full disclosure: I know everyone on this list. It is my gift to them to share the work of theirs I love so that other folks may come to love such work as well.
Gift Idea #1: Homemade Cards
Sometimes the best gifts are small acknowledgements of you thinking of a loved one. That said, not everyone’s strength is handmade cards. My friend Amy just started her card shop on Etsy. Below you’ll find a literal snapshot of some of Amy’s shop offerings. Aren’t they cute?! Love her handcrafted gift tags and greeting cards. I contributed to Amy’s shop, so she said the first three people who mention my name in their order will get a free, bonus card. :)
Gift Idea # 2: Handcrafted Maps
Haaaaave you met Brendan Lorber, Poet & Map Maker Extraordinaire? Name your favorite musician and writer. It may just be that Brendan Lorber has a fantasy map of their lives and works. Love Emily Dickinson? There’s a map for that! Love Walt Whitman, Jeff Buckley, Dolly Parton, Joni Mitchell, Edgar Allen Poe, Gertrude Stein, John Ashbery, Gwendolyn Brooks, Madonna? Yep, there are maps for all of them!
Gift Idea # 3: Museeek
When I was living in Charlotte, NC I met a supremely talented artist named Nia J (@ theniaJ on Instagram). Her first album Melomaniacs was released over the summer, and it’s a banger. It’s the first album I’ve bought in awhile. My favorite song off the album is “Let It Be.” Go check out her music here. And, if you’re inspired, share or buy the album for a friend. It is available on itunes if you’re the type who likes to own their favorite music (I am).
Gift Idea # 4: Bookz
So many amazing books have come out in the last few years. If you or your loved ones love poetry, I highly recommend all the following collections:
Gregory Crosby’s Said No One Ever
Catherine Barnett’s Solutions for the Problem of Bodies in Space
Tom Sleigh’s The King Touch
Kiran Bath’s Instructions for Banno
Jennifer Huang’s Return Flight
Vannessa Ogle’s Mother of O
Jamie L. Smith’s The Flightless Years
Natalie Eilbert’s Overland
Cynthia Manick’s No Sweet Without Brine
These are the first ones that come to mind, but so many other lovely poets in the world, and what a lovely way to support their work by gifting their collections to others!
Gift Idea # 5: Gold Ringz
I met Steven Wendt when I subletted his studio in NYC. In addition to being part of the Blue Man Group, Steven makes these beautiful gold rings! See below.
May these unique and creative gifts bring joy to your loved ones, and happy holidays!
