Category Archives: gift guide

gift guide: laurie jesch-kulseth’s finds for the master chef

{Editor’s Note: This year, I’ve asked a few of the people whose style I spend all year admiring to share their holiday wish lists. Stay tuned – we’ll have a new expert every day for the next two weeks!} gift guide foodie

If you’ve been reading SMC for any length of time (hurray!), you’ll have noticed that if there’s one thing I love as much as shopping, it’s food. I have ~~too many~~ a fair number of food blogs on my reading list, but I love none better than Laurie Jesch-Kulseth’s Relishing It. If you’re in need of a food blog that doesn’t give you pangs of anxiety, Laurie is definitely the lady you’re looking for. All of the talent with none of the hype, Laurie’s recipes are creative but approachable, her writing is full of helpful ideas, and not once have I made something of hers that didn’t turn out to be completely delicious. Plus, I’m a sucker for a little Midwestern charm, which Laurie has in spades. This is a girl who knows her way around the kitchen. Who better to help you pick the perfect gift for the finicky foodie on your list?

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gift guide: alle fister’s finds for the cool cali girl

{Editor’s Note: This year, I’ve asked a few of the people whose style I spend all year admiring to share their holiday wish lists. Stay tuned – we’ll have a new expert every day for the next two weeks!}

Back when I was but a wee fashion blogger, knee high to a grasshopper, Alle Fister was the very first PR person I ever worked with! Since we first met all those years ago, her career has skyrocketed. From being Shopbop’s first PR Director back in their startup days to her current role as the founder of one of the most successful PR firms in the biz, Alle and her team at Bollare represent everyone from VANS and Timberland to Rachel Palley and Kevyn Aucoin.

As you might expect of someone with this level of insider access, Alle has an undeniably cool sense of style, and an innate ability to spot (or set) a trend from a mile away. A Malibu girl through and through, Alle knows her way around a surf shop, but she’s tuned into every single trend, and always, always knows what’s next. She exudes California cool from every invisible pore.

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gift guide: craig olson’s finds for the modern man

{Editor’s Note: This year, I’ve asked a few of the people whose style I spend all year admiring to share their holiday wish lists. Stay tuned – we’ll have a new expert every day for the next two weeks!}

No offense to Mr. SMC, but Craig Olson might be the hippest guy I know. So, it’s no surprise he was my very first choice for a men’s gift guide. Craig (along with his parter in crime, Sean Igo) is the genius behind Portland’s Canoe and the brand new Spruce Apothecary. Craig and Sean were at the forefront of Portland’s hip-ification when they opened Canoe, a store that’s still beloved across the country for its modern aesthetic and hyper-sophisticated selection of home goods and accessories. Not only would I blindly trust Craig to pick a gift for anyone on my list, but I’ve often begged him to do just that. He has a perfect track record with every person on my shopping list, and judging from this list of picks, he’s going to remain the undefeated champ of men’s gift ideas.

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gift guide: nicky kinnaird’s finds for the luxe beauty addict

{Editor’s Note: This year, I’ve asked a few of the people whose style I spend all year admiring to share their holiday wish lists. Stay tuned – we’ll have a new expert every day for the next two weeks!}

Friends, this is not just another beauty gift guide. Nicky Kinnaird is the founder of Space NK Apothecary…also known as my beauty kryptonite. With more than 60 stores in the UK, and two dozen in the US, Nicky has made it her mission to return a little luxury and elegance to our beauty buying experience. Despite a travel schedule that officially qualifies her for jetsetter status, she’s absolutely fanatical about only sourcing the very best lines from around the world (think Eve Lom, Chantecaille, Philip B…you get the idea). Whenever I hear about a new product that editors are clamoring for, chances are good that Space NK is the only one carrying it. In other words, when Nicky says something’s on her wish list? It’s safe to assume it’ll make any girl very, very happy.

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gift guide: kim france’s finds for girls of a certain age

{Editor’s Note: This year, I’ve asked a few of the people whose style I spend all year admiring to share their holiday wish lists. Stay tuned – we’ll have a new expert every day for the next two weeks!}

We’re kicking things off with a bang, friends. It gives me an overwhelming mix of awe and squeal-inducing glee to bring you our first gift guide of the season, from none other than Kim France. She of Lucky Magazine editorial fame, and Sassy before that (and much, much more). If you don’t know her current venture, you’re missing out – Girls of a Certain Age is easily my favorite thing to read online (when I’m not manically proofreading SMC). Kim’s personal style is creative and edgy, but utterly approachable – I swear, she’ll make you cooler by osmosis. If you have a friend on your list whose style intimidates you just a smidge, or if you just want everyone to shake their heads in amazement at your unparalleled gift-buying prowess, this is the guide you want.

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get gifting: royal baby gifts fit for a prince

Can we all get a collective “SQUEE!!!”? In case you’ve been living under a soundproof rock, Will & Kate’s baby is here, and let me tell you – it wasn’t 15 minutes after the big reveal before I started getting press releases themed around the royal munchkin.

And with good reason. I mean, aren’t we all just racking our brains, trying to figure out what hideously expensive royal baby gifts to add to what I’m sure is an absurd mountain of monstrosities piling up at Kensington Palace even as we speak?

As it turns out, spending a schload on a newborn is harder than it looks. I mean, sure you can get all practical with a new state-of-the-art stroller (which probably costs more than your first car), but where’s the pomp and circumstance in that? No no, when it comes to the crown prince, only the ridiculously impractical will do. And so, I have for you a list of the very best hideously expensive baby gifts you could ever hope to send (though I admit, it’s going to be tough to top some of the gifts they’ve already received). Read on →

get gifting: mother’s day

I was lucky enough to end up with one of the very best moms (no, don’t even try to argue!). So, I really look forward to scouring the WWWs each year for the best Mother’s Day gifts my fictional fortune can buy. Some of these are splurges I only dream of treating my mom to, but others are so inexpensive ($4!) and so thoughtful (flowers!), it’s a snap to show her how fantastic I think she is. Read on →

be mine: a valentine’s gift guide for everyone

Every year, I start out all “Bah, humbug” about Valentine’s Day. And in the end, I’m seduced by the pretty pink and red hearts scattered everywhere you look. This year is no different…except that it was a box of heart-shaped jellybeans that got me. (Darn you and your adorably delicious treats, Sugarfina!).

I’m a big believer in Valentine-ing all the people you love, not just the one you share a bed with. This year’s Valentine’s gift guide is stocked with my favorite budget-friendly Valentines, so you can afford to send some sexy new Underoos to your single BFF, a trio of treats to Mom and that crazy cool enamel pendant to your little sis. It’s the perfect excuse to wear your heart on your sleeve this Valentine’s Day.

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