The Shangrilogs Gift Guide

For every type of cabin-loving weirdo.

Welcome to the Shangrilogs Gift Guide! There are over 70 items on this list, and I wanted to get it out to you while the sales are just beginning. I know this is not our typical essay fare, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

A few things before we get started:

1. There are no affiliate links here. I don’t make money off of this, unless of course you’re a paid subscriber. And I love you for that.

2. This list consists of things Ben and I love, things we want, things we’ve bought for other people, and things people have bought for us. I don’t love stuff for stuff’s sake, but I do love giving and getting gifts. 

3. This is an eclectic mix of gift ideas, with a wide range of prices, and perhaps a less wide range of styles. (This is coming from a person in a cabin, after all.) I hope you find one for someone you love, or even one for yourself. 

4. And finally, you can always give the gift of Shangrilogs. After the year we’ve had, this would also be a gift to me.

ACROSS THE HOUSE:

• French butter keep: hear me out, for a person who takes their food seriously, this will make their butter so spreadable and so delectable. It changed my life.

• For those who keep a salt dish out, this salt pig is so counter friendly. (Also, we had our salt just out in a dish, and then I found a paw print in it. This prevents that.)

• A pebble ice maker: listen this is expensive, but it’s the best gift I’ve almost ever received (better when I found out Ben bought it with accumulated Best Buy gift cards from credit card points.) For the ice chewer in your mouth, or the cocktail obsessed, or just the person without an ice dispenser in their fridge, this is it.

• Bokksu is a monthly subscription box to Japanese snacks and it is a DELIGHT. 

• For the Cocoa Obsessed, every flavor of Land O’ Lakes, the best water-based cocoa.

• “A Well Spent Life” poster from the brilliant

  Anna Fusco
  - this hangs in my office as a reminder I have everything I need. Also, this bumper sticker from her shop.

• This popcorn maker has been a delight in our house.

• Very mini fire pit perfect for the ambiance obsessed that might be a little shy on it.

• A weighted blanket that looks nice and comes in different weights. 

• S’mores sticks

• Levolt Humidifier: these come in different sizes with different tricks, but it’s made a notable difference in my sleep quality. 

OH FUN:

• LEGO Wildflower Bouquet - Ben got me this last year, and if a girl loves puzzles, she’ll also love this.

• Kintsugi repair kit: you can find cheaper ones out there, but I figured we’d start legit and let the googling cascade from there.

• Kiln Free Clay Kit

• Elevated paint by numbers

• Personal weather station with sensors for indoors and outdoors

• DIY Fish Lamp that’s actually quite beautiful

• Talking Dog Buttons for someone who has a lot of time to train their dog

GIFT CERTIFICATES THAT STAND OUT:

• Framebridge: listen, it’s expensive to frame things nicely. This is an easy way to let the gift receiver choose what they want to frame and how they want to frame it.  

• Bloomscape: let them choose the right plant for them! 

• National Parks + Federal Sites pass.

• Chewy for the pet lover in your life. (Also, FunnyFuzzy if you really want them to get wild.)

• A local restaurant (be careful of dietary restrictions on this one)

• Bookshop.org for the readers.

• Grocery stores!!! For anyone who could use a little lift, this often does it. (Make sure you choose a store that’s close to them, or you know they shop at.)

• Fandango! (If they live rurally, check to make sure their local theater is even on Fandango. Mine isn’t!)

• Food52 because some of us won’t spend money on nice kitchen stuff on our own

FOR ADVENTURE LOVERS:

This category is tough because the people I know who are really outdoorsy are also really particular about their gear, myself included. But here are some things I think transcend those particulars.

• Yeti cupholder compatible mugs

• Monocular 

• Fridge Magnets for Climbers

• InReach Mini if you want to protect someone important to you

• A portable jumpstarter for the off-roader in your life

• Everyday carry knife (now, I know some people will object to a folding knife, but I think this is the exception.)

• If you’re looking for stocking stuffers, I don’t think you can go wrong with hand warmers, waterproof matches, Zippo lighters, and carabiners. 

PUT IT ON ME:

• Quaker Marine’s Fisherman Sweaters are THE BEST IN THE GAME. I’m 5’4”, 130lbs, and I wear an XS in their men’s line.

• I carry very little, which is why I love these bags

• This house coat is extravagantly expensive to me, but I’ve been thinking about it for years.

• For cold weather friends, these fleece overalls run big enough to fit dudes too.

• These Men’s Overalls are truly the only thing Ben wears in the shop. 

• Skida Balaclavas for any kind of human who has to spend their time in the cold. (Pro tip: get the matching neckwarmer for extra points.)

• North Face Thermoball Slippers for Men or Women

FOR PETS:

• Nice bowls for water and food

• The Ripple Rug, arguably the most loved item we’ve ever bought our cats

• The banana, a classic cat nip favorite

• Matatabi Cat Chewing Sticks (Catnip alternative), which keep them from tearing up the furniture

• Meaty Tender Sticks for Cats which they lose their mind over

• We have two Funny Fuzzy Animal Beds in this house and every animal uses them

• The cheapest and best cat toy we’ve ever bought

• This treat-stuffing toy for mental stimulation for an old dog

• Hole box, though you could make this. 

FOR CAT PEOPLE WHO ARE ALSO ART LOVERS:

• Catnip Magazine

• Stacking Cat Tumblers

• Cat lamp, an expensive thing your cat won’t push off the table 

SELF-CARE:

• Working hands lotion, always get the tub and never the tube. This may not be fancy, but it’s the best hand lotion I’ve ever, ever tried. 

• Laneige lip mask is a mandatory in my nighttime routine

• Good and Well Supply Co. Candles (Pro Tip: they often offer a “dented” discount, so look for that… or just choose the scents/parks that your giftee loves.)

• Skin-tone matching zinc SPF — my go-to SPF

FROM FELLOW SHANGRILOGGERS:

• Cocofloss, for someone you know really, really well. 

• This Milk Frother for a little at-home luxury.

• Existential Crisis Bob — you will just know if this is the right gift for someone.

• Gift Certificates from your state parks department to use for admissions, camping, etc.

• Aesop anything. One year some family friends of ours bought us Aesop animal shampoo, something we would never buy ourselves, and Cooper smelled incredible for YEARS.

• In the fancy goods category, Le Labo also came up.

• As did this shower gel from Noble Isle.

• Magazine subscriptions! (Some of my personal favorites are House Beautiful, The Atlantic, High Country News, and Mountain Gazette.)

• Tumblers from Owala for a more colorful option for beverages on the go.

• Mother Earth Pillows for a little natural relaxation. 

• Bomba's Gripper Slippers for when it’s cold, but not like… full shoe cold.

• Memory keepers like Social Print Day by Day Personalized Calendar, Chatbooks, Storyworth. 

• Sheepskin insoles for chilly toes.

• Rumpl blankets that hold up to the outdoors.

• A very good chef’s knife.

• A classic tartan scarf in many, many colors.

• Shoe deodorizers, again, probably for someone you know really, really well. (Also a great White Elephant gift.)

• Pizza scissors!!!

STILL LOOKING? 

Here are some of the places I shop when I’m stumped:

• For kiddos, I visit Lee Valley’s Toy Section

• Moma (in fact, many museum gift shops will do the trick)

• Uncommon Goods

• NYMag’s The Strategist Gift Guides

• Cool Hunting Gift Guides

• And of course, Etsy.

Let me know if you end up getting any of these gifts, and of course, let everyone in the comments if you’ve got any other stellar gift ideas.