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A few items I’ve picked up this month for my family —
01. Mini was in need of some new sweats; somehow we’d whittled down her supply to a single pair, and she’s often schlepping to/from sports and in need of extras. She selected these wide-legs and this butter yellow pair of joggers out of tons of options I presented her with. She also specifically requested “tank tops but with skinny straps and no bow or rose at the center” — !! I delivered with these.
02. Mr. Magpie’s birthday is coming up soon! It’s always challenging to come up with fresh ideas so soon after Christmas (see what I got him for that holiday here), but I’ve managed to find a few. First: an expansion pack for our newest board game obsession, Wingspan. I know some of you have the bug, too — it is SO fun. A bit complex to learn and set up but once you’re over the hump, you’ll want to play as often as possible. There are a few expansion packs available, but Redditors claim this one is the best. Second: a set of Gray Kunz spoons. I read that Missy Robbins absolutely swears by these spoons in her kitchen — for testing, for plating, etc. I know he’ll love this “pro” equipment. Third: Beeswrap. Sort of oddball, but he has been talking a lot about wanting a better way to store our cheeses so that they don’t dry out as quickly (especially parm and pecorino), and Redditors suggested this is the way to go. Fourth: this Thule trunk organizer. We have one for our SUV and we’re both obsessed with it. I finally got him one for “his car,” which is a sedan. Fifth: this head-to-toe look from Sezane, complete with faded black tee (why is it so attractive on the model?), jeans, and hat. One of my secrets for styling Mr. Magpie is completely ripping off the styling on Sezane and Tom Snyder! Hehe. I know this is a bunch of smaller gifts; I am trying to think of one more item — maybe tickets to something, a gift card to a fun restaurant, a night away somewhere…help!
03. My son painted a gorgeous watercolor of a fox last week (truly, our avatar for 2025!), and I wanted to have it framed. I contemplated Framebridge…and then bought this $14 Amazon frame that comes with a mat for an 8.5×11 piece of paper. Done and done. He was so delighted!
04. We have been wanting to buy one additional large (checkable) suitcase for awhile. I have my beloved Paravel and was contemplating buying a second — but I had a site credit at Quince and decided to try one of theirs instead for less than half the price, and in a great forest green color. (You may recall we bought our kids the Quince children’s suitcases as a surprise for Christmas — inside, we tucked “tickets” to Disney!). I also ordered a few of the Quince brand luggage tags for our new suitcases.
05. Also at Quince: I picked up a set of their cotton gingham sheet sets for my son’s room in the blue color. Decent price, and I loved the color/pattern. Will report back on quality, but as you know, I’m sort of a Quince fangirl at this point.
06. I don’t know how this happened, but we used to have a set of 12 silver ramekins and now we only have three and we’re constantly using them. They’re perfect for mise en place, for ketchup/mustard/dipping sauces, little parcels of dessert for the kids (“you can have eight gummy bears for dessert”), etc. I picked up a new pack of twelve.
07. These bubble podz make bathtime more fun; just re-stocked. My kids love the watermelon scent. If you drop them in while the bath is filling up, they really generate a ton of bubbles!
08. New snow boots from Boden! And man have we needed them! They love the colors. I will say the pairs they just outgrew were these ones from Scandi brand Kuling which we really loved. I might go back to them next. They are $30 right now but super heavy duty, slip on (!), and lined with fleece. I love the little cinch thing so that you can really secure them on the foot / prevent water from getting in. I also picked up these snow bibs for mini. Again, she loves the colors. Previously, we had the ones from Northern Classics, which we also loved. Great design! We especially love the ski/snow mittens from Northern Classics — also really well designed. They keep all water/snow out with the cinch at the wrist, and they go up pretty high on the forearm, too. (Northern Classics is currently running a promo where if you spend $140, you get a free pair of their $44 mittens, FYI!)
My FIL works out in novelty tshirts, I got him a “Threat Level Midnight” from the Office one off Etsy. Our favorite coffee when we lived in Texas was La Casita from Tiny House Coffee Roasters. I always make my MIL obscure candies (licorice caramels, butter mint nonpareils, apple cider caramels, aperol candies, miso butter fudge, chocolate coated honeycomb). I really do think Korres body wash is the most incredible fragrance. If he’s a fur guy at all a giant furry blanket or a faux fur slip cover for his favorite armchair can be a nice winter touch (the Baccarat hotel in NYC does that to their armchairs each winter). A gift box of this stunning Fiona’s pasta (I’d hurry, it takes 2 weeks): https://www.fionaspasta.com/products/sourdough-pasta-with-homemade-pesto-sauce
My dad loves meat gifts from Mauro: https://mauroprovisions.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoro5RwzpC0hclp_j03EActQIjrHHdXq2-FqEBDTHgA0JnM0qDDl
A Detroit pizza pan from Lloyd pans (I use it for everything, you can use metal tools and the surface stays nonstick if you wash with just soap and water), and the dark surface means caramelized corners to your Mac n cheese for example.
My favorite chocolates to gift come from L.A. Burdick or Zotter. You could get him a gift box from the National Mustard Museum. Or buy him a case of these little individual tequila shots: https://www.astorwines.com/item/49853
A squirrel picnic table: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1715468685/?ref=share_ios_native_control
This sculpture of a spilled New York coffee cup: https://mociun.com/products/diner-coffee-spill?epik=dj0yJnU9aUlEVEJ5MW5UNlRWRU1zdm83OVQ4X3NlWVlwdk5LUHgmcD0wJm49ekpPZmJYUVhNNWR0bjgwRmlMV25QQSZ0PUFBQUFBR2VKUjJV&utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social
A painting of some favorite fast food to hide inside a kitchen cabinet: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1494048186/?ref=share_ios_native_control
My husband and I are very sedate/neutral in our art choices but we collect silly prints and vintage nudes and all the terrible paintings I’ve done and they’re taped up inside our kitchen cabinet including a huge croissant on construction paper I stole from the kids. And if there’s anything from his childhood he’d get a kick out of, Etsy is a treasure trove. I got my husband a dollhouse miniature LaZboy recliner, it’s well known about the year he asked his folks for one for Christmas!
These are SUCH great ideas – thanks so much!! I am chasing a few of them down…xx!
I also struggle with my husband’s birthday in February – I try not to exhaust all my ideas for Christmas but always manage to go overboard and then come up in the new year with nothing! This is a small thing but something my husband loved for Christmas – the digital dosing cup from Subminimal – it’s eliminated the need for a scale for measuring coffee beans and helped streamline our limited counter space: https://subminimal.com/products/subscale
Some thoughts on restaurant experiences – Dogon was one of the only new restaurants we went to last year that truly felt like a wow from a food perspective. I expect nothing less from Kwame Onwuachi but it really did live up to our expectations. The new cocktail bar from the Yellow team, La’Shukran is also fab and unique.
I think I’m going to do an afternoon of a massage followed by cocktails this year for my husband! With the amount of cycling he does he’s constantly bemoaning his aching muscles hahaha so I think he’ll be very happy.
Oo that Subminimal scale might be right up his alley, and thanks for the restaurant recs/suggestions!!
xx
Pottery Barn has a handsome burlwood watch valet that can be monogrammed with his initials or pet name! Maybe tuck in a new fun timepiece to add to his collection and mark the trip around the sun!
Oh how sweet – the pet name on the valet! Love this! Thank you!
My parents started playing Wingspan in 2020 and have played it almost every single day since then, I kid you not. I also play with them whenever I visit them. The Oceania expansion is good, but Europe and Asia expansion packs are just as great. Also, the Asia one can be played on its own with just two people, which is great and good for travel.
I love this!! Are we your parents? Several nights this week, we’ve gone screenfree and played Wingspan instead…!
xx