077: Gaming the last-minute gifting system
077: Gaming the last-minute gifting system
Part IV of IV.
Your presence is a present (but don't show up empty handed)
There’s no shame in filing an assignment late when the whole raison d’etre is suspended in a jelly of generosity, especially given that the gift suggestions enclosed here will actually arrive in time and your recipient will be none the wiser.
I have to admit that, despite being so deep in the muck of gift guides these past few weeks, I placed my final holiday order yesterday (I won’t tell you what it is though, as its target is a reader! <3).
The trade off for procrastination is that the internet is no longer your oyster—time is running out and there are only a small handful of stores left to shuck. This final edit of surprise-and-delight-and-differentiate giftables is strategically designed so that some of these orders will even arrive should you wait until tomorrow to place an order. Some will even make it there—depending on the shipping address—if you hit purchase on Christmas Eve.
Below, in Magasin’s last of four gift guides, find presents you can still order in time for the holidays.
Luar Ana Leather Top Handle Bag
Usurping the teeny-tiny bag this season is the reasonably small bag, big enough to actually function as intended but still diminutive enough to activate the oxytocin receptors. CFDA- and Lyst-lauded brand Luar’s Ana bag is demure, inspired by the until-now-eschewed shape of retro briefcases, but its near-circular, looped handles are contemporary, fun to look at, and exciting to hold.
Select Second Day Shipping for delivery in two business days. Orders placed after 11am EST will be processed the following business day.
Completedworks Seam Ceramic Vase
Completedworks’ vases all have great senses of humor that they elevate with artistry and high-level craft. This one looks like a chewed-on wad of bubble gum, in the most elegant way possible. A vase is an excellent gift, as it suggests further gifts to come in the future: Once the recipient has this vase, you can simply present them with a new bouquet for every occasion from now until the end of time!
Select Next Day for delivery by Thursday, December 22 OR select Express for delivery by Friday, December 23.
J.Crew Cashmere Trouser Sock
This may not have been true for the last decade+, but today I mean it when I say: We don’t deserve J.Crew. Under the creative wheel of Olympia Gayot and Brendon Babenzien (for men’s), the retail Goliat—which had lost itself since Jenna Lyons’ departure—has rediscovered its vitality to the American fashion landscape. And it’s doing so with figures that boggle the mind and wallet. An end-of-season cashmere sale makes pieces like these trousers socks and this balaclava even more incredulously priced.
Order before 12/22, 12pm ET, to get it there by 12/24.
Loewe Room Spray, Tomato Leaves
Loewe’s home scents, created alongside perfumer and sommelier Nuria Cruelles, rival those of any fragrance-dedicated brand, with extra points for capturing Jonathan Anderson’s idiosyncrasies on the olfactory stage. This tomato plant-scented mist veers more vegetable garden than pomodoro, and not to state the obvious, but what a singular thrill it is to receive (and give!) anything baring the Loewe stamp, as this bottle does on its embossed cap.
Select Next Business Day and order by 5:30pm EST for next business day delivery. For orders within NYC, select Premier Daytime and order by 10am for delivery between 10am-5pm OR select Premier Evening and order by 2pm for delivery between 6pm-9pm.
Jolie The Filtered Showerhead
By many counts, in multiples circles I have heard of, this unassuming piece of hardware has been dubbed the unofficial gift of the year. Of course the Jolie showerhead is much more than a hunk of metal; screwing onto your existing framework (with the appropriable branded wrench that arrives with the box), Jolie acts as a barrier between the harsh minerals in your water source and your hair, skin, nails, and even teeth if you are an occasional shower-brusher like me. I’ve yet to meet a user who hasn’t had some mysterious beauty woe instantly solved upon installing this mighty little device.
Select Express for delivery in one to two business days OR select Premium for delivery in two to three business days.
Mason Pearson Handy Hair Brush
I imagine the fanfare Jolie is experiencing in 2022 is not unlike how this lauded Mason Pearson brush was received in the late 19th century when it was introduced, heralded ever since as “the only brush you should ever use.” The brand’s luxury standing is pervasive, so you probably already know that the genuine boar bristles are hand-selected by technicians in London and each brush is still hand-polished for a smooth, sumptuous edge. It’s with a heavy heart that I report that this fancy brush is in fact superior in all aspects to its less-expensive contemporaries.
Select Next Day for delivery by Thursday, December 22 OR select Express for delivery by Friday, December 23.
Dusen Dusen Face Embroidered Pillow Cover + Insert
This pillow, in addition to being a sweet statement piece for a living or bedroom, is a useful tool for the recipient; depending on what kind of mood they’re in, they can flip the pillow to either the happy face or the sad face, and their loved ones will know how gingerly to approach them in that moment.
Select Next Day for delivery by Thursday, December 22 OR select Express for delivery by Friday, December 23.
Costa Brazil Kaya Jungle Firming Body Oil
This simple, elegant bottle has the same nightstand appeal as a bottle of high-end perfume, but the blend of cold-pressed oils it contains instead induces reviews effusing about “satin-smooth skin,” a “warm, magical scent,” and the feeling of being on a Brazilian vacation, just by massaging the product onto dry patches at night.
Select Next Business Day and order by 5:30pm EST for next business day delivery. For orders within NYC, select Premier Daytime and order by 10am for delivery between 10am-5pm OR select Premier Evening and order by 2pm for delivery between 6pm-9pm.
Mansur Gavriel Confetti Bucket Bag
Bucket bags are excellent for people who you know are going to chuck their possessions into their purse unsystematically, then dramatically root around with a hand until they identify what they need by touch. These bags are also handy in that their flat bottoms allow them to be placed right-side up without spilling their contents, and the extra-long, adjustable strap on this one means it can be worn in an infinite number of adorable ways.
Select Next Day for delivery by Thursday, December 22 OR select Express for delivery by Friday, December 23.
Agmes Cara Dome Sterling Silver Lapis Ring Set
Bubbly but not cheesy, this ring set can become the focal point of a simple, formal outfit, or modestly level up any quotidian look with its tiny shock of lapis lazuli. The two rings—one thicker and unadorned, and the thinner embedded with the blue stone—can be worn layered, swelling against each other, or separately, perhaps on different fingers. An art-history-oriented recipient might be tickled to consider the set’s (however incidental) homages to Vermeer’s Girl With a Pearl Earring: the swelling silhouettes of the jewelry, the fact that Vermeer used real, ground lapis lazuli to paint the blues in the tronie.
Select Second Day Shipping for delivery in two business days. Orders placed after 11am EST will be processed the following business day.
Reformation Otto Regenerative Wool Polo Sweater
This artfully draped notched-collar sweater came to life in Reformation’s “no show” fall runway, where it looked startling in place for an under-$200 proposition, convincingly akin to comparable basics from Khaite and Toteme. Made of wool sourced from a traceably regenerative farm, its environmental impact is as cushioned as the soft bounce of its buoyant knit.
Select Next Day and order by 2pm PT for delivery in one business day OR select Express and order by 2pm PT for delivery in two business days.
Memor Mosaic Salt & Pepper Shakers
Each of these swirl-shaped salt and pepper shaker sets is unique—they all begin the plaster-white of a cliffside villa’s walls, but are then embedded with fragments of seashells and shoreline stones discovered all over the world and curated for their varied, surprising patterns and shapes. These shakers are sculptural, but not pretentious, and feel meant to be used for dinner, not hidden away on a high shelf.
Select Second Day Shipping for delivery in two business days. Orders placed after 11am EST will be processed the following business day.
Gucci Aviator Aviator Sunglasses
The honey-colored frames of these aviator sunglasses add warmth to the wearer’s face, while their clear lenses (still providing 100% UVA and UVB protection) allow their eyes to take their rightful places as the stars of the glasses’ show. They instantly add a ‘70s nod to any outfit, making even a sweatsuit seem more like an intentional, retro look, and because their lenses are clear, the glasses can be left on indoors without coming across too American Hustle.
Select Second Day Shipping for delivery in two business days. Orders placed after 11am EST will be processed the following business day.
Kjaer Weis The Beautiful Oil
Oils are spoils: forever fantastic and indulgent gifts to receive. Especially, of course, if they’re credited to Kjaer Weis. With a formula boasting familiar favorites like rose hip, olive, and sweet almond oils, plus the calculated introductions of Chinese yam oil, Paracress flower extract, and citronellol, KW’s Beautiful Oil is as much a spiritual and energetic line of defense as it is a physical one. It also arrives in the brand’s signature red, textured boxes that afford the recipient the sensation of unboxing precious jewelry.
Select Expedited Shipping for delivery in two to four business days.
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Graphics and contributions by Em Seely Katz