Happy Monday! Father’s Day is this Sunday, so we have no time to waste! Here’s a great gift guide curated by my husband, who not only has great taste but is a solid gift-giver. Many of these ideas would make great graduation gifts too.
Vintage Vinyl LPs
Let him relive his analog days — local vinyl stores and eBay are good sources for vintage tunes and liner notes: Billy Joel’s Glass Houses, The Rolling Stones’ trippy 3D cover on Their Satanic Majesty’s Request, and REO Speedwagon’s Hi Infidelity, all available for time travel back to simpler times.
Turntable to play that vinyl, able to connect to your Sonos system.
Or this less expensive one currently on sale, with cool vertical retro look.
Hubs’ favorite everyday sneaker, goes with everything and perfect for travel.
Favorite travel pants, look smart and stay comfy at all times.
Hubs loves his unlined travel blazer, it is super versatile and fits more like a sweater, showing off his impressive physique. ;) This blazer is similar and has nice lines.
Hubs also loves the William Murray casual clothing, with stretchy pants and these wrinkle free blazers in fun colors. He thinks he can pull off the green!
Amaro cocktail book. Handsome guide to the coolest trend in drinking. Buy him a couple of bottles to go along with it, the labels are beautiful and they look great on a shelf even if you don’t drink it. I like Amaro Nonino and Amaro Montenegro, but there are literally dozens of unique varietals to choose from.
I’ve already posted about this foolproof cocktail shaker, which now comes in this masculine gunmetal finish. But they also now have matching insulated cocktail glasses that do not sweat and leave rings on your furniture, and feel substantial to the touch. They sell gift sets with both the shaker and glasses as well.
Monocle subscription, for those that like to keep pace with world design, fashion, and politics.
Drink Apps: if you’re ever called upon to create the perfect cocktail (what is a Harvey Wallbanger anyway?) but you have zero knowledge of how to pull it off, having a few trusty app guides will do the trick … Hubs swears by the cocktail apps by a publisher called Doudoroff, namely the Beachbum Berry’s Total Tiki, replete with historical information and variants of tiki drinks, PDT Cocktails, and Wondrich’s World of Punch. These guides are excellent resources with a surprising amount of information.
Hubs has WAY too many t-shirts, but he loves these retro shirts from defunct bars, for their colorful vintage logos and the soft quality of the shirts.
Mason Pearson Hairbrush: Sometimes a classic is the best, and this brush, while pricey, literally lasts forever.
Hubs loves vintage cars and style. This book has amazing original car ads and sales brochures, with rich art direction and lots of information and history on advertising, car interiors and fabrics, and the way cars were marketed to women as well.
First it was sourdough, now Hubs has gotten the itch to start growing food. He saw this system on a house tour and is convinced he too may possess a wifi-enabled Bluetooth-powered green thumb.
A day at the ballpark: take hubs and the kids to his favorite team’s game, or if his team is from another city (such as Pittsburgh), a subscription to MLB At Bat so he can keep up with games.
Nice backpack — examples like navy tumi bag, the Filson one, cheaper one like Herschel.
Inflator tool — portable inflator is good for keeping the tires safe, the bikes ready for action, and the pool toys inflated.
Stylish stand for glasses — for desk, bathroom or nightstand — no more searching for those readers or distance glasses. Craig Hill also makes a sleek brass bottle opener.
A wine club is a great gift that can last all year. We loved the Denner Vineyard, as well as Linne Calodo, but any of your favorite wineries likely have a club that can range from 3-12 bottles per shipment. We love the Denner Rosé and Ditch Digger!
Vintage Pierre Cardin Backgammon sets, available on eBay, Etsy, Chairish, etc. Cardin is one of Hubs’ favorite retro designers, who made beautiful backgammon sets back in the 1970s. They look great in an office or den, and are fun to play with kids as well.
We love our Ooni! We have an older model, and use it all the time, and I found that the propane hook up is the most reliable. There are models that are propane, only, or use charcoal, wood and propane. Plus there is a new electric indoor model which we haven’t tried yet, but looks promising. Make sure you get the Gas regulator if you want to use the propane!
This bag is good for travel docs and money. Whereas this one is a handy tech bag, with little compartments, such as this for traveling, somewhere to keep all the wires, adapters, and charging instruments. This one is especially stylish, and comes in several colors.
This is a less expensive tech bag that still gets it done, in a nice color.
Some of hubs favorite architecture and design books include: How to See, Master of the MidCentury, and Arthur Elrod. Nelson’s treatise on how to see the world through a different lens is particularly inspiring.
Hubs loves everything from this Detroit-based brand, casual watches, leather bags and monogrammed notebooks and writing instruments.
Hubs loves Hamilton Electric watches for their retro goodness, with modern upgrades. The Elvis watches are timeless, and the history behind these watches is worth a read, and vintage versions on eBay are affordable and always get comments.
Consider getting your significant other or dad his favorite childhood toy or collectible. Hubs bought his father the beloved baseball board game he played in the 1950s off eBay. Hubs loved the early 1970s action figures like Batman and the Evel Knievel stunt cycle. You can have fun with this type of gift and really surprise him.
Muji is like a Japanese IKEA with clothing that is inexpensive and has a nice clean design aesthetic. Their socks are super affordable, and their work pants very casual and comfortable.
Lastly, take a walk with husband after dinner and hold hands. Sometimes it really is that simple.
xxPamela
I was reading about your gift idea of wine clubs and had to share wines that have made such a difference for me! They are all low sulfites, low sugar, no artificial processing aids and all sustainably grown. I feel better drinking them and know they are better for me and the planet! Anyone can check out the Clean-Crafted wines here www.scoutandcellar.com/soulsips or contact me if they want to hold a tasting! Elizabeth 310-766-2727