what to get for your non golfer, fisherman, griller, athletic boyfriend.
why do all gift guides for men suck? let's find some things your boyfriend will actually like, from the geek to the homebody. also, what I am gifting my fiance!
Let’s face it, if you have ever had a boyfriend or a man you care about enough to give him a gift, you have googled “gifts for men” and faced the absolute atrocities of the search results. “Toilet golf set”… “Customized grill apron” or even “Engraved whiskey bottle” haunts me. We must do better than this, as we are thoughtful gift-givers!
This is a curation of things I’ve purchased for my fiance as a Valentine's, Christmas, or Birthday present. I’ve also made it a tradition to bring him back something from trips I go on.
A Classic Chore Coat from Rhythm is a staple my fiance reaches for several times a week and has become a staple in his closet. While the one above is sold out, I love this one from Service Works, and this one from Seager.
A bottle opener feels like a kitchen staple but is something my fiance and I reach for several times a week for our daily topo chico or splurge of natural wine. The importance and investment of a good bottle opener is critical, as our household has gone through 3-4 before we learned this lesson. While the one I got him was vintage, I love this one from Sabre, Cinder & Salt, and Anthropologie.
While I do not understand a single thing about Magic the Gathering, my fiance is obsessed. I like these dice that have moving particles inside, as I snooped around his collection, and noticed he did not have anything like this.
It feels like my fiance never leaves the house without a hat. Our house is slowly morphing into a hat museum, as we are both obsessed with cool and quirky hats. These three from Parks Project, Seager, and Scout Coffee are his favorites.
Shoes, shoes, shoes. I bought him Birkenstock clogs with a strap, which for my girlies with science boyfriends, can wear in a lab! I also got him New Balance 530s, which I see him slip on almost daily.
Magic the Gathering deck box was something I organically noticed he needed when I saw cards on our kitchen counter. As he loves Nintendo and MTG, I felt like this one was the perfect combo!
Natural wine has become a household name for us. We are hooked by the unique sour and tart notes of the unfiltered wines, and we are constantly chasing the high of popping open a new bottle of something amazing. I got him this one by the brilliant
. It was a fan favorite and we devoured it in record time. While that one is hard to find, some bottles I recommend are 2021 Perenti Vineyard 'Wild Child' Old Vine Carignan by Subject to Change Wines and 2022 An Everyday Anyway Cuvée by Drink this Wine.If you haven’t heard of Baggu, what rock are you living under? (Kidding?!) I got him this one, which leans into his love for vintage design.
Now for some more ideas, that you wouldn’t see when looking at a normal gift guide.
The LL Bean Rollneck Waffle Sweater is a timeless gem in the fashion world. A sweater never goes out of style, especially one this minimal. Give this to your boyfriend so he can meet your parents in style, or take you out to that snazzy restaurant down the block you’ve always wanted to check out. It also comes in a ton of cute colors to cater to your dudes style.
A solid pair of sunglasses is something you can never leave the house without, rain or shine in my opinion. Meller makes fantastic sunglasses that I could not recommend enough. Not your style? Here are some from Goodr, Akila LA, and Quince!
The iPhone camera is out, hello to the digital camera. I recently got a digital camera for my Bachelorette party from Rowhouse Camera on Etsy and could not recommend them more. Here is their Etsy shop, and here are my iconic bachelorette party photos as a testimony.
I know your man’s boring apartment needs some ambient lighting, you hate staring at the overhead lights while being forced to watch sports highlights in his navy bedsheets…Anywho. This light from Post Script is so amazing, my fiance and I bought 2. Portable, color-changing, dimmable, and from a small AAPI Owned Store in San Francisco!
Sigh, my fiance is going to laugh at me over this, because he has these shoes and I relentlessly bullied him for months over them…This is personal growth because I think they are so damn cool. He wears them around the house, to the store, to errands, and more! (They are comfortable too!!!)
Your man’s walls are blank babe, let’s change that…with this custom pennant! Get it with his name, last name, your name, his favorite sports team, HIS DOG, his dog’s friend! You get the point.
Does your man slap on deodorant and call it a day? Let’s change that with the Boy Smells Exploratory kit, so he can walk by you in the house and you can be like “DAMN.” Because I know he is smelling like Old Spice Fiji currently, so let’s change that.
Every man looks sexy in a hat, and if he doesn’t I am so sorry for your lost. Funny hats are in, it adds some personality and character to an outfit. Duvin hats are so funny and chic, but I especially love this one.
I remember in college seeing a man in my dorm pack his stuff to go back home for Thanksgiving in a trash bag. Let’s elevate our lives, people! I have this Baggu Cloud Carry-On, and it’s magic with how much it can hold, and it’s perfect for traveling.
Everyone loves trinkets, even dudes. I think. I love all keychains from Three Potato Four, especially this one. A pocket knife is kind of scary in retrospect, but this one is cute and you can use it to open your Revolve packages. Also, a carabiner, if your man is carrying around his keys on a boring silver key round, do not talk to me. Life is all about the simple luxuries and elevating!
Apple watches are out, sorry! Vintage watches are in. I love this one from Evora, it’s vintage-inspired and effortlessly cool.
Thank you for reading the first edition of Little Gems! Around the Holidays I will be focusing on posting as many gift guides as possible for all types of people in your life. In the future, I will be posting my weekly meal plans, recipes, and what I am eyeing to buy/whats in my cart.
You are a little Gem yourself!
