The Silly Little Gift Guide!

And what do you like to see between Thanksgiving & New Years?

Hello my little sweet potates! I hope everybody is chock full of stuffing, questionable casseroles that actually slap, and a bunch of red wine.

[**readers outside of the United States blink in confusion**]

Happy Friday, I hope you’re well-rested no matter what country and/or level of thankfulness you’re in, and this week the newsletter is coming early because it’s time to unveil: THE SILLY LITTLE GIFT GUIDE! In her inaugural year!

Now the Silly Little Gift Guide™ is called both silly and little because all of these gifts are within a reasonable price range, it’s not a long list, and the guide doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s meant to showcase gifts that I would be head-over-heels thrilled with getting, designed for your sister/partner/coworkers/friends who deserve something they’ll actually use this holiday (and beyond!)

Plus, except for the Big Staub (which I’m leaving in here as manifestation), all of these are products that I own and can personally vouch for as my big-big-big obsessions. So, little gift guide + big obsessions + not too serious = Silly Little Gift Guide™. Justine’s Favorite Things!

(Oh, and yes, they are all cooking-ish items. I know I’m in the right industry when all of my gifting ideas revolve around my kitchen.)

So, the gifts!

Viski Glassware - Glassware is my favorite thing to give/get, and unique glasses make a very fun and personal bar cart. Viski is a great brand that has made some of my best sets this year. Like these lowballs, these Nick & Nora glasses, and this mesmerizing coupe set. I have all three, but these bodega glasses are also very fun, and next on my list.

Tint Glasses from Hay - I call these “hot girl glassware” because they are just so COOL. I found them because my prop stylist, Brooke Deonarine, brought them to set, and in almost every photo I was like, “Brooke, can we add the yellow glasses?” She later gifted them to me like the perfect soul she is, and I’ve been in love ever since. Their dinnerware is also very cool. If I wasn’t overflowing with plating props, I’d get these plates.

Brightland Olive Oil - The Mini Artist Series - Brightland is probably the one brand whose Instagram aesthetic most closely resonates with everything I want to be. They have a sense of play, but they are also high quality as f***. It’s bad writing to let profanity do your work for you, so as an obviously good writer, I’ve censored myself. But the feelings stay the same. This tasting set is a nice way to introduce a food-ish friend to infused olive oils, but if they are anything like me, they’ll be buying a full-size version of the Ardor oil ASAP.

Cravings’ Snacking Blanket in Pistachio Gelato - While I think their marketing of this blanket by putting popcorn in the pockets is….kind of gross and a recipe for crumb disaster, this blanket really IS it. It’s the most comfortable throw in my home, and I miss it when I’m gone. It’s plush and springy, but oh-so-warm. And when you nap, it’s just the right amount of weight. I’m not doing it justice. I love it. I have their older version with squash on it, but I think this color is much cuter. I don’t think the pockets and buttons are the selling point, the blanket quality is the star. I wonder if their robe feels the same.

Sprezz Whimsical Oil Botte - Another cutie!! The photo doesn’t do it justice. Sprezz gifted this to me, so you might have seen it in my past videos! It pours like a dream, is easy to refill, and is both modern and clean at the same time. The only thing is to keep it away from the sun, the glass bottle heats up really quickly.

Spring & Mulberry Dessert Napkins - Also SO CUTE. I love serving snacky-dessert platters after dinners at my house (think: trays of cookies, really nice chocolates, anything people can pick on from a platter), and I love the idea of having little dessert napkins around. Or just having a dessert napkin for when I don't want to get out a plate for my book-and-chocolate needs. Plus, if anybody were to get me straight Spring & Mulberry bars as a gift, I’d also love them forever.

Vintage Matchbooks & A Home to Put Them In - Ok yes, YES, this is one of the more personal gifts on the list. And it’s kind of a mock-up gift of something I’ve been building in my apartment. I’ve collected a nice pile of restaurant matchbooks, and they live in a bowl Eric gifted me from the MOMA Design Store (I’d been wanting to buy a house, but we’re not ready yet, so he bought me…a smaller house). But I think there’s something 10/10 cool (and useful) about having a pile of matchbooks in your apartment that you can add to/take from. If gifting it to a friend, you can get them started with a pile of matchbooks from Etsy and a bowl that fits their style. If a tiny house isn’t their thing (I get it) I also love this classic, this modern one, or this teak tray.

A Big Staub (which I don’t own, but dream of) and a Mini Staub (which I own two, and you should, too). These are self-explanatory. I use my little Staubs as salt dishes, and they blend with every kitchen aesthetic. The Big Staub is just because I keep overflowing my beans. I recommend we splurge on the Big Staub together….to save our beans.

Now, books!

Books belong on every gift guide, and this book is GOOD. In full transparency, the author of this book, Liz Moody, is one of my friends IRL, but I’m so proud of how she’s expanded out of the self-help echelon into a category all her own. I call it: tips that won’t overwhelm you, but you’ll actually use. You can read it in pieces, and it feels like getting great advice from a mentor. Plus, it’s perfect for the quick-and-daily reader. You can find 100 Ways to Change Your Life at your local bookstores!

Now, I have so many friends with cookbooks, and I wish I could link them all! But with a lot of DISCIPLINE, I’ve chosen my three best cookbooks for gifting this year, and ironically, none of them are written by people I know. But they are all written by women, which I looove. And the souls of the books speak volumes. I only recommend books I want to cook from, and all of these books have pages that sing. Here are my top 3:

The approachable but soulful restaurant cookbook: Sofreh: A Contemporary Approach to Classic Persian Cuisine by Nasim Alikhani and Theresa Gambacorta.

A cookbook for the person who is always bringing desserts to the party - Snacking Bakes, the second book by baking star Yossy Arefi.

A cookbook with a story in the intro that you simply will not skip - Maydan: Recipes from Lebanon & Beyond by Rose Previte.

And lastly, I consider these luxury food ornaments. But I want them all.

And that’s it! For any food-focused friends, I promise these will make great gifts. Now my question for you: in the weird weeks between Thanksgiving and New Years, what type of food content do you like to see? I’m thinking of sticking to practical, day-to-day recipes, but let me know!

Until next week,

Xoxo,

Snacks