Museum gift shops can be hit-or-miss; sometimes you have to pick through a bunch of hastily printed magnets, mugs, mouse pads, and various other tchotchkes to find anything actually good. But a well-curated museum gift shop can hold some true gems, especially at a smaller, more offbeat museum — think one-of-a kind pieces inspired by its unique holdings or special collections created in partnership with design studios and local artists.
So I combed through the e-shops of museums all over the country to bring you the most unusual, interesting, and delightful items I could find, most of which are exclusives you won’t be able to get anywhere else. They would all make fabulous — and unexpected — holiday gifts. And ultimately, any purchase at a museum gift shop supports the important work these institutions do, from research and preservation to education and community outreach, so you can shop knowing your dollars are supporting a worthy cause. (Though if you don’t find something that suits, we have hundreds more gift ideas here.)
Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
Los Angeles, California
For the actor who aspires to win an Oscar one day, the gift store at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is full of statuette-inspired merch to help them manifest their dreams.
Barnes Foundation
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Barnes Foundation houses an impressive collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, and modern art. While I wouldn’t normally recommend a logo-emblazoned mug as a gift, I would happily make an exception for these handsome stoneware ones made of color-blocked clay.
Charles Hosmer Morse Museum
Winter Park, Florida
The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art is home to the largest, most comprehensive collection of the works of Louis C. Tiffany anywhere in the world. These tiny Tiffany-lamp reproductions are ostensibly ornaments, but I think they would make a fun Art Nouveau addition to a Barbie Dreamhouse.
Charles M. Schulz Museum
Santa Rosa, California
Snoopy devotees would love the gift shop at the Charles M. Schulz Museum, which is filled with custom Peanuts plushes, coasters, artwork, and more.
Chrysler Museum of Art
Norfolk, Virginia
The Chrysler Museum of Art is known for its extensive glass collection; it also houses a glass studio that hosts classes and demonstrations. This speciality is reflected in its gift-shop wares, which include sticker sheets and charm bracelets depicting common glassmaking tools.
Cooper Hewitt
Upper East Side
Andrew Carnegie’s former mansion is now home to the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum. For someone who loves Areaware or Dusen Dusen, you can can find plenty of similarly colorful goods there, from a rainbow gradient puzzle to a bag made from recycled textile scraps.
Corning Museum of Glass
Corning, New York
The Corning Museum of Glass is devoted to the art, history, and science of glass and counts over 50,000 glass objects among its collection. At its gift shop, you can find one-of-a-kind pieces created by the master glassworkers who run demonstrations in the museum’s Hot Shop.
Field Museum
Chicago, Illinois
Dinosaurs abound at the Field Museum, but the star of the show is Sue, an enormous Tyrannosaurus rex that was the largest specimen ever found at the time of her discovery. A dino-loving kid would be thrilled to receive a replica of her tooth or a plush of her Quetzalcoatlus pal.
Fotografiska
Flatiron District
Originally founded in Sweden, Fotografiska is dedicated to showcasing contemporary photography all over the world. While its New York outpost is temporarily shuttered for relocation, the online gift shop is open for business: Order a blobby biophilic ring or a candle that smells like a darkroom for the coolest friend you know.
Georgia O’Keeffe Museum
Santa Fe, New Mexico
The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum gift shop is filled with items inspired by her artistic oeuvre — including a pewter paperweight shaped like a cow’s skull, a reusable tote printed with recurring motifs from her work, and a spiral brooch similar to one she wore herself.
The Great American Alligator Museum
New Orleans, Louisiana
This museum is dedicated to the “jewel of the swamp,” the great American alligator. You can gift an adventurous eater the museum’s own hot sauce or alligator jerky, but if you really want to swing for the fences, these preserved gator heads come from farm-raised alligators and help support species and swampland conservation.
The Huntington Library
San Marino, California
The Huntington comprises an art museum and over 100 acres of botanical gardens nestled in the heart of Southern California. Its gift shop has lots of flower- and nature-inspired products, from a floral-print knapsack to a delicious marmalade sourced from historical orange groves on the Huntington estate.
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Boston, Massachusetts
The Gardner Museum contains works collected by its namesake, an arts patron and philanthropist, throughout her life. The gift shop reflects her fascinatingly eccentric taste and style. I’m especially charmed by this crystal-encrusted antennae headdress similar to one she sported herself.
Japanese American National Museum
Los Angeles, California
It’s no surprise that the gift shop at the Japanese American National Museum is filled with kawaii products a weeaboo would love, from a frog-shaped coin purse to a Hello Kitty bobblehead in a design that’s exclusive to the museum.
Kennedy Space Center
Merritt Island, Florida
Space obsessives will get a kick out of a gift from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, which offers official licensed merch like astronaut-glove oven mitts and a teddy-bear keychain that would make for a cute bag charm.
Museum of Arts and Design
Midtown
New York’s Museum of Arts and Design carries lots of original pieces by local artists, like these Pink Pony Club earrings from Brooklyn-based jewelry brand Tinybs. For its most recent exhibition on Barbie, the museum partnered with Cubitts to produce a replica of the original Barbie’s white cat-eye sunglasses.
Museum of Jurassic Technology
Los Angeles, California
One of my all-time favorites, the Museum of Jurassic Technology is full of oddball exhibits that may or may not be rooted in reality. This “Mice on Toast” ornament or bracelet of bells would likely speak to someone with an equally quirky sensibility.
National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Every year, the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum partners with the Prix de West Art Sale and commissions an artist to design a bolo that pays tribute to the history and cultural heritage of the West. This year’s release depicts a wild mustang; past years’ offerings have featured a Kokopelli and a Great Plains toad.
Neue Galerie
Upper East Side
IYKYK: Neue Galerie’s gift shop contains some of the most glamorous, giftable merch around. I can just imagine a stylish older woman displaying this embroidered velvet piglet on her mantel or carrying this merino-wool tote bag that unfurls into a picnic blanket.
Newark Museum of Art
Newark, New Jersey
Though it’s a little more under the radar, the Newark Museum of Art holds its own against its cousins across the river. I love this poppy “Blooming Is Contagious” poster and this resin reproduction of Willie Cole’s Sole Sitter, a statue assembled from high heels.
New Museum
Nolita
At the New Museum’s gift shop, a sculptural prickly-pear lamp, a mysterious indie perfume, and a geometric skateboard deck in the shape of the museum building are all bound to appeal to the avant-gardiste.
New-York Historical Society
Upper West Side
FYI: The New-York Historical Society is currently running a Robert Caro exhibit, for the person who has made The Power Broker their personality.
New York Public Library
Midtown
While not technically a museum, the New York Public Library is very much a cultural institution, of which I am a ride-or-die stan. Foster an early love of the library in kids with this fabric tote bag, or get a gold vermeil library-card charm to string on a bracelet or necklace.
New York Transit Museum
Downtown Brooklyn
Something from the New York Transit Museum is guaranteed to please a public-transit nerd, from an old-fashioned grab hold to a cozy throw blanket printed with the iconic NYC subway map.
Noguchi Museum
Astoria
If our “In Situ” story inspired the design-minded friend in your life to want their very own Akari Lamp, they’re available through the gift shop at the Noguchi Museum.
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Philadelphia Museum of Art (known for the Rocky steps) is also the home of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, as seen on this reversible raincoat. The gift shop also collects works from local artists, such as embroidered initial pins and a patchwork chair inspired by Gee’s Bend quilts.
Poster House
Chelsea
If your giftee just moved and could use some art to fill their bare walls, Poster House offers a wide array of prints pulled from its archives and past exhibitions. I couldn’t resist throwing in a Milton Glaser–designed poster to advertise New York magazine.
SFMOMA
San Francisco, California
Any modern-art museum is bound to have a reliably good gift shop, and San Francisco’s is no exception — I spotted a crocheted Miffy ornament clad in Mondrian’s primary color palette, a silk-screened calendar that can be framed and reused as art, and a sleek wooden cuckoo clock.
Studio Museum in Harlem
Harlem
The Studio Museum in Harlem celebrates artists of African ancestry, and everything in the gift shop was made or inspired by Black creators and artists. This shopper tote is printed with the bold plaid art of Stanley Whitney, while this set of celestial earrings pays homage to Barkley L. Hendricks’s painting Dancer.
The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
