We write about hundreds of products each week. Here, in our version of the Sunday circular, we’ve plucked some of our recent favorites: expert-recommended essentials, life-changing stuff you didn’t know you needed, newly launched gizmos, and very good deals we uncovered while trawling through the vast online-shopping universe — including a dog-shaped cross-body bag from The Strategist’s print gift guide, a very sparkly toilet seat, and the cowboy boots that are essential to the “unofficial Chappell Roan uniform.”
Hundreds of unusual, surprising, useful (and not so useful) gifts
The Strategist’s annual print gift issue is here, and it’s chock-full of 297 surprising and delightful gifts for those with even the most particular taste. We’ve got gifts at every price point (under $50, under $200, and over $200) for every interest, including the “Nepo highlighter” from Kaia Gerber’s Library Science line (which the brand officially renamed after seeing our guide), a satin dachshund-shaped cross-body bag for kids, and some be-feathered Ferragamo pumps.
A very sparkly pink toilet seat …
In addition to our print gift guide, we’ve been working on dozens of online gift guides, too. One of the latest: a guide to the best sparkly gifts. In the guide, junior writer Bella Druckman shared a new gifting philosophy: “Buy them something useful, but make it sparkly.” Among the “sparkliest practical items” she found is this pink glitter toilet seat, which would pair nicely with this sparkly soap dispenser, also on the list.
… and some metallic pink cowboy boots
“You might not have heard of Chappell Roan six months ago, but you now have a Spotify Wrapped dominated by ‘Good Luck, Babe,’” says Strategist writer Rachael Griffiths in her brand-new Chappell Roan gift guide. For fans both old and new, she suggests these cowboy boots, which she calls the “unofficial Chappell Roan uniform.” Griffiths recently saw the pop star live and says the boots were “a dime a dozen” in the line for the Brixton, London show.
A plushie for their bag
“From the Miu Miu and Loewe runways to people on Instagram ‘Birkenifying’ their mini Longchamps and TikTokkers wrapping ribbons around their Telfars and Tabby bags,” bag charms are suddenly everywhere this year, according to Griffiths. And, it turns out, they make great gifts, too. If you’re shopping for the person who still keeps a gaggle of plushies on their bed, they’ll probably appreciate this charm from Jellycat.
LESET x Madewell pointelle
While Strategist writer Kat Gillespie has been resisting joining the pointelle bandwagon, the newest collaboration from Madewell and Leset might just change her mind. It’s one of the newest launches that caught our eye this week, and is available in cream, festive red, and dark gray — for now.
Jennifer Tilly’s Gucci poker set …
When we asked The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills cast member Jennifer Tilly about her favorite things, she told us about this $37,000 travel poker set from Gucci. “If I’m flying private with a lot of poker players, I bring it in my carry-on. If I’m traveling alone, I check it,” says Tilly, who uses the set with Hermès playing cards.
… and Paige DeSorbo’s olives to go
“I am obsessed with olives, but I’m not going to carry around a glass jar,” says TV personality Paige DeSorbo. She found a solution in these well-seasoned olives, which are “easy to grab and go” for long car trips because they come in a bag. “If there are multiple people in the car, we’re going through a whole bag of these,” she says.
A tingly duo of Sichuan pepper oils
“I live in perpetual fear of giving and receiving useless things that are going to take up space,” Strategist contributor Kiki Aranita writes in her new gift guide for pantry nerds. Her solution: giving condiments they likely don’t already have, like this duo of Sichuan pepper oils. “I use them on salads, fish, tofu, and even in cocktails to add some tingly heat,” says Aranita.
Our new favorite soft suitcase
Back in July, Gillespie predicted that soft luggage was making a comeback. Four months later, she’s back on the soft-luggage beat with our new best-in-class guide to soft-sided luggage, which she says “is more lightweight than plastic luggage, as well as more durable and repairable.” She named this four-wheeled suitcase from Travelpro the very best because of its impressive workmanship and inclusion of an internal compression packing-cube system, two shoe bags, and a laundry bag.
A no-set-up-required Bluetooth speaker
Every year our tech writer Jordan McMahon fields “countless questions from friends and loved ones about what gadgets to gift the people in their lives,” but his gift suggestions are dependent on the recipient’s tech skills. For the folks who aren’t tech-inclined, he created a guide to tech gifts they don’t have to set up. That includes this eye-catching speaker that “has just a few simple, intuitive dials for controls and can also play AM/FM radio,” making it perfect for the parent or grandparent who’s otherwise prone to technical difficulties.
The all-in-one spray four Strategist staffers use daily
After Strategist writer Ambar Pardilla first mentioned Ceremonia’s Guava Rescue Spray in a recent pitch meeting, three Strategist staffers picked up their own bottles — and all have been equally impressed. As Pardilla writes, the aptly named Rescue Spray is “the do-it-all solution to the problems that come with heat-styling and has finally cut down on my ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ frizz.” Whether she spritzes it post-shower as a detangler or post-blowout to tame flyaways, she says, “I like to think my Guava Rescue Spray–sprayed strands look better than what I’d see in a shampoo commercial.”
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.
