Maxine Bilder (2:40)

It sounds really simple, but a good gift is something that someone's really gonna use and like. And I think some of it is we sort of joke on staff sometimes that being a good gift giver is also sometimes being a good spy and looking at what people are liking on Instagram, being thoughtful, too. If someone mentioned something that they, like, had their eye on, file it away, put it in your little notes app, and save it for later.

Host/Producer (3:03)

Oh, I like the spy business.

Alison Stewart (3:05)

Tell me a little bit about other places we can spy on someone to figure out maybe what they really might want or even need.

Maxine Bilder (3:11)

Yeah, I mean, Instagram is a great place. For our gift issue this year, we actually talked to stylish couples who, you know, obviously have bought plenty of gifts for each other. One of them was saying that they have looked at what their spouse has bid on on ebay, for instance, and then tries to outbid them on ebay for the G. So looking at what they looked at, Amazon and things like that, it's a little sneaky, but it can be fun. And I think it adds to that delight and surprise.

Alison Stewart (3:40)

Some of your gift guides have very specific focus. The best gift for cat lovers. The best gifts for every kind of dad. Tween boys. According to Tween Boys, what is your process on deciding what your buckets are going to be?

Maxine Bilder (3:56)

I think some of it is just even thinking of our own lives, thinking about who are the hard to shop for people in our lives. You know, teens and tweens are perennially so difficult to shop for, and in some ways, it's actually talking to them that you're gonna get the best picks. And so it's just. It's fun to be able to reach out to people and ask, you know, what is on your wish list? What do you want this year?

Alison Stewart (4:18)

All right, let's talk about significant others. What are some things to keep in mind when buying something for a romantic partner?

Maxine Bilder (4:25)

I think buying gifts for a romantic partner, again, you want to get something that they're actually going to use and love. And one thing we also joke about with romantic partners, too, is that it's not just Christmas, it's your anniversary, it's Valentine's Day, it's their birthday. It goes on and on and on. And so I think in some ways you can't discount just spending some quality time with each other, too. And so, you know, thinking of gifts that, you know, is there a concert that you would both like to go to? Is there a restaurant that's on your list? Is it, you know, something as simple as just making a reservation and sharing it with them can be a perfectly nice gift for your significant other.

Host/Producer (4:57)

Mother, let's talk to Katherine from Ridgewood, New Jersey, who has a little tip for us.

Alison Stewart (5:01)

Hi, Katherine.

Host/Producer (5:01)

Thanks for calling in.

Caller (5:03)

Well, thank you. So we're at a point in our lives where we don't need more things. But what I did one year was I reached out to a bunch of our friends and asked them to recommend a book for my husband. And I've also reached out to ask them to recommend a movie for him and then package it in just a cute little way, like arranging it like a Christmas tree on a piece of paper or something like that. But it's keeps us occupied for the year. It's just a wonderful reminder of our friends, and it gives you an insight to your friends as well.

Host/Producer (5:33)

Catherine, Excellent, excellent suggestion. Thank you for calling in. Judd is calling from Union, New Jersey. Hi, Jud, thanks for calling, all of it.

Caller Judd (5:42)

Hi, thanks for having me. So my mother's really into gardening, and I know a lot of people are into gardening, and they always get plants and flowers. But one year I got her a tree, which I understand is a privilege not a lot of people have, especially if you live in the city and the apartment. I live in the suburbs of New Jersey, so I'm lucky enough that she has such a backyard. And it's honestly the greatest gift I ever got anyone in my entire life. I got it for her a willow tree, and it was about 6ft tall when I got it for her, and it fit in a box. And now about a decade later, it's about 50, 60ft tall. It gives a huge amount of shade in the backyard.

Alison Stewart (6:19)

And.

Caller Judd (6:19)

And it's something she can literally see change year after year. And I don't think I will ever top a gift my entire life as much as that one. So that was really something special.

Host/Producer (6:31)

Judd, well done. Thank you for calling in. What a wonderful gift that was.

Maxine Bilder (6:35)

Certainly a gift that keeps on giving.

Host/Producer (6:37)

My guest is Maxine Bilder, the editor of the Strategist. We're talking about their gift guide selection of New York magazine. We want to hear from you great gifts you've given, great gifts you've received, or any tips on how to think creatively about, about giving good gifts. This holiday season, our Phone lines are open. 2124-3396-9221-2433, wnyc. You can call in, join us on air, or you can text us at that number, or you can reach out on social media at Olivet wnyc. It's great when we crowdsource and help each other out. It was interesting talking about people who like plants. This is sort of like people who like plants. You have on this list Aero Garden Sprout. What is Aero Garden Sprout? Who would this be good for?

Maxine Bilder (7:20)

Yeah, so it's an indoor garden. Our writer Aaron Schwartz has tested a bunch of these. And so it's a compact little device that sits on your counter. And part of what's cool about the AeroGarden sprout is that it waters itself so you don't have to spend too much time worrying about it. But it comes with these little seed pod kits. So you pop in the pod and then you can grow. There's one that you can grow herbs. There's another where you can grow little flowers. And so it's a nice little thing to have on your countertop, especially if they're a good home cook who likes a fresh herb.

Alison Stewart (7:51)

You have a gift described for the boyfriend who keeps raving about the hotel toilet. This is a Tushy classic bidet. So what my question about this everyone's gonna bidet is, do I need to include a TaskRabbit gift card for someone to install this, or is this easy?

Maxine Bilder (8:08)

Fortunately, you don't with this one. This is another product that our writers have tested. We have a whole guide to the best bidets if you're bidet curious. But, you know, this one is great, too. You don't need a plumber. It just attaches to your. This one from Tushy. It is the Tushy 3.3.0. And yeah, it just attaches straight to your toilet seat. So there's not a lot of plumbing you have to do.

Alison Stewart (8:30)

What about if you know somebody who's.

Host/Producer (8:32)

Like, I just have to get organized. This is my thing. I want to get organized. You've heard them talk about this. How can we help our friend get organized, but also keep it on the gift side, not on the hey, you're a mess.

Maxine Bilder (8:43)

Totally. Yeah. I mean, I think that's one thing that's really hard, too, is you never want to give someone a backhanded compliment as a gift either.

Caller (8:50)

Right.

Maxine Bilder (8:50)

But we actually have this one Japanese planner that it's a favorite among our staffers. It's called the Hobonichi Teco. It's a little dainty little planner, really beautifully designed. And it's sort of a nice little thing to stuff in someone's stocking. A planner, like so a little handwritten planner. Yeah.

Host/Producer (9:10)

What if I'm somebody who loses things?

Maxine Bilder (9:12)

Oh, well, for that case, we do have, I have to say, another great stocking stuffer, the Apple airtags. They're really as good as people say, great for tracking luggage, great for keeping track of your stuff. I think the key, though is making it feel a little. And so one thing I recommend would be to add a little keychain to it. You can also get little keychain holders for your airtags. There's some that are just super sleek and look really nice and just very simple. But then there's others that are shaped like cartoon characters. For my husband actually, who loses things sometimes, I got him these little strawberry shaped ones. And so you slip the airtag in and it's a cute little strawberry on his keychain.

Host/Producer (9:54)

Let's go to Jacqueline calling in from Inglewood, New Jersey. Hi, Jacqueline, thanks for calling all of it.

Caller (10:00)

Good morning. I received a gift once that I really cherished. I had gone to a local art club showing with a friend and was admiring different paintings there. And the friend actually commissioned one of the artists to do a painting for me. And it's something that I have prominently displayed at home. And every time I look at it, it just gives me a warm feeling.

Host/Producer (10:30)

I love that. Thank you for calling in. Let's talk to Mary calling in from Croton on Hudson. Hi, Mary, thanks for calling all of it.

Caller Mary (10:38)

Hi, thanks for having me. The gift I made last year, I made two of them, one for my brother and one for my mom. And I went on ebay and found like a little Hot Wheels, our Matchbox car of our family minivan in the early 90s. And I then attached a mini Christmas tree to the top of it with some wire and gave it as an ornament.

Host/Producer (11:02)

I love that. Mary, thanks for calling in. Let's talk to Pamela from Milburn, New Jersey. Hi, Pamela, thanks for calling all of it.

Caller Pamela (11:11)

Hi. Thank you. My mother had a lifelong dream of going on a tugboat ride and the South Street Seaport made that come true for her. It was really them. They were amazing. They made it. She's 87 years old. It's very choppy water, but they made it a wonderful experience.

Alison Stewart (11:31)

Pamela, thank you for calling in. I love that idea of experiences, things we can do Together you have a couple things on the list that aren't objects or things you can share with family members.

Host/Producer (11:42)

Games.

Alison Stewart (11:42)

For example, Dutch Blitz is on your list.

Maxine Bilder (11:45)

Yeah, that is a card game. It was created by a German optometrist, of all people. I love sharing that little fun fact. But it's a fun game. It's sort of a game where you're trying to get rid of all your cards as quick as you can. Super competitive, super fast paced. And everyone's going at the same time too. So we've been told that it has driven some families apart. So fair warning. But it's very fun.

Alison Stewart (12:08)

Keep the competition friendly, everybody. It's the holiday season. Wavelength. What's Wavelength?

Maxine Bilder (12:13)

Yeah, that's another cool game. And this one is great because it's suitable for up to 12 players. So that's another really great one for post Christmas break. But you basically have one person who is the psychic and they basically will pick a place on the wheel and then the people in the group have to sort of guess where you land. So it can be, you know, from hot to cold, where. Where is ice cream. And you have to sort of guess where it wants to be on the, on the spectrum.

Alison Stewart (12:41)

This is an interesting suggestion I think our listeners will really like. And one of our callers, Kathy, I think it was Kathleen, sort of touched on this. You suggest buying a book that people can read together. What are some recent books that might be particularly good for this?

Maxine Bilder (12:57)

Yeah. Over at New York magazine, we actually did a book club this summer for the guest by Emma Cline. And that really drove a lot of conversation.

Alison Stewart (13:05)

That's a good one. What does that ending mean?

Maxine Bilder (13:07)

Let's discuss that. What does the ending mean? But I also think a celebrity memoir is always a good one to discuss too. And there's been some really great that have come out this year. You know, Britney Spears memoir, that's definitely gonna get some conversation going. You have Walter Isaacson's biography of Elon Musk. And I also think Matthew Perry's memoir as well is beautifully written and feels really timely. So I think a good memoir is always something that's gonna spark some conversation too.

Host/Producer (13:33)

So the idea is maybe you get.

Alison Stewart (13:34)

Three or four friends the same book.

Host/Producer (13:36)

And that you all read it together. Or a partner.

Maxine Bilder (13:38)

Or a partner. Yeah. Yeah.

Alison Stewart (13:40)

What a great idea.

Host/Producer (13:41)

We are talking about gift giving ideas with a little extra thought, some creativity to them. My guest is Maxine Builder, the editor of the Strategist. You're our guest as well. We're crowdsourcing this Conversation. What is a gift that you've received that was really special? Or maybe there's a gift you've given someone that just really landed. You nailed it. 2124-3396-9221-2433. WNYC. You can call in and join us on air or you can text to us at that number someone's texted in amaryllis or paperwhite narcissus bul.

Alison Stewart (14:14)

They're really good for people that you.

Host/Producer (14:16)

Want to give something, but not very expensive and they last a really long time. Thank you for that text as well. What about some grandparent presents?

Alison Stewart (14:25)

Because we should always give, give grandparents presents. I think the kids get a lot of attention.

Host/Producer (14:29)

I'm about giving the grandparents some love. You have the just between us grandmother and granddaughter, a no stress, no rules journal.

Alison Stewart (14:37)

How does that work?

Maxine Bilder (14:38)

Yeah, so basically what I love about this is that. But I think a lot of these gifts or grandparents too, they're sort of designed to help create new traditions and help spark conversation. And I think it can be really hard to have inter generational conversations too. And so the idea of this is that there's writing prompts where you, the grandparent can share special events from their life. The grandkid can also share special events from their life. And one suggestion that we've gotten too is that for long distance grandparents and grandkids, they can mail it to each other as well. So you can be, you can be pen pals with your grandparent, which is really sweet.

Alison Stewart (15:10)

There is a cookbook here for kids and grandparents.

Maxine Bilder (15:15)

Yeah, Grandma and me and the kitchen. Sort of the same idea of, you know, sharing recipes together. And these are all. What's nice about these recipes is that they're very relatively simple too. So it's blueberry muffins and tomato soup and grilled cheese. And I think it's nice to be able to create some of those traditions too and to be able to sort of kick start some of that as well.

Alison Stewart (15:35)

And I think it's great if you have your kids in the kitchen with grandma and grandpa and get them to talk about their lives while they're there. Get your kids to hear about the family stories and the family traditions. That's always really terrific. You know, if anybody who listens to podcasts, as some of our listeners do, I've heard so many, so many plugs for digital picture frames. What would you suggest? If someone's thinking like, yeah, this sounds like a good idea, I don't know where to start on a digital Picture frame.

Maxine Bilder (16:04)

Totally. And I think those are really tricky too because there's some that are not so great. Our tech writer has tested a bunch and one brand that keeps coming up is Aura A U R A. And it's one that actually our senior editor has bought six of them over the last several years for basically every member of her family. And what's great about that is that you can set it up with your iPhone or you can set it up with Google Photos. And so anytime you add a photo to that album, it then automatically updates onto the photo frame too. So you set it up once and then it sort of set it and forget it and every time you just add, the photo shows up. So it is another great gift actually for long distance grandparents or long distance family members and a nice way to share photos together that's just for you.

Alison Stewart (16:45)

I feel like we should talk gadgets a little bit.

Maxine Bilder (16:47)

Yeah.

Alison Stewart (16:48)

What are some fun new tech items or tech gadgets that people would think, oh, wow, I'm kind of excited to get that one.

Maxine Bilder (16:54)

Yeah. I think this year one thing that our tech writer has been really excited about are actually folding phones, which is something that feels very mid aughts. But there's a whole new tranche of folding phones that he's obsessed with and excited about and they really do have that satisfying click. There's obviously, of course the new iPhone, which I think anyone would be excited to receive, is sort of a no brainer. But then I also think that there's, you know, always headphones and new, new everything too. So if anyone needs an upgrade of anything, you can always find it.

Alison Stewart (17:26)

I love these two. One says one year my partner gave me a custom calendar with pictures of us. Next year I gave it back to him filled with everything we'd done that year.

Maxine Bilder (17:34)

Aw.

Host/Producer (17:35)

And here's a terrific one too.

Alison Stewart (17:36)

Kids got their dad a machine to carbonate and flavor water. Proud of dad for not drinking anymore. They nailed it.

Host/Producer (17:42)

He loved.

Maxine Bilder (17:44)

That's great.

Alison Stewart (17:45)

In our last moments, any other things on your gift guides that you really want to give a shout out to?

Maxine Bilder (17:50)

Yeah, I think one thing I would say too is that I wouldn't. You know, we've been talking a lot about things that are good activities too, and a Lego set. It's so basic, but it is something that I think is really great for kids of all ages. And don't be afraid to get a little silly, I think too with your gift giving. And that's my main piece of advice for anyone.

Alison Stewart (18:06)

I was going to ask you something. You're excited to give someone, but we don't want to blow that. What's a gift that you've gotten that.

Host/Producer (18:11)

You just really loved?

Maxine Bilder (18:13)

A gift that I got recently, I got a new pair of running shoes from my husband. And it was really sweet. It's nothing super fancy, but it was exactly what I wanted. And, you know, I needed new running shoes and he got them for me. And I think in some ways that's the perfect gift. It's showing someone that you've listened, listened to them and you care about them and you want them to enjoy their hobbies.

Host/Producer (18:32)

Someone else texted in for my birthday, I received A membership to MoMA for a year. Best gift ever.

Maxine Bilder (18:39)

That's a good one.

Alison Stewart (18:40)

That's a good one.

Host/Producer (18:41)

If you want to check out the lists on the Strategist, they're really great, and I'm sure you can find something for that. Hard to find. Hard to shop for person in your life. Maxine Bilder has joined us, the editor of the Strategist, the gift guide section of New York magazine. Thanks for coming in.

Maxine Bilder (18:55)

Thank you for having me. Happy holidays.

Alison Stewart (18:56)

Happy holidays.

Host/Producer (18:57)

And remember, folks, if you know of a place where people can give back, tag us on your Instagram stories. We will regram it and we'll add it to our giving back highlight on our Instagram. So that's at Olivet wnyc. We can get gifts and we can give back as well. There's more.

Alison Stewart (19:16)

All of it on the way.

Host/Producer (19:17)

Next hour, music from Lawrence and maybe.

Alison Stewart (19:19)

Some of the best songs of the year.

Uncle (19:23)

I'm gonna put you on, nephew.

Maxine Bilder (19:24)

All right.

McDonald's Employee (19:25)

Welcome to McDonald's.

Alison Stewart (19:26)

Can I take your order, miss?

Uncle (19:27)

I've been hitting up McDonald's for years. Now it's back. We need snack rack. What's a snack wrap? It's the return of something great. Snack wrap is back.

McDonald's Employee (19:38)

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