Finding Affordable Gifts

Summary

The Wirecutter Show – Episode: Finding Affordable Gifts Release Date: December 4, 2024

Introduction

In this episode of The Wirecutter Show, hosted by Christine Cyr Clissett and Kyra Blackwell alongside producer Rosie Guerin, the focus is on "Finding Affordable Gifts." As the holiday season approaches, the hosts discuss the common stress associated with gift-giving and the importance of staying within a budget.

Navigating Holiday Stress and Budgeting

The conversation begins with the hosts sharing their experiences with holiday shopping, particularly around Black Friday. Christine mentions her strategy of boycotting Black Friday sales unless she finds the perfect gift, which often isn't the case:

• Christine Cyr Clissett [00:43]: “I usually boycott the sales at Black Friday unless I find something really perfect. And I didn't find anything this year.”

Rosie Guerin and Kyra echo similar sentiments about the pressures of buying gifts for numerous people and the anxiety of exceeding spending limits. Christine elaborates on the psychological aspect:

• Christine Cyr Clissett [01:07]: “I like to take little holiday gifts to friends' houses if they're hosting parties. I'm also somebody that gets stressed out around this time because I like to make sure that I'm staying within the budget that I'm shooting to spend.”

Wirecutter as the Ultimate Gift Resource

Rosie highlights Wirecutter's extensive resources for finding affordable gifts, emphasizing their rigorous product testing and diverse gift guides:

• Rosie Guerin [02:31]: “We have an entire team of people that spend all year looking for gifts... We've got a ton of gift guides and a lot of these gifts that we have on the site right now are actually affordable. Under 25, under 50, under a hundred.”

Introducing Hannah Morrell: Mastermind Behind Wirecutter’s Gift Coverage

Kyra introduces Hannah Morrell, the supervising editor of Wirecutter’s gift coverage, who leads a team dedicated to finding affordable and thoughtful gifts year-round. Hannah shares her approach to gifting, emphasizing mindfulness and practicality without succumbing to consumer pressure:

• Hannah Morrell [06:15]: “I have more adopted when the spirit moves you. Gifting if you have something great in mind.”

Do’s and Don’ts of Buying Affordable Gifts

Hannah outlines four key strategies for finding affordable gifts:

1. Seek True Value

   • Focus on items that provide excellent value rather than just being cheap. For example, a high-quality carry-on bag priced at $72 offers great value compared to overpriced alternatives.
   • Hannah Morrell [08:43]: “Would the person think this cost $25, or does it seem like it would cost a lot more...”

2. Play with Size, Scale, or Shape

   • Subverting expectations by choosing items with unique sizes or shapes can delight recipients. Examples include miniaturized games or large, aesthetically pleasing containers for everyday items.
   • Hannah Morrell [10:33]: “A little tabletop desktop LED lamp that is like squishy and looks like a duck...”

3. Find Something Novel

   • Opt for unique and unexpected items that spark joy, such as solar-powered rainbow makers or cleverly disguised storage solutions.
   • Hannah Morrell [15:25]: “The solar-powered rainbow maker is something nobody would think to buy themselves, but it’s really lovely.”

4. Upgrade to a Utilitarian Item

   • Enhance practical gifts by choosing high-quality or beautifully designed versions, making everyday items feel special.
   • Hannah Morrell [17:15]: “Look for something that is beautiful and that's just keep it easy like that...”

Avoiding Common Gift-Giving Pitfalls

Hannah also advises on what to avoid when selecting affordable gifts:

• Don’t Gift Experts in Their Field

  • Avoid items directly related to someone's expertise, as they likely already own what they need. Instead, choose adjacent items that complement their interests.
  • Hannah Morrell [20:48]: “Don’t ever gift an expert in a subject matter something in their category of expertise...”

• Avoid Size-Specific Items

  • Sizing can be tricky and lead to mismatches. Instead, opt for one-size-fits-all accessories or items that don’t require precise measurements.
  • Hannah Morrell [21:43]: “In general, sized things are just so tough. We tend to avoid them.”

Gift Recommendations by Category

The hosts and Hannah delve into specific affordable gift ideas across various categories, divided into under $25 and under $100 options.

1. Tech Gifts

   • Under $25: Universal Travel Adapter

     • Hannah Morrell [24:22]: “It works in 150 different countries and is the Wirecutter pick.”
     • Kyra Blackwell [25:28]: Shares a personal anecdote about traveling with one adapter.

   • Under $100: Google TV Streamer & 3D Doodling Pen

     • Streamers enhance media consumption experiences by consolidating multiple streaming services.
     • The 3D doodling pen offers a fun, creative activity for all ages.
     • Kyra Blackwell [26:46]: “I got a Roku TV streamer for my mom, and it significantly improved her smart TV experience.”

2. Cooking Gifts

   • Under $25: New York Times Cooking Page-a-Day Calendar

     • Provides a daily illustrated recipe, perfect for those wondering, "What's for dinner?"
     • Hannah Morrell [27:55]: “It helps answer the question, what are we eating for dinner tonight?”

   • Under $100: Moss Glass Mixing Bowl Set

     • Aesthetic and functional, doubling as serving bowls.
     • Hannah Morrell [29:05]: “It's colored glass, heirloom quality, and looks definitely more expensive than it is.”

3. Beauty and Spa Gifts

   • Under $25: Dr. Singh’s Mustard Bath Salts

     • Offers restorative properties without being overly fragranced.
     • Hannah Morrell [30:25]: “It's a lovely and elevated experience.”

   • Under $100: Centre Dorian Moroccan Body Oil

     • A blend of botanical oils in an architectural bottle, providing a luxurious feel.
     • Hannah Morrell [31:41]: “It has a rich, hotel-like vibe and looks inviting on any counter.”

4. Gag and Fun Gifts

   • Under $25:

     • 101 Pooping Puppies Jigsaw Puzzle: A humorous and engaging activity.
     • Retro Phone Converter: Transforms a smartphone into a retro-style camera, combining fun and functionality.

   • Universal Option:

     • Lonely Planet “Where to Go When” Book: A travel planner book suitable for diverse recipients.
     • Lego Cherry Blossom Set: Beautiful and decorative, appealing even to adult Lego enthusiasts.
     • Hannah Morrell [33:38]: “It gives an activity and we're big into that.”

Final Takeaways and Closing Thoughts

The hosts recap the key do’s and don’ts for affordable gifting, reinforcing the importance of value, creativity, and practicality. They encourage listeners to utilize Wirecutter’s comprehensive guides to navigate the overwhelming gift options available.

• Christine Cyr Clissett [23:09]: “Look for true value, play with size, find something novel, and upgrade utilitarian items.”
• Kyra Blackwell [37:35]: “I’m putting the universal travel adapter in my own stocking.”

The episode concludes with an invitation to explore Wirecutter’s gift recommendations in the show notes and a teaser for next week’s episode, which will focus on solving listeners’ hardest-to-gift-for dilemmas with expert insights from Samantha Shea.

Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Christine Cyr Clissett [01:07]: “I'm not good enough, so I need to buy more and give more.”
• Hannah Morrell [08:43]: “Would the person think this cost $25, or does it seem like it would cost a lot more...”
• Hannah Morrell [15:25]: “The solar-powered rainbow maker is something nobody would think to buy themselves, but it’s really lovely.”
• Hannah Morrell [21:43]: “In general, sized things are just so tough. We tend to avoid them.”
• Hannah Morrell [27:55]: “It helps answer the question, what are we eating for dinner tonight?”
• Hannah Morrell [30:25]: “It's a lovely and elevated experience.”

Conclusion

"Finding Affordable Gifts" provides listeners with actionable strategies and specific product recommendations to navigate the holiday gift-giving season without breaking the bank. By leveraging Wirecutter’s expert insights and comprehensive guides, the episode equips listeners with the tools needed to select thoughtful, high-quality gifts that cater to a variety of interests and budgets.

For more detailed gift recommendations and to explore the products discussed, visit nytimes.com/wirecutter or check the show notes linked to the episode.

Transcript

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

From the New York Times. You're listening to the Wire Cutter Show.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Hey, everyone, it's the Wire Cutter Show. I'm Kyra Blackwell.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I'm Christine Cyr Clasette.

[Rosie Guerin]

And I'm Rosie Guerin. And we work at Wirecutter, the product recommendation site from the New York Times.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Each week we bring you expert advice from Our newsroom of 140 journalists who review everyday products that will make your life better. This episode of the Wirecutter show is called Finding Affordable Gifts.

[Rosie Guerin]

Kyra, Christine, we're here. It's December. You believe it?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

We made it. We made it here.

[Rosie Guerin]

We made it through Thanksgiving. Did you end up buying any holiday gifts over Black Friday?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

No, I usually boycott the sales at Black Friday unless I find something really perfect. And I didn't find anything this year.

[Rosie Guerin]

You didn't find anything?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Even sort of quotidian, like, did I get another.

[Rosie Guerin]

Just thinking cat food or cat litter?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

No, I did not buy any cat litter this Black Friday.

[Rosie Guerin]

Personally, I find this time of year to be a little stressful because there are so many people I need to get gifts for. I got my kids, I got my wife, I got my family smaller gifts for coworkers and friends. Coworkers. Do y'all have a lot of people that you need to buy gifts for this year?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah, I do. I have a lot of nieces and nephews. I've got my kids, I got my husband. I don't do a huge amount of gifting beyond that, but I do like to take little holiday gifts to friends houses if they're hosting parties. I'm also somebody that gets stressed out around this time because I like to make sure that I'm staying within the budget that I'm shooting to spend. And it can start to feel kind of like a snowball. Like you're like, oh, But I. I don't know, there's like this impulse of like, I'm not good enough, so I need to buy more and give more.

[Rosie Guerin]

There's a tip buried in there, actually, which is set a budget.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Rosie Guerin]

Because I think years ago, I never. I wouldn't do that. And I would keep finding things I wanted to get that I really liked. And then at the end of the month, I'm like, yeah, you're credit card.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Paying what you spent.

[Rosie Guerin]

Yeah.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

You're like, oh, that's a bad surprise.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Yeah. Honestly, I. I've kind of given up on buying gifts for people unless I really feel like I am obligated to. But I just feel like I come from a really Big family, and nobody seems to worry about gifts, so I'm not going to either. Maybe sometimes we'll all pool together and get one person a gift, and we do that like once a year for different people. But I just don't want to. I don't let it stress me out anymore, essentially.

[Rosie Guerin]

Well, I will say Wirecutter is a great place to go. And I'm not saying that just because we're speaking on the Wirecutter show.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yes, you are. But it is actually true. We have an entire team of people that spend all year looking for gifts. I mean, they go to trade shows, they're scouring the Internet, they're going to interesting brick and mortar stores, and they're bringing that stuff into their homes, into our offices, testing them out. It's just a great resource. We've got a ton of gift guides and. And a lot of these gifts that we have on the site right now are actually affordable. Under 25, under 50, under a hundred. Awesome, beautiful, tasteful things that I feel totally secure and happy to give.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Yeah, our gift team is so great. Like, they. They just know so much and they have so many good ideas, and they're. They're just constantly searching for these beautiful, specific gifts. They're really thinking about the strategies around gifting itself. So we're actually going to do something a little bit different today. There's so much to talk about that we're going to do two episodes on gifting. So today we're bringing in one of the masterminds behind our gift coverage, Hannah Morrell, who is a supervising editor of our gift coverage. She leads a team of gift writers who are basically doing market research all year round. She's going to walk us through some of the basic principles for gift giving, with a special emphasis on how to really find great, affordable gifts. Just the smaller stuff.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

And then next week, we're going to talk with another one of our colleagues, writer Samantha Shea, who has amazing taste. I love, love, love the things that she chooses for our gift guides, and she is our listeners questions about their hardest to gift for people. People sent us all these great voice memos, and we're going to put her in the hot seat and have her kind of solve the problems for our listeners. So that'll be next week.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Yeah.

[Rosie Guerin]

And also, if you haven't signed up for the gift, Wirecutter's newest newsletter, you don't want to miss it. It's a weekly newsletter all about great gift ideas year round, and you can sign up for [e-mail]. the gift.

[Kyra Blackwell]

We're going to take a break and then when we're back, we'll talk with Hannah Morrell about the do's and don'ts of buying affordable gifts.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I gave my brother a New York Times subscription.

[Hannah Morrell]

She sent me a year long subscription so I have access to all the games.

[Rosie Guerin]

We'll do Wordo Minnie Spelling bee.

[Hannah Morrell]

It has given us a personal connection. We exchange articles so having read the.

[Rosie Guerin]

Same article, we can discuss it.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

The coverage, the options. It's not just news.

[Hannah Morrell]

Such a diversified disc. I was really excited to give him a New York Times cooking subscription so that we could share recipes and we even just shared a recipe the other day. The New York Times contributes to our quality time together.

[Kyra Blackwell]

You have all of that information at your fingertips.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

It enriches our relationship, broadening our horizons.

[Hannah Morrell]

It was such a cool and thoughtful gift. We're reading the same stuff, we're making the same food. We're on the same page.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Connect even more with someone you care about.

[Hannah Morrell]

Learn more about giving a New York Times subscription as a [e-mail] gift get.

[Rosie Guerin]

A special rate if you act before December 6th.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Welcome back to the Wirecutter Show. With us now is Hannah Morrell, who is the supervising editor overseeing all of Wirecutter's gift coverage. And she also oversees a team of writers that hunt for gifts nearly every day of the year. I don't know how they do it, but they're amazing at it.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Hannah, welcome to the Wirecutter show.

[Hannah Morrell]

Hey, guys. I'm so happy to be here.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I'm so happy you're here too. So, Hannah, you oversee all of our gift coverage, right? Which includes what, like more than 50 guides at this point, right?

[Hannah Morrell]

We do. I was just looking at it. I think we're like up to 70 now.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Wow, that's wild. Do you have to buy a lot of gifts? Do you have kids? Do you have like lots of family members you're buying gifts for?

[Hannah Morrell]

So I have two young children and I have a partner. We don't exchange presents like through. And I'm not even though I am the gifts editor. I'm not into like rampant capitalism and buying a gift for every person for every reason. I think I have more adopted when the spirit moves you. Gifting if you have something great in mind. Gifting. Some years I give our neighbors a gift if something comes to me that I think would be amazing. And then like some years I don't give our neighbors a gift.

[Kyra Blackwell]

I think it's nice to hear that there's hope for the rest of us that there's a light at the end of the tunnel. If you really want to get into gifts, there is a way that you can be good at it and it won't stress you out anymore.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah, exactly. You just need some practice and maybe some good tips.

[Rosie Guerin]

I think another way of maybe thinking about it is just thoughtfulness, you know, mindfulness throughout the year. Hannah, for the purposes of this conversation, I'm curious, what do you consider to be an affordable gift? And I know that's a little bit relative based on who you're gifting to, but just generally speaking, I mean, I.

[Hannah Morrell]

Guess now having been so entrenched in the market, I think you can get great gifts for under $25. 100% nice gifts for like the most important people in your Life. For under 25, I think that that is affordable.

[Rosie Guerin]

I love to hear that sound.

[Hannah Morrell]

Right.

[Rosie Guerin]

Sounds actually very.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Sounds encouraging.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Sounds great.

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay, great.

[Kyra Blackwell]

So, Hannah, let's talk about some of the strategies you use when you're shopping for gifts. I know you've got some do's and don'ts for us. We're going to go through them one by one, but let's just start with the do's.

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay. So over the last, I think three, coming up on four years of gifting. I come by them honestly. They're really the things that we find really work. So these are the do's looking for true value in an item, not just something that's cheap. That's number one. Number two is playing with size, scale or shape. That one sort of sounds confusing, but we'll explain it later. Number three is finding something that's truly novel, something you haven't seen before. And number four is upgrade to a utilitarian thing, preferably something beautiful. So those are our four do's that I think are great strategies.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Let's just start off by looking for real value. What does that actually mean?

[Hannah Morrell]

So something we've done at Wirecutter is we really look at the gifts that people are responding to the most. We have a lot of data and something that we found in our gift guides that have a really sharp price point. So like under 25, under 50, under 100 is a great gift. Under 25 isn't something that you would expect to be $25. It's something that has a great value at $25, if that makes sense. So an example of this is actually in the under 100 category. This year we've seen real success with this B carry on bag. That's $72. And this is a carry on bag. You could. It's like a weekender. It's beautiful, it's stylish, it's trendy, it's from a great company that we love. And it's $72. That's really good value for a carry on bag. Alternately, like we have in that same guide, we threw it in there. One of our favorite towels. This, like, Turkish incredible towel. Nobody's clicking on the Turkish incredible towel. $100 towel is not a great value. That's not a great sharp price point. Gifts. So I think when you're thinking about these affordable gifts, you want to be thinking about, would the person think this cost 25, or does it seem like it would cost a lot more than 25 to get something this great? That is a good sign. That's again, like, should the light bulb should go off in your mind, probably my recipient will feel the same way. And it probably has a great value.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

And I know from working with the gifts team for many years that you also never recommend anything that feels or looks cheap. It's gotta be nice, basically.

[Hannah Morrell]

Absolutely not. You've got it. Exactly.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

So we've covered getting great value for the gift. So let's move to the second strategy, and I love this, that your team really looks at playing with size, scale, and shape of gifts. It's almost like subverting expectations.

[Hannah Morrell]

Yeah. And this is really interesting working at wirecutter, because Wirecutter is so practical and so many of our colleagues are working on these beats and coming up with these products that are. Everyone would could use them, everyone would want them, but they don't all make great gifts. And that's because a gift does inherently need to be something you wouldn't buy yourself. There's, like, different pressures on a gift. Right. It needs to have this surprise and delight factor. And a way that we found is kind of like a shortcut to that surprise and delight factor is, as you say, like playing with size and scale of things. You know, last year in our stocking stuffer gift guide, we found a gift that really was awesome, was like an itty bitty card game of the game Uno. Just because it was tiny like this, you know, you could still play. That really sort of sparked this joy in people. We've also had a lot of fun this year. One of our favorite things is this really beautiful and incredible and yummy that our kitchen team loves Spanish potato chips, but they come in, like a huge paint can. A pretty paint can.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I saw a social video of Our team with the cooking, the New York Times cooking team, tasting those chips, and they were delicious.

[Hannah Morrell]

Oh, really delicious.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Oh, really? Yeah.

[Hannah Morrell]

I love that. Yeah, they're so fun. And like, anyone would love to receive that gift. But like, if you rolled up to your someone's house with just like a bag of lace, like, it wouldn't quite have the same sort of punch. But I feel like you could blow anyone away with a paint can of delectable chips. Our kitchen team also loves the Maldon sea salt. And that also comes in almost like a beach pail sized container.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I would love that.

[Kyra Blackwell]

How long do you expect that to last? It's a lot of salt that would.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Last my family maybe a year.

[Hannah Morrell]

What?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

You know, a lot of butter and salt in my family.

[Hannah Morrell]

So that's like the scale thing, right? A teeny set of uno, a big thing of salt or chips. So that's what I mean about size or sal. And then the other thing we've seen, like, people just seem to really respond to are things that look like other things. You know, if you want to get somebody something practical, think about it looking like something else. So a gift we had a lot of success with, and I've given this gift, it absolutely blew my mom out of the water a couple years ago. It's called the gurgle pot and it's a pitcher. And so you could use it for flowers or you could use it for water, but it looks like a fish. And when you pour it, it makes this like little bubbling sound that is like a babbling brook. And that, you know, again, it has a nice sharp price point. People really responded to that this year. We've seen people really responding to this little tabletop desktop LED lamp that is like squishy and looks like a duck. It's beautiful. I know I sound insane saying a light looks like a duck and it's great, but it actually is. It's called the lazy duck. Look it up. So things that, like, anthropomorphize things, things that look like other things, really have this charming factor. I don't think anyone's going out and being like, you know what I need today? I need a pitcher that looks like a fish. But we find that as a gift that still remains useful. That's so fun and unexpected.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah, I feel like that lazy duck. What is it? Do you know what the price point of that is?

[Hannah Morrell]

So it's in or under 25, but I think it's about 15. And the great thing about it is that again, it does not seem $15. It seems kind of like you would get it at MoMA. And it has a little vibe.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I totally agree. I've only seen pictures of it, but it does look like something a little bit more design y. And my kids have responded to. They've been like, oh, my gosh, that's so cute. And I feel like that's really cute. Yeah, I feel like it'd be like a really good secret Santa or white elephant gift.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Or like a nightlife for your kids.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah, or a nightlife for sure. Yeah.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Lots of use cases.

[Rosie Guerin]

This category I describe as things that are a little cheeky.

[Hannah Morrell]

You think that's fair Cheeky, right.

[Rosie Guerin]

I would agree a lot in our house. So the third strategy here, the third do is to find something novel. Do find something novel, something that maybe you've never seen before. Hannah, talk about that a little bit.

[Hannah Morrell]

This is just like something that, like, nobody would have and nobody would think of because it's literally sort of like a novel product category. And so a real wire cutter sort of og gift in this category is this solar powered rainbow maker. And I have to believe that people listening to this pod probably have this thing because I think every wire cutter reader has bought this thing. It's a little prism that mounts on your window and it is powered by solar power to sort of spin and reflect rainbows all around your room. Before I even worked here, someone had gifted me one of these things. So again, no one's going out looking for a prismatic rainbow thing to hang in your window that's solar powered, but it's really lovely. It's a really high quality. It really sparks joy. Our version of that this year is one of our colleagues, Mari, that's on the gift team. She found this empty book. So it looks exactly like a book. It has, like a linen cover. It is indistinguishable from a book, but it opens up to be a little box to store things in. So I think that. And we see our readers really responding to that.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I feel like this category of novelty, I want to love it, but I also feel like this is a category where things could go really wrong. Like, I've been given novel gifts in the past that I haven't actually liked. I know that's surprising, but is there maybe, like a rule here where you really need to know the person to give them a novelty gift or.

[Hannah Morrell]

I don't know if it's that or if there is a usefulness element in there. The rainbow maker doesn't quite hit that. I can't explain the rainbow maker. The book is useful that actually like most people could use that. Right. Another example that we see a lot of success with is this. It's called a salt pig and it's really like a salt cellar that you could put that three pound bucket of Maldon in or some of it in. And it sort of keeps salt that you would use with your hand from like caking. Cause it has this like unglazed ceramic interior and it's just, it's so useful. It's pretty. But who has heard of a salt pig and who has a salt pig? So I guess what I would say, rather than like, if you know them really well, it's more. Is there a little thread of usefulness and it's not just, just a knick knack nonsense thing Again, Rainbow maker, I admit, falls outside that. But in general, like, if it is a little useful, I think a rainbow.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Maker is making rainbows. That's useful and that's the use.

[Hannah Morrell]

Everyone needs that. That's right.

[Rosie Guerin]

I just looked at the salt pig and I most certainly would not buy this for myself. But would love.

[Hannah Morrell]

But would you want one?

[Rosie Guerin]

Yes. Would love to be gifted a salt pig.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah.

[Hannah Morrell]

I worked at Wirecutter for two years and recommended it like no less than 10,000 times. And then last year I bought myself one. So there we go. I absolutely love it. Nobody got the H. I know.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Okay, Hannah, so we're actually down to the last category, which I think we're calling the utilitarian upgrade. Kind of getting something that is maybe boring, but you're adding a little spark, a little, a little sophistication to it.

[Hannah Morrell]

So this one is shout out to my stepdad, who I don't know, I think there are some people on this earth who can't get into the whimsy element of gifting. And just when they're gonna buy something for someone else, it has to be practical. Do you guys have people like that in your lives?

[Kyra Blackwell]

It's me. I am that person.

[Hannah Morrell]

Unfortunately, like you can't do it. So what have you.

[Kyra Blackwell]

What do you.

[Hannah Morrell]

What's like a real, like practical gift that you think that you've given?

[Rosie Guerin]

Can I jump in and say that the practical gift that Kyra has not so subtly hinted that she would like to receive is oven mitts?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Oh yeah, that's true.

[Hannah Morrell]

That's not a gift, babe. That's just like a thing that you could just go buy yourself anymore.

[Rosie Guerin]

It's not a gift. It's a cry for help.

[Kyra Blackwell]

I use kitchen towels. That I set on fire on a weekly basis. And that's my routine. You can't take it away from me.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Can be easier, Kyra.

[Hannah Morrell]

So what I would say to you, Kyra, is that if you're really looking for something you like giving and receiving utilitarian things, look for something that is beautiful and that's just keep it easy like that. So an example of this is I think a little like power boost for your phone. A little like phone bank thing is a great gift. The wirecutter pick is a Belkin one. It's fabulous. It could charge for a million hours. It can go anywhere. It's lightweight, this, that. It looks like a, you know, like a power bank. It's nothing special. Deep in that guide you'll find a link to the travel card plus one which is sort of as thin as a credit card. It can go in a wallet. It also can charge quite well and it comes in close to a dozen colors. I absolutely like love this thing and we have that in a lot of gift guides and people respond to it. So again, you're getting that really utilitarian element of you could use this every day. This is. Everybody could need this.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

But.

[Hannah Morrell]

But it's sort of like a little kicked up a notch.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I think that's a lovely example of something I know your team does really well, which is in addition to going out into the world and looking for gifts all over the place, you're also mining our guides where we've tested a bunch of stuff and maybe certain things haven't been elevated to a top pick status, but they are still good. And as a gift they could be really, really great. And those might be just deeper in the guides and the average reader might not find those so easily. And so you're elevating those.

[Hannah Morrell]

We are always bone collecting in the guides. We really are. That's the first place we would look because there's so much research behind it and then it saves us the market work. Another example are these little self watering pots. And I think they only sell them at MoMA. So it's sort of like a terracotta pot nested inside a glass pot. And so you would fill the glass, the part of the vessel with water and then the terracotta would absorb what it needed. Right. Is the idea, I don't think giving someone a terracotta pot plant is that amazing of a gift. It could be pretty with the right plant in it, but just plain giving the pot is sort of just, I don't know, a little bit lackluster but these self watering pots, they're really beautiful. It's a really pretty cylinder. And they have served this different function that sort of again, that utilitarian thing kicked up a notch is. And that sweet spot that we're talking.

[Kyra Blackwell]

About and so useful. Love a plant that just feeds itself.

[Rosie Guerin]

Can we pivot now to one of my favorite categories, which is things you should definitely avoid. Let's talk about the don'ts when thinking about gifting in general, but especially when it comes to affordable gifts. So, Hannah, talk about the rules.

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay, so this is like a real common pitfall, this first one. Don't ever gift an expert in a subject matter something in their category of expertise because they should buy themselves, you know, things in that category. My suggestion is to get somebody something that's adjacent to their hobby. An example of this would be like, you're not going to buy a runner running sneakers. You're not going to buy them new leggings. You know, you're not getting gear. Avoiding gear. But something we see people really liking is we have these pint glasses that are etched with the marathon routes of like all marathons. So if you know someone has run the New York City marathon or any marathon, that's like a nice sort of like I'm speaking to your hobby, but I'm not getting in gear territory.

[Kyra Blackwell]

That's so nice and thoughtful. I'm not a runner, but I can imagine being a runner and finding that adorable.

[Hannah Morrell]

Yeah, yeah. Hobby adjacent is fine. But like hobby gear, we're avoiding anything else.

[Rosie Guerin]

Hannah, any other don'ts?

[Hannah Morrell]

Yes. So size things that you need to know someone's size. I just don't think you should buy someone like a fleece because I don't know how you want your fleece to be Fitting another way, if you are sort of like a stylish person, if you're into things like that, there's ways around this as well. With one size fits all apparel. Like a great sun hat. We have these white, beautiful, beautiful white cotton nightgowns. I know that sounds kind of not exciting, but they're really lovely and they can be customized a lot of ways. Who wears a nightgown anymore? Nobody. But everybody might like to.

[Rosie Guerin]

It's giving. Dickens.

[Hannah Morrell]

It's giving. It's giving. I know. So I think if something is a one size fits all accessories or apparel item, it could work. But in general, sized things are just so tough. We tend to avoid them.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Okay, so let's recap the do's and don'ts of gifting. In general, but specifically here, we're talking about great rules when you're thinking about affordable gifts. The first one is you want to look for true value, trying to find something that like, like, feels maybe more expensive than it really is. The second, it's really fun to play with size, scale, and shape. You want to look for potentially something that's novel, unexpected. And then the last one is a good route for people who like utilitarian things is to look for a utilitarian upgrade. You really want to avoid buying people things in their hardcore hobbies and getting things that need to be sized.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Awesome.

[Hannah Morrell]

Now, I'm not going to have a job, though, because you guys just told, like, all the secrets. There it is, folks.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Okay, so we're going to take a quick break, and then when we come back, we're going to talk all about affordable ideas for a few different gifting categories with some specific suggestions. We'll be right back.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Welcome back to the Wirecutter Show. This episode is all about affordable gifts. Before the break, we talked with Hannah Morrell, our gifts editor, about strategies for buying affordable gifts. The kind of the rules of thumb that you can follow and the things that you should really avoid. Now we're going to dig gift recommendations within, like, a variety of categories.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Yeah, y'all. I'm really excited about this entire episode because I have four older brothers, really big family, everybody has partners. So buying more than two gifts really does add up. So I love the idea of just finding things that are not so pricey, but still really interesting and cool and you can buy lots of stuff. So I want to talk about the different gifts based in categories like tech, cooking, beauty and gag gifts for the White Elephant and the Secret Santa Exchange. Yeah, I thankfully haven't been drafted into that yet, but we'll see. Let's just start off with tech because that is what all my brothers are into. And selfishly, I'm still fishing for ideas. So do you have any specific affordable recommendations for people who are really into tech? Hannah? Like, let's break it down by under 25 and then under 100.

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay, you've got it. So something I'm loving for this year, and I just had an experience with it, is a universal travel adapter. I don't know if your brothers travel at all, but it's under 25 and I think it works in 150 different countries. You can use it to plug in any kind of three prong thing, two prong thing, or your phones. It is the wire cutter pick. And I think it's an awesome gift. Have you guys seen it?

[Kyra Blackwell]

No, but I really. I love the suggestion because I actually just took a trip with all of my brothers to Paris in the summer and I was the only person with an adapter. So.

[Hannah Morrell]

Yes.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Oh, my gosh. The way that all of our phones were nearly dead and nobody could charge.

[Hannah Morrell]

Yes.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Because we only had one charger, essentially.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Oh, my God. Were you annoyed?

[Rosie Guerin]

Yes. Yeah. The card with the gift reads do better.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Okay, so what about under 100?

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay, under a hundred. And in the really techy tech category I think is tricky, but I have a few tech lite things I think could be amazing. We're big proponents at Wirecutter of these Google TV streamer. And so that sort of streamlines if they consume their media via streaming services. And if you are subscribing to more than two, a streamer can make that experience so much better. I wasn't aware of this, but I trust our beat experts on this one. And it puts all of your streaming places and it enhances the experience of it. Another, like, if you're wanting to go, like, a little bit more fun. But it is a little piece of tech. We recently updated our guide to 3D doodling pen. So it's kind of like a 3D printer, but it's with the pen and it have these pieces of filament that go in it and you can draw sort of 3D creations. That's under 100 and super fun for all ages. It would be a great gift to give because I think you could open it and use it and everyone could really get a kick out of it on the day of.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Those are super fun.

[Hannah Morrell]

Would your bros like any of those?

[Kyra Blackwell]

Absolutely. I think they would like all of them, actually.

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay. Yay.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I got my mom a streaming stick a couple of Christmases ago. It was a different one. It was a Roku, which was our pick at the time. And now the Google one is our top pick. And she loves it. And she has an older smart TV that was lagging. And so she had the smart interface, but putting that streamer stick in the back really made the experience of her TV better. And so I think even for people who are not really tech heads, I think that can be a really great gift.

[Kyra Blackwell]

That sounds great.

[Hannah Morrell]

Yeah. And I think it's one of those things that you don't know how bad you have it until you get a streamer stick. We have a Roku TV and it's like it takes 40 minutes to dial in the show that you're trying to watch. Oh, my God.

[Kyra Blackwell]

My TV does that too.

[Hannah Morrell]

To dig through the menus and find it. Da da, da, da. And God forbid, if you, like, make a misclick, you're back to square one.

[Kyra Blackwell]

You just gotta go to a new show, like, whatever.

[Rosie Guerin]

You're like, it's bedtime.

[Hannah Morrell]

Dreaming stick can be a therapeutic device as well.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Love it. All right, so let's go to the next category. I'm a cook. I'm into food. So this is my favorite category. So I'm curious, Hannah, what are some affordable gifts for people who like food or like cooking?

[Hannah Morrell]

Yes. So in the under 25 category, I thought about this a lot, and this one's sort of like a blatant product placement moment, but it's also awesome. I think the best cooking gift for this year is the New York Times cooking page a day calendar. It is what it sounds like it is every single day as an illustrated recipe from the New York Times Cooking Comprehensive Library. This gift serves so many purposes. I think it helps answer the question, what are we eating for dinner tonight? All of the recipes are also really well reviewed and well tested. And as people have come to expect from cooking, I can't think of anybody that cooks that wouldn't really enjoy this gift. I am 100% giving this. Would you like that, Christine?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Please? Yes. Yes. We just did an episode with Emily Weinstein about their new cookbook, which is really focused on easy weeknight dinners. Are the recipes on the calendar the sort of easy things that you could be like, oh, what am I making for dinner tonight? And that gives you the answer?

[Hannah Morrell]

Well, it's smartly organized. So like, the weeknight meals is more in that category. But then there are weekend meal might be a little bit more involved and more elevated, I would say. And then it's like seasonal. And it's a total score of a gift. I really, I'm really excited to recommend that one.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

And what about under 100?

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay, under 100, there is a company called Moss or Glass, and they make this three piece mixing bowl set that's well under 100. And it's colored glass. I think the one that we recommend is the, like, jadeite color. So it sort of would take like mixing bowls and make them be able to be serving bowls as well. It's like this heirloom company. It's made in the US I think it comes in more colors than just the jadeite. It's really beautiful. And again, it's looks definitely 150. And it's well under 100. So that's my favorite in that category.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

We are also going to put all of these gift recommendations in the show notes. So if you're listening and freaking out, like, where do I find this?

[Kyra Blackwell]

No need to write it down.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah, we're going to put it in the show notes.

[Kyra Blackwell]

As a person who loves the utilitarian gifts, I think that sounds like it would be perfect because you can use it while you're cooking and then like you said, just set your food out in it too.

[Rosie Guerin]

Hannah, I love a good spa moment. These guys know that about me. I love a spa. Yes, I would love a spa gift. I would love a spa related gift. Do you have any recommendations for people who want to gift something that will pamper a little bit? Maybe like skincare or anything else that will kind of make a gifty feel a little luxurious?

[Hannah Morrell]

Yeah. So someone gifted me this in the under 25 category. This. You can get this on Amazon. And it's another one of those things that just like, is better than you think it's gonna be. It's these Dr. Singha's mustard bath salts. Maybe people are familiar with them. They come in a. I hope it's.

[Rosie Guerin]

Better than you think it's gonna be because you just said put mustard in the bath.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Okay. Okay.

[Hannah Morrell]

Well, you're gonna receive them as a secret Santa gift from me and you're gonna be so happy because they, they are so lovely and so elevated and edgy and awesome. Okay. So it comes in like this blue jar and it's super simple. It does have mustard which has, if you're into this sort of thing, it has a lot of really restorative and healing properties. It's like absolutely lovely. It's not overly slippery, it's not overly fragranced. It's just a really lovely experience. This is one of those cult following products. Once you know, you know. And so that would be a really lovely under 25 gift.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I just bought them. I love it. Yeah, it's like $11 and it has this nice. It's got eucalyptus and rosemary. And I, I took a bath after lifting weights. I came out of the bath and I felt like new. It was really nice.

[Kyra Blackwell]

It's amazing.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah.

[Rosie Guerin]

What about under 100? So maybe a little bit more. We're going up a half step in price, but keeping it under 100. What are your wrecks?

[Hannah Morrell]

Yes. So this is something that my colleague Sam found and loved. It's a Moroccan brand called Centre Dorian, please don't come. I did not take French and it is a Body oil. And it is absolutely lovely. I think it's like a blend of six botanical oils and a handful of extracts. The smell is like rich lady at a hotel vibes. It is so lovely.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

That's Rosie's vibe.

[Kyra Blackwell]

That's Rosie.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Yeah.

[Hannah Morrell]

That's right where you want to be.

[Rosie Guerin]

Rich lady, rich man at a hotel.

[Hannah Morrell]

Rich. Any rich person. Rich Enby at a hotel.

[Rosie Guerin]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Hannah Morrell]

I. I love this stuff. And another wonderful part about this one in particular that we like is it comes in this, like, really architectural long rectangle bottle with this little globe top on it. So it's, like, inviting when it's on your counter. It feels again, you'd be really proud to gift it to somebody. So that is our current favorite, and you could use that as a bath oil. You could use it on your skin after you bathe. It's really neutral. I think you'll find it in our under 50 guides. So it's really a great price point.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

That's a deal.

[Hannah Morrell]

It really is rich.

[Rosie Guerin]

I'm concerned that neither of you is writing this down. I guess you'll remember for later.

[Hannah Morrell]

You're getting the mustard.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Sorry, babe.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Mustard seeds, Rosie. So there is this other category of gifts, you know, like Secret Santa or White Elephant. But I just want to acknowledge that gag gifts or funny gifts like this seems a little bit. It's the antithesis of what Wirecutter stands for in that usually these gag gifts are just something that you like. You open it up and you laugh once, and then you kind of like, forget about it or throw it away. So I want to know what your approach is to these kinds of gifts, because here at Wirecutter, we are all about finding things that will last you forever. And they're gorgeous. And you're not just going to, like, put them in the landfill essentially after one use. So can you give examples of some good ones?

[Hannah Morrell]

100%. So the gift that we see that's like absolutely popping off this year is this 101 Pooping Puppies jigsaw puzzle. Again, that is the 101 Pooping Puppies jigsaw puzzle. And it's just, you know, a puzzle that is a picture of 101 dogs going poop. And everyone thinks that so funny. And is gifting it to everyone in their life. So a puzzle is a great thing. It's a great group thing like, that has use. But it has this, like, to use your word, Rosie, this cheeky element, too. That's really fun.

[Kyra Blackwell]

That's good.

[Hannah Morrell]

We at Wirecutter also were big Lego heads. I feel like we're always suggesting and testing all these different Legos for adult. And the one that we're loving for this year is, I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's actually really beautiful. It's this Lego cherry blossom set and it's really pretty. You can, I think you build two boughs of cherry blossoms and you know, you could display those elsewhere. Do you need a Lego cherry blossom thing? No, but it is beautiful. It gives an activity and we're big into that. I think another thing that's tricky about white elephant gifts is like you don't know who the recipient will be, right? So you can't buy things that are related to anybody's interest at all. It has to be like a real generic gift. And this one right here is perfect in that category. It's a book that's actually a couple years old, but it does get updated relatively frequently. And it's a real great one. It's called the Lonely Planets where to Go when book. It basically is just sort of like a trip planner. So you're thinking about traveling to Japan. It tells you like what's happening during those seasons. Are the tickets, the right prices, are there festivals, is there what to see? And it has all these different destinations. And I think it's sorted by the time of year that you want to travel. If you're feeling like being spendy or thrifty on the trip. It's just an awesome manual. I think a lot of people could get a lot of use out of that. And we're seeing people really respond to that. And then the last one in this category, again under 25, that we're having a lot of fun with this year is this little snap on retro phone converter. Basically you snap it onto your phone and it makes your phone into a point and click camera, which is a lot of fun. And it also has a cool retro look like it's good looking as well. So that's another fun idea. Again, like not something you'd buy yourself, not something anybody would have. You don't need it, but it is useful and it isn't junk.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Okay, Hannah, so we have one final question for you. It's the question that we ask all of our guests. What's the last thing you bought recently that you've really loved?

[Hannah Morrell]

I actually didn't buy this. I'm testing this for wire cutter, but I think it's awesome. I've been seeing on Instagram a lot these lab grown sapphire necklaces have you guys seen these?

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

No.

[Hannah Morrell]

Okay, so it looks like a diamond necklace, but it's not. It's a lot less expensive. Still expensive. I just think it's like the most stunning thing I've ever seen and I had been wanting to try it. We have gotten the feedback actually, if you can believe it, that our gift guides have too many budget picks.

[Kyra Blackwell]

What?

[Hannah Morrell]

You know people. Yeah, I know.

[Rosie Guerin]

So you're finally getting my emails.

[Hannah Morrell]

That's right. We're finally hearing you. I am trying out this lab grown sapphire necklace from a brand called Dorsey and it, I don't know, it is so lovely. I would absolutely recommend it to everyone. I think we're going to put it in some of our Valentine's gift guides. I think it looks great with a sweatshirt. I think any person that likes sparkly things would really enjoy this. So that's the most recent thing that's on my radar. Does that count? Even though I didn't buy it, I'm.

[Rosie Guerin]

Going to do something that absolutely counts. Good tips, service journalism. Hannah, thank you so, so much for joining us. So many good ideas. Thank you. Happy holiday. Holidays.

[Hannah Morrell]

All right, thanks guys.

[Rosie Guerin]

Yohanna is a real one. She has so much good advice.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I mean, and that's just a fraction of the gifts that she recommends.

[Kyra Blackwell]

You can tell that she thinks about this 365 days a year.

[Hannah Morrell]

Absolutely.

[Rosie Guerin]

What are your takeaways?

[Kyra Blackwell]

Oh, I mean, I have to go with the adapter. I can't believe.

[Rosie Guerin]

For your brothers.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Yeah. I mean, I don't know the next time we're all going to be on a trip, but you best believe I am not leaving the country with them again without them having their own adapters.

[Rosie Guerin]

No more sharing. Your travel adapter.

[Kyra Blackwell]

No more sharing.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

I'm going to buy that one for myself actually. I'm putting it in my own stocking.

[Rosie Guerin]

I love that. For me, I'm embracing the utilitarian upgrade. There are so many people who want practical things in my life for the holidays, but I want to give them this slightly elevated version of that. And so I feel like Hannah's rules around utilitarian upgrade gifts makes a lot of sense to me.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Wow. Am I getting pot holders for Christmas, Rosie?

[Rosie Guerin]

Yeah, you might be getting perfect example.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Of a utilitarian upgrade. Yeah.

[Rosie Guerin]

Well, if you want to find out more about wire cutter's coverage or if you want to check out the products we recommended Today, go to nytimes.comwirecutter or you can find all the links in the show notes. That's it for us. Till next week. Thanks so much for listening.

[Kyra Blackwell]

Peace.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Here's what's coming up next week on the Wirecutter Show. We all know the cliche of, like the 1950s husband giving his wife a vacuum cleaner for Christmas, right? Like, don't do that. Do not give anyone a vacuum cleaner. I forgot to mention that rule. Make sure you're following the show on your favorite podcast app so you don't miss it. The Wirecutter show is executive produced by Rosie Guerin and produced by Abigail Keel, editing by Abigail Keel, engineering support from Maddie Maziello and Nick Pittman. Today's episode was mixed by Sophia Landman, original music by Dan Powell, Marian Lozano, Alishaba Etoup, and Diane Wong. Wirecutter's deputy publisher and interim general manager is Cliff Levy. Ben Fruman is Wirecutter's editor in chief. I'm Christine Cyr Clissett.

[Kyra Blackwell]

I'm Kyra Blackwell.

[Rosie Guerin]

And I'm Rosie Garen.

[Christine Cyr Clissett]

Thanks for listening.

[Rosie Guerin]

In the show. Notes.

[Hannah Morrell]

Thank you so much. Thank you so much.