Gifts for Guys — Blog — McIntosh & Burke

Dads and boyfriends and husbands and brothers are impossible to shop for as far as I'm concerned and in my attempt to buy gifts that support my values, I've had to look a little farther afield than usual. Here is what I'm considering for the brother who just moved to Manhattan and left me in DC, the father who does more yoga than anyone else I know, and the husband who mostly just wants books and records.

Clockwise from top:

1. I've been obsessed with these amazing vintage Soviet oil paintings on Etsy this year. I'm tempted to buy this amazing river scene for David as an 'I want it and now it's yours' present.

2. My dad got one last year and my brother got one in the fall and this will be Dave's year. Lopapeysa are Icelandic sweaters and the Icelandic wool is warm and a little bit water proof and generally wonderful. I'm knitting mine with a pattern from Ravelry but there are tons of vintage and new on Etsy.

3. A backpack from United by Blue, for every item sold a pound of trash is removed from waterways and the company is B-Corp certified.

4. Nathan Miller Chocolate is made near my hometown in Pennsylvania and is decadent and delicious and perfect for everyone.

5. We've tried to do a lot of our shopping locally this year and to support local businesses. Two standouts are Swings Coffee, roasted in Arlington Virginia, and One Eight Distilling, who's Rock Creek Whiskey is an absolute fave. These are also perfect hostess gifts for holiday travel.

6. NeedlePainters helped me design a gorgeous belt for David last year with his school crest, our schnauzer's pretty face and other lovely personal things, it was a great experience and the belt is gorgeous. They also do card holders and flasks.

7. Usually I buy what NPR calls 'Eye Opening Reads' as Christmas gifts, instead this year I'm liking the look of Bearskins, a mystery perfect for short cold days and afternoons reading in front of the fire.

8. Speaking of short days, winter always seems like prime cooking time to me and Julia Turshen's Now & Again: Go-To Recipes, Inspired Menus + Endless Ideas for Reinventing Leftovers sounds like just thing for the men in my family, who all like to cook.

9. Something to better the world or themselves: a newspaper subscription or a donation to NPR in his name along with a mug or a donation to the International Rescue Committee or a membership to the ACLU. Can I say again that this has been a hard year?

For me, the guys in my family are the most difficult to shop for. My brother is off living in France this year and my dad and husband seem to be the men who have everything. Finding something new and interesting is a struggle. Here are a few of my best ideas for those ever so hard to shop for guys.

Books are a parennial favourite and three of my favourites this year are: The Man in the Rockefeller Suit, a crazy true crime story about a man who posed as a Rockefeller for YEARS, 2312, a complicated and magical scifi novel that even I liked and I'm not a big one for scifi, and Jamie Oliver's Comfort Food, because in the middle of winter who doesn't want to make mac and cheese, yorkshire puddings with lots of gravy and enough grilled cheese sandwiches to keep you going till we see the sun again.

Back in our Durham days, David and I used to go to Bean Trader's on 9th in our neighborhood and buy their amazing coffee before hitting the bookstore. I'd love to get him some of their amazing coffee beans shipped to DC. I tell you this coffee is unreasonably good.

David is obsessed with being, as he puts it, a 'Marylander' and recounts important factoids he learned in 4th grade Maryland history and knows the lyrics to all nine verses of Maryland My Maryland. He would go gaga for this Maryland belt.

Have you done the dopp kit yet? I'm pretty sure we've all done the dopp kit but this one is pretty gorgeous so if you haven't, this is the one to do.

These shaggy dog sweaters and the comfiest things that ever happened. My father finally gave his old one to me and I'd love to be able to get my brother one. So comfortable and stylish. If you like the look but not the shaggy dog price, LL Bean has a great one for a fifth the price.

And last but not least: Underwater Dogs. Because they are the best.

Last year's guide.