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E-commerce site Of a Kind is one of our favorite places to look for gifts — especially after the brand launched a paper goods section and now a wedding shop and registry just a few weeks ago.
And with so many occasions for gift-giving coming up — graduations, summer weddings, backyard barbecues, July and August birthdays — we decided to pick the brains of co-founders Claire Mazur and Erica Cerulo for a few ideas your friends and family wouldn't even think about re-gifting. Who knows — you might even find a few presents for yourself.
Here’s what they had to say:
"You know how they always say it’s rude to bring a hostess flowers without putting it in a vase first? We kind of love the idea of bringing a plant in a planter instead, and then the planter can become the gift. You could even put mint in it and then bring all the ingredients for mojitos to make festive cocktails."
"A nice picnic blanket plus a Picnic with Kanye snack set from indie gift basket company Mouth makes a great present for summer birthdays."
"For weddings in particular we love doing a nice, handmade cutting board — something that feels like one of those heirloom things that you’ll have forever and gets better with age, but it doesn’t feel gooney in any way. For something experiential, you can even pair it with a knife skills class."
"We have these adorable red, patterned pinch bowls that come in sets of six (pictured above), and we always think of them as the ideal ice cream bowls. Pair a set with a shipment Jeni’s Splendid ice cream — an Ohio-based company we're obsessed with that ships nationwide — for a top summer birthday gift."
"For a recent grad, we’re into giving something like nail polish plus a gift certificate to get a manicure — perfect for someone about to enter job interview mode! Also, think about things they’ll want for their new life out of college: An actually, legitimately cool blanket to drape over the red wine stains they’ll inevitably have on their first, crappy Ikea couch; or a cute card holder for their first real business cards."
"We've noticed customers picking up fun cards as well as small gifts that fit inside the envelope, like an Odeme matchbook of nail files."
"Instead of bringing a bottle of wine when you’re invited to a barbecue, we love the idea of giving a body oil — something the hostess doesn’t have to share with anyone else!"
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