Where Can I Find a Not-Horrible Present for a Not-Horrible Man?

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What the hell do I buy a dude for the holidays? I need to get a few things for my hard-to-shop-for boyfriend and don’t even know where to start. —Elise

Let’s start this off by acknowledging that many men do not deserve presents this year.

Okay! With that, onto the gifts. Finding a good gift for a dude can be a pain, especially when you take into account that most of the suggestions out there are things like monthly subscriptions to craft beer boxes, some sort of fake-ice-cubes-and-decanter set, or beard lube. Excluding those, here’s a list of presents to consider. Unfortunately, I can’t guarantee they’ll be grateful.

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This flannel. I realize this is dangerously close to suggesting some sort of tent or axe for your woodsy significant other or brother, but Best Made Co.’s flannel shirt is very good. If $128 is more than you wanted to spend, L.L.Bean also has a great fleece-lined flannel for $68.

These skincare products. Men love Kiehl’s — this is a fact. Get one of them this starter kit ($43) so he can see what life is like beyond Old Spice and Axe.

This perfect expensive sweater. Several female Racked editors went out and bought J.Press’s Shaggy Dog sweater ($245) after learning about it last year, and no one regrets the purchase. It’s $245, which is MONEY, but the upside is you can steal it if you buy it for someone with whom you currently cohabitate.

These bags. This weekender ($195) from the brand Blk Pine Workshop is great. It’s canvas with leather straps, big enough to fit just the right amount of stuff, and not at all too fancy. If you want to do all your shopping here, toss in one of the beanies ($24).

These socks and/or underwear, depending on which situation is more dire. Socks are a great gift, and let’s face it: Everyone could use more underwear. Richer Poorer is a one-stop shop for both.

This stocking-stuffer keyring. The Craighill keyrings ($30) we recommended in our gift guide this year have already sold out, but these other keyrings ($15) might be even cooler.

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