November 27, 2006
The 2006 Chicagoist Holiday Gift Guide
Black Friday may have come and gone, and the masochists already braved the lines for the early-bird sales to finish their holiday shopping early. But Chicagoist isn't that kind of shopper. We prefer to sleep in on Thanksgiving weekend and do most of our present shopping on the Web at our leisure. We're a lazy blog, but that doesn't mean the people on our holiday lists are going to receive Glade scented candles and power strips from the Walgreen's down the street. And to prove we're thoughtful shoppers, we've compiled a list of some of our favorite gifts available on the Web, catagorized according to some of our favorite topic-specific blogs.
Read the list after the jump.
For the Go Fug Yourselfs
The Jimi Wallet is a plastic, water-resistant wallet that holds just five cards, an ID and three bills. It forces you to carry only the essentials and keeps you from getting back pains from a Costanza wallet. Chicagoist uses it to carry our CTA card, driver's license, black American Express, Tiffany's charge, and a VIP card from the Admiral, and it never fails to elicit compliments whenever we pay for something. For the nerds, you can also buy a different money clip with memory card slots.
- Matt Wood
If, like us, you and your friends could use a little art to replace those decorations from the college days, Chuck Anderson of Tinley Park has you covered. Under the name NoPattern, Chuck produces limited edition beautiful prints at affordable prices. His newest print, "Good Parts of Bad Dreams", will be going to those that weren't naughty this year.
- Timmy Watson
Chicagoist bought a few of these handbang hangers for our fashionista friends this year, and they were really pleased with the gift. They're both functional and pretty, so that they don't have to hang on the back of a door in a closet but can become part of the decor of the room. There's a variety of patterns to choose from, and you can order gift wrapping right on the site. What could be easier?
- Rachelle Bowden
Call us old-fashioned, but Chicagoist thinks that the lost art of writing cards is a travesty. Despite the urge to constantly e-mail or call, we bust out the pens and stationary at least once a month to send a note to a friend or family. While our cards of choice may at first strike you as something possessed by a preppy Trixie, trust us when we say you'll be a believer after trying the personalized cards from iomoi. We're particularly fond of the Herman, Cupcake, and the Indonesian Earthquake Relief designs. P.S. — Also check out the tag sale for excellent prices and items, including longer flat cards, which are decorated on both sides and have become a favorite in our home. Their custom e-stationary for $15 a year is also a great buy for your stylish, but still web-inclined, friends, and we're rather in love with the idea of calling cards, perfect for passing out at all those Lincoln Park bars you frequent.
- Olivia Leigh
For the Deadspins
Chicagoist prides ourselves in having pretty good taste in home décor, so if we think that a stylish living room just isn’t complete without a life-size Brian Urlacher on the wall, then it must be so. We’re sure any real Bears fan will agree. Now if only they had the whole middle linebacker legends collection, complete with Mike Singletary and Dick Butkus…- Benjy Lipsman |
For the Stereogums
Billboard Magazine's "Musician's Guide to Touring and Promotion" is perfect for that boyfriend/girlfriend who won't give up their dreams of being a rock star. This guide is inexpensive and will let them know the who, what, when, where, why, and how to make it work in the touring biz. It is updated every year and is only $15.95.
- Julene McCoy
When Chicagoist's sister had her first kid, we thought it'd be pretty hilarious to shower the tyke with noisy musical toys. But now that Chicagoist has kids of our own, that joke isn't nearly as funny. Luckily, we've learned that kiddie music doesn't have to drive you insane. Chicago's own Old Town School of Folk Music has cut two CDs that are sure to please children and parents alike. Songs for Wiggleworms and Wiggleworms Love You are recordings of classics from their Wiggleworms classes; most tracks feature only a singer (an adult, not a children's chorus singing in unison, thank you) and a six-string (no 1986 Casio keyboard backbeat, thank you very much). If you're shopping for parents of a little one, do them a favor, and buy them the Wiggleworms CDs at either of the Old Town School's two locations or online at Bloodshot Records, or you can download the music (and listen to 30-second previews) at the iTunes Store.
- James Koh
For the Chocolate and Zucchinis
We're suckers for unnecessary kitchen gizmos and gadgets (who doesn't need their own escargot tongs?), so we suggest giving the Hug salt-and-pepper shakers this holiday season. Your loved ones will not only promote peace on earth and goodwill toward men (and women), but they'll be able to season any dried-out turkey that might be hanging around. We picked up the racially harmonious shakers ($24) from the store at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art and have been salting and peppering things ever since.
- Andrew Jenkins
We've had mixed feelings about fancy salt in the past. We originally thought it was unnecessary and somewhat elitist. But then we tried it, and holy crap, this stuff is really, really good. Sprinkling these finishing salts on plain cucumbers transforms them from ordinary to something entirely different. We know paying this kind of money for what can be purchased for a couple of bucks at Jewel seems absurd, but if you want to hook it up for the cook or food lover in your life, buy them some delicious salt. For a complete (and fascinating) history of NaCl you can also purchase Salt, a World History, by Mark Kurlansky — a fascinating read about what would seem to be the world's most boring food product.
- Laura Oppenheimer
Wine is always a popular gift during the holidays, so why not give that oenophile in your life something unique, like a winemaking class from the Wild Blossom Meadery? The only winemaker located inside Chicago's city limits, Wild Blossom bottles their own meads and fruit wines, and they sell wine grapes in bulk, as well as winemaking and brewmaking kits. The winemaking class gift certificate covers the course fee for two people, all equipment and ingredients, cellar space, bottles and corks for a yield of up to 30 bottles of wine. To order, call 773-233-7579, or visit the Web site.
- Chuck Sudo
With all due respect to vegetarians and PETA, bacon is a reason for living. Sure, it clogs your arteries, and we don't want to see how it's made, but it's, oh, so tasty. And when it's crisp, it makes a great appetizer for parties. So the Bacon of the Month Club makes a great gift for the carnivore in your life. You not only get 12 fancy bacon varieties, you also get a T-shirt and a toy pig. And a comic strip on bacon that's probably way better than "Hi and Lois" ever was. For those who watched Charlotte's Web one too many times, perhaps a copy of 1,001 Low-Fat vegetarian Recipes is a better option.
- Scott Smith
For the Slashdotters
When we recently looked at a 10-day outlook forecast from weather.com, we noticed there was not ONE day that featured the word "sunny" in it — not even with the word "partly" attached to it. We know there is no bullshit about S.A.D. (seasonal affective disorder) and how fucking SAD it makes us. And November comes out swinging with the heavy-hitting gray months. So a gift we'd like to throw out for all of you who might have friends who are a little run down right now is a S.A.D. lamp. They're supposed to work wonders, and without all the possible cancerous side effects of a tanning booth. They're a little spendy, but you can find them at different places online.
- Jocelyn Geboy
If you can get your hands on one, Chicagoist highly recommends the Nintendo Wii. Not only does the next-generation console have a spiffy new control design, it's five consoles in one. The Wii will play both new Wii and older GameCube titles. However, the killer feature is the new Virtual Console. If you've ever cursed the lack of imagination in current games and wistfully recall the days of stomping turtles while eating magic mushrooms, Virtual Console will make you its bitch. It works like an iTunes for old games — you go online, pay a small fee for an older game, and it's downloaded to your Wii and ready to play. (Say goodbye to the AV cable nests behind the TV.) And for those of you who took the wrong side in the SNES vs. Genesis debate, there's something here for you, too — Sega's releasing a number of Genesis titles on the Virtual Console, including "Sonic: The Hedgehog."
- Chris Karr
Crazies are everywhere. On the train, waiting in line at Subway, walking down the street ... always talking to themselves incessantly. Oh, wait, those are just Bluetooth users and their headsets. We figure, why not just go the extra mile and let everyone know how crazy clever you are? ThinkGeek's exclusive Bluetooth Retro Handset is sure to get some sidelong looks and hopefully some giggles. It's an old-fashioned take on our futuristic world, it's delightfully subversive, and it works!
- Shannon Saar
Chicagoist is sick of begging strangers to take a photo of us. We also often want to take photos on the go without having to carry around a bulky tripod to mount our camera. Enter the Joby Gorillapod. The perfect on-the-go, versatile tripod for your digital camera. Gorillapod offers versions for point-and-shoot and SLR cameras. The Gorrilapod securely holds your camera while attaching itself to almost anything. This is a must for your photo-holic friends.
- Todd McClamroch
Tokyoflash provides crazy watches with alternative types of displays. The products on this site redefine what watches are and how they should look. From binary numbers to Morse code to Japanese characters to totally made up systems of counting, nobody will be able to read what time it is except for you. With prices ranging from 6000 yen to 22000 yen ($50-200), you had better get your order in soon because they ship from Japan.
- Sean Corbett
Chicagoist's dad is a chemist, so it's fitting that organic molecule structures speak to us in an inexplicable way. YellowIbis must have known there was a market for people like us, who would proudly sport a T-shirt with the chemical structure for seratonin or try to find every excuse to drink coffee from our mug that proudly displays the structure for caffeine. And for the freaky lady chemists out there, YellowIbis carries boyshort girls' underwear with the chemical structure for estrogen on the back. Someone tell Joe Francis! We bet he'll be getting biochemistry grad students to go wild for these suckers in a matter of weeks.- Sarah Dahnke |
For the Bookslut
Leonard Maltin's 2007 Movie Guide is the one film reference book that everyone should own. It's the most comprehensive guide out there, and its capsule reviews are intelligent without being eggheady, witty without being snarky. Endlessly browsable, it's packed with useful data, yet small enough to portable. Chicago's own Roger Ebert even recommends it!
- Rob Christopher
And it wouldn't be a Chicagoist gift guide without pimping out a couple of our own published writers. 100 Spinning Plates by our own Rob Christopher and What Would MacGyver Do?, which contains an essay by our own Matt Wood, will both easily make excellent gift selections for anyone on your Christmas list.



Chicagoist prides ourselves in having pretty good taste in home décor, so if we think that a stylish living room just isn’t complete without a
Chicagoist's dad is a chemist, so it's fitting that organic molecule structures speak to us in an inexplicable way.
Nice list. I'd like to see a photo of each item that would make reading through this so much easier.
this is a great list, but if you guys have any more suggestions, leave them in the comments here. the more ideas the better.. more likely to find something for that hard-to-shop-for name you drew out of the hat this year!
Hi Chicagoist! Thank you for the mention, much appreciated!!
We have a wide range range of science geekware, and one of the things that makes us special is that we have a full range of men's AND women's sizes, and we do custom orders with no minimum.
For the scientists and science lovers out there, we also have a special scientist holiday gift guide. (We don't sell these items, we just have these links up for interest). There are some cool items up there, including some unique stuff by independent artists.
http://gifts.yellowibis.com/allscientist.html
Happy Holidays!
heh. i have a wii.
you guys can come play any time you like.
Here is my holiday tip. Go win stuff for free. Someone sent me this link because I really like Kristen Cavallari and I won a giftcard for $50. Plus it's a trivia game so it's fun.
fun_trivia_hot_chic.com
Thanks for the idea on the handbag hanger. I ordered one for my fiance. I also found a coupon code for the Simply Sarah Handbag Hanger.
Enter "LWL20" for a 20% discount.
Gift Basket For Disaster Preparedness
For the person who thinks he/she has everything.. It is time for gift giving, now is the time to give the gift that says you really care. At the end of this article you can find the instructions on what to do with this gift basket.
Gift List
Personal Data CD
Get a GIFT CARD FROM KINKOS OR A SIMILAR COMPUTER TIME RENTAL PLACE, to cover scanning personal documents and put the images on a CD. Or offer to do it with your scanner and computer. Plan on scanning personal information, birth certificate, military record and discharge, deeds, auto ownership, home mortgage papers, debt list of creditors to contact, family photo album, property tax recorsd, income tax records, personal address book (also include the address book in print as part of the Epack). List of family members descriptions and photos. (You will need all this information after a disaster.)
Include a SMALL DIGITAL CAMERA to record every room, every cabinet’s contents, portraits of all electronic devices, the car, the home-from every angle- all of this to become a personal disaster inventory. You will need this for insurance recovery. This inventory becomes part of the CD above.
Go to the Market and get a selection of ENERGY BARS TO COVER NINE MEALS. Get a selection of the individual juice containers (cans are too heavy) for the basket. Also select about TWO QUARTS OF BOTTLED WATER in smaller containers; more if the person can carry it.
The option is to get a Coast-Guard approved, 3600 calorie, emergency nutrition package.
Go to the bulk food department and get a pound of ONE OR TWO FAVORITE GRANOLAS. Chocolate-chips always are good in there, too.
Select a ONE-PERSON, FIRST AID KIT from the drug section. Add to it, a general pain killer, a jar of petroleum jelly, a box of band-aids, a roll of elastic bandage ( for sprains),
Go to the Camping Section and select a SPACE BLANKET, A PLASTIC RAIN PANCHO, TWO 12 HOUR LIGHT STICKS., A PACKAGE OF HAND WARMERS, A PACKAGE OF FIRE STARTER STICKS, SOME WATERPROOF MATCHES,
Select an LED FLASHLIGHT- the batteries will last forever.
Go to clothing and select a SIX-PACK OF WHITE, COTTON TUBE SOCKS. ( They can serve as mittens, bandages, or even as dry socks.)
Select a WARM SWEATER for the gift basket, too.
Last, Select a small knapsack, sling-shoulder bag, or other CARRYING CONTAINER for what you have selected for the Epack and that will be comfortable for the person who will get the gift that says you really care..
There is an Ezine, On Your Own, that describes in detail the contents of a full E-Pack to meet most emergencies and what to do with it in the mean time.
A personal Epack is a panic driven paranoia until you are caught in a disaster..
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays
Ralph
www.ritchieunlimitedpublications.com