V-day gifts for friends and loves
All genders, all budgets, charitable options, too.
Valentine’s Day can be a divisive holiday. On the downside, people who are alone are reminded that they’re alone; gift guides are hyper gendered, stereotypical, and lazy; and people eat weirdly crappy chocolate.
On the other hand, if we want to think positively, Valentine’s Day is a wonderful excuse to celebrate someone you love, whether it’s a friend, a partner, a family member, a neighbor, or someone who just deserves a little appreciation.
I had a few goals for this gift guide:
Find items in a range of budgets
Don’t be gendered or stereotypical
Support LA small businesses and ones donating profits to LA charities — I want to give a special shoutout to stylist Whitney Olschwanger, who was really helpful for this part!
Don’t repeat anything from previous gift guides. This was a toughy!
Want to jump straight to the gift guide? Be my guest! Otherwise, I’ll dive into a few favorites below.
Rel’s Recs Valentine’s Day Gift Guide for Friends and Loves
If California is on your mind, this California Dreamin’ sweatshirt from Lingua Franca is a good option: 20% of the proceeds from each one goes to One Voice, an organization helping to support those who have lost their jobs due to LA fires. I also can’t get enough of this oversized corduroy button-down from Athena Newton Designs — 30% of proceeds from there go to Direct Relief in LA or the Best Friends Animal Society (your choice).
If you want to have more cozy nights in with your person, might I suggest this cashmere throw or “Naked Lunch” blanket?
Should you go the chocolate route, then goddamnit, get the good stuff! Like this salted caramel chocolate bar.
Here’s something sexier than lingerie: a butt planter and jug jugs.
Finally, the cheeriest plates, lighters that double as objets, an excellent linen tote bag for the farmers market, and a sandwich hat. There are really so many fun picks here, so it’s best to direct you to the whole guide. Peruse at your leisure, and revisit often because I’ll be updating all week.
PS. Another nice thing to do is to gift a paid Substack subscription — check out my recommendations (maybe Have You Eaten Yet?, Saucy Tart Society, Making It Work, or Noodsletter) to see if anything piques your interest. There are some incredible writers out there and gift subscriptions are a great way to support their work and treat someone you love to excellent, thought-provoking writing!
We still have a few weeks until V-day, so if you need help picking something out for a tough-to-shop-for person, reach out to me directly! I love a challenge.
I wish I had more to say this week but my in-laws are visiting and I am midway through reading Onyx Storm. Needless to say, things are busy. But if you’re new to Rel’s Recs, I do want to welcome you aboard. I am thrilled you’re here!
Stay tuned for future posts about confidence brooches, chocolate cakes, and upcoming travels to Texas and Rome!
XO,
Rel
*Immediately adds lingua franca sweatshirt to cart*