Updated daily, the Buy section is a deep directory of stuff we love. From this collection we organize Gift Guides for the holiday season and special occasions all year long.
Claim your coastal allegiance with these amusing East Coasters from designer Reed Wilson. Native New Yorkers will love the eastern seaboard design, but west coasters never fear, Wilson does offer a geographic alternative of the cheeky drink protectants. Whether your beverage of choice is a snifter of bourbon or a spirulina smoothie, Americans can all get a kick out of these Baltic birch coasters.
Photographer Alex Prager’s fantastically staged crowd scenes are complex works of art. Try piecing together the congested public space she created in “Crowd #4 (New Haven)” with this 500-piece limited edition puzzle. The photograph delivers a vibrant intimacy and an invitation to explore bold, personal characterizations with every piece you complete.
Any skater in your life will be stoked to sport the Lockwood Bench pendant, representing the famed schoolyard in East LA where legends like the Gonz to Koston cut their teeth. This special piece is hand sculpted by designer Spencer Fujimoto, and is part of El Señor’s 7 Wonders Collection, which features engraved, wearable pendants symbolizing skateboarding’s most iconic spots.
For those without the luxury of a permanent house sitter, try Spotter. The puck-sized sensor serves as a pair of eyes and ears that track your home environment while you’re away, communicating temperature, light, sound, humidity and motion directly to your smartphone. Spotter can be programmed for simple yet essential tasks, from turning on your lights when there is a knock at the door to alerting you when the laundry load is finished. This handy gadget presents a wealth of possibilities for monitoring your home when you can’t.
Brothers Sandy and Emil Corsillo are major players in the world of modern menswear. The industrious brothers not only run Hickoree’s, leading purveyor of fine men’s goods, but they also created The Hill-Side, a line of woven accessories, coveted by the most stylish of gents. The Hill-Side’s “Almond Stripes” bow tie is cut from a snazzy print straight from Japan, and has the graphic interest and sophisticated styling we have come to expect from these Brooklyn-based textile experts.
For picture takers of all kinds, from city adventurers to party-goers, looking at your photos instantly is great. But what’s better than a tangible print? Fujifilm Instax makes it happen, in a wonderfully easy size. The Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic Camera’s photos are as fun to hang up as mnemonic art as they are to give away instantly.
Brooklyn-based duo The Jam Stand delivers yet another craveworthy combination with Peach Sriracha Jam. Loaded with locally-sourced ingredients, flavors of pucker-your-lips peach sweetness seasoned with zesty sriracha result in a palette-perfect balanced spread. Wam, bam, thank you jam!
Rachel Mansur and Floriana Gavriel met by chance at a concert in LA. Two days later, they began designing a line of streamlined bags that speak for themselves. Crafted from vegetable-tanned Tuscan leather, unlined and lacking the bells and whistles of many of today’s totes, Mansur Gavriel’s high-quality carriers are notable for their classic silhouettes, elegant proportions and minimal hardware. Their Large Tote has a detachable wallet, is as fitting for a day in NYC as for a trip to Cannes, and adds a timeless quality to any ensemble.
The Messograf is a lifelong friend for architect types. Part multi-tool, part writing instrument, the Messograf features a ruler, a metric thread scale, a tire tread gauge, a four-inch caliper gauge, and yes, a ballpoint writing tip. The click-to-open pen, chrome plated and solid brass, will undoubtedly make a home in your loved one’s pocket.
Dandelight is a charming little night light covered with real Dandelion seeds. The battery-powered lamp fuses nature with technology—each seed is attached to an individual LED creating a light-emanating dandelion growing out of its own energy source, right before your eyes. Each is handmade by Lonneke Gordijn of Netherlands-based Studio Drift.
Upstate creators Kalen and Astrid design one-of-a-kind garments and home fabrics using their own take on shibori and dip-dyeing methods. Upstate’s elegant Tilden Top, made of 100% silk, is made more playful and causal with bold shibori patterning. Available in an array of refined color pairings, each hand-picked and hand-dyed, the shirt is a totally unique piece for any wardrobe.
This latest offering from the iconinc Mondaine shop, designed by Martin Drechsler, offers an interesting twist to time-telling. The red seconds hand takes 58 seconds to swoop around, before pausing for two seconds to synchronize, much the same way as the original Swiss Railway (SBB) clocks it draws inspiration from.
This lovely set of a dozen notecards and envelopes in based on the book “Woodcut” by Connecticut artist Bryan Nash Gill. Exquisite tree trunk cross sections come to life in striking detail, revealing the immense power and beauty that lies within a tree’s organic structure.
These wood Diamond Boxes were formed from the great minds of Gregory Buntain and Ian Collings, of Brooklyn design studio Fort Standard. The mini vessels replicate the shape of a round cut diamond and are embedded with tiny magnets for secure stowage. Regardless of the contents, we deem these unexpected containers to be gems in their own right, whether or not their suggestive shape serves as an indicator of what lies within.
The various laser-cut patterns and porcelain-like finish of the CityLight illuminate any modern interior by casting playful abstract cityscape shadows throughout the open spaces. The stylish CityLight lamp is made of double-sided white laminated paper on a metal frame by Dutch design studio DeJongKalff.
The KEF M500 Hi-Fi headphones offer one of the best on-ear fits on the market, all thanks to integrated “smart hinges” which keep you from having to do any of the adjusting. They fold flat for portability and feature a flat, tangle-free and detachable cord.