If I Had A Million Dollars

Thank you so much for tuning in to this episode. Listen, you’re doing a great job. This time of year is challenging for all of us, and you are killing it. You’re listening to a podcast gift guide episode because you love your friends and family so much that you want to get the absolute best and only the best. Not everyone is that caring. Bravo to you. This time of year is also really beautiful and there is a lot to enjoy. Gift giving can totally be a part of that, when we know the right gifts to give. Last week we went through all the things that you should avoid when gift buying this holiday season, particularly when focusing on gifts for the home. Today, we are going to dive into all the amazing things you should give as gifts for your loved ones if you want to improve their quality of domestic life. Rather than focusing on gifts specifically around the home’s decor and furniture, we are going to focus on four key categories that are impactful, useful, and actually improve the caliber of your people’s personal space.

But first, let’s talk about the color of the week. We just wrapped up celebrating Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights. And the huge Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center had its lighting ceremony - breathtaking. This time of year we are working with incredibly short days and limited sunlight, so it makes sense that many traditions focus on lights. The warm glow from a string of twinkling tiny bulbs or the magnetic pull of a dancing candle flame are so comforting, almost anytime of year, but in December their glow is boundlessly welcome. To capture this experience in a bottle, try using Sherwin Williams paint color SW6679, Full Moon. This paint color is a warm, light yellow that will bring the buzz of the holidays into your home all year long.

Another note on color. We can expect Pantone, the color system company, to be announcing their color of the year any second now, in fact it may have dropped the same day of this podcast. But I wanted to put in my prediction for this annual benchmark, that serves not only as a trend qualification, but as a pulse for the tone of our culture. Based on everything I’ve seen over the past year with trends, and considering the dual selection of gray and yellow for 2021, I’m betting the color of 2022 is going to be a neutral of the warm variety. My gut telling me it’s going to be a camel color, but anything in that orangey, warm family is likely. Another hot contender is an olive green. Earth tones are back in a big way right now, and I think Pantone would benefit from shaking up their typical, highly saturated selection with a color that can be used in a variety of ways, not just a poppy accent. Time will tell. Do you have a prediction?

This episode is brought to you by Soft Landing Studio. If you enjoy this podcast and want to take your space to the next level, you can select from a variety of one-on-one virtual consultations about your specific home, office, or retail interior design project. Whether you want a quick brainstorming session, a series of regular check-ins during your renovation, or to work with my full interior design services; you’ll get amazing design ideas, life changing solutions to problems you’d never thought you could resolve, and a space you feel proud to call your own. And for the holiday season, you can now purchase gift certificates for the 45 minute Creative Consultation. This is the perfect gift for the design lover or brand new home owner in your life. Go to www.softlandingstudio.com to schedule your experience now. And while you’re there, don’t forget to download the absolutely free Guide to Getting Started. This fun-filled PDF quiz will orient you at the very beginning of your interior design journey. If you know you aren’t 100% happy in your space, but you don’t know what to do about it, this guide is for you. You will be directed towards big idea solutions, so you’ll know what to do, and most importantly, what not to do. Visit www.softlandingstudio.com for you free copy today.

We’re talking about a shift in perspective when it comes to the approach to gifts for the home. This approach is the idea of utilizing the fives senses. When engaging in the art of home-making, it’s important to consider all five senses and how they play a roll in the space. With interior design, it’s easy to get stuck in the visual experience of a room, which is no doubt important, but when considering the idea of home -that cozy moment in time when all the world is at peace - we’re not sitting in a pristine, silent art gallery. All five of our senses - sight, smell, taste, touch, and sound; are mobilized to a state of comfort and even bliss. Imagine the feeling of home, at its coziest. Home is activated with smells of cooking our favorite foods, a fireplace, brewing hot beverages, fresh laundry, and even our favorite bath products. There are distinct sounds that signify home, the voices of family and friends, music, the call of birds outside, and even the white noise of a TV show in the background.

There are textures all around us in a home, the feeling of a favorite pair of slippers or a throw blanket, the cold tile floor in the kitchen first thing in the morning. Even the sense of taste - there are certain things we eat and drink that we can only make at home, whether it’s a special beverage that we make just the way we like it, or that first bite of family recipe that’s been handed down through the generations. 

These sensory experiences stay with us long after we’ve left for the day or moved away. Memories are made up of so much more than the color of wall paint we select, but these sensory concepts are often left out of the idea of interior design.

So to make a gift that really brings delight, take the approach of engaging the five sense. Now you don’t have to hit all five with one single gift, but when we stop focusing so much on the visual aspect of everything, we open up the door to entirely new experiences. 

Let’s begin with smell. Consider gifting a selection of intentional smelling candles. Jonathan Adler has a great collection that includes signature scents including tomato, grapefruit, basil, and tea. Or consider getting one of his signature Muse candles with an iconic sculpted ceramic holder that can be reused as a plant pot or vase. If flames aren’t the most practical for your living situation, try a reed diffuser from a company like Homesick. With sentimental names like Ski Trip and Book Club, these oil based aromas are sure to tug on heart strings. You can also give food related gifts with scent in mind, whether it’s a bag of mulling spices for hot beverages, or a cookie kit that will fill the home with that unmistakable smell of baked goods.

When I was younger, it was really common to give CD’s or even cassettes as gifts, but now most music is listened to on a digital platform, and giving the element of sound can be overlooked, outside of an iTunes gift card, but consider both the hi-fi and lo-fi options for this sense. If you haven’t had the experience of listening to wind chimes made from bamboo reeds, you’re in for a treat. This rapidly renewable material makes a subtle, low, mellow sound that brings a truly calming sensation wherever it can be heard. It sounds less like the tinny toll of a traditional wind chime, and more like a babbling brook. And these don’t have to be limited to outdoors, they can always be set up inside with a fan pointed at them. 

Alternatively, as I mentioned before, most of us have large libraries of digital music, so gifting a compact, portable bluetooth speaker from a company like JBL, allows us to enjoy our existing music library in a new way. You can even purchase multiple speakers to synchronize and create cohesive zones of sound, similar to the idea of surround sound, but minus the neighbor-enraging subwoofer. This immersive experience can transform the feeling of a room, creating a customized soundscape, and awakening our senses in new ways. It can even help to make an entire home feel cohesive by having the same music playing from room to room, which gives almost a hotel vibe to your space. And if you haven’t given someone a bluetooth karaoke microphone yet, 2021 is your year - these things are all over the internet and they are so much fun. It’s such a good stress release to belt out some tunes in the privacy of your own home.

Engaging the senses of touch and taste can bring a whole menu of practical items that will not only get used on a regular basis, but often solve a problem for whomever is receiving them as a gift. Buying sheets for someone is the home equivalent of getting them socks; super practical, everyone needs them, and if you get the right kind, they can feel super luxurious. One of the most important things to find out before gifting a set of sheets is whether the person is a hot or cold sleeper. Different fibers in sheets effect the temperature, and it’s super popular right now for sheet companies to market sheets as either insulating or cooling. Bedding company Casper has a series of Hyperlite bedding for hot sleepers, and Brooklinen has breathable cashmere sheet set for those of us who need extra warmth. And of course I’m a big fan of Target’s sheet sets - the only thing you have to decide now is color. Stick with a solid, patterns tend to be less versatile when mixing and matching duvet covers. Just take note of the color scheme in the person’s room if you can, or just stick with a classic white.

If you want to go to an extra level of luxury, try giving a soft throw blanket as a gift. It’s important if you go this route, to get something that’s extra special, because throw blankets are available everywhere and they are often not great quality. I like the ones from Slowdown Studio because they are all exquisitely designed unique pieces of art. They are soft, cozy, big, and machine washable. They feel good when being used to curl up and watch a movie and they look good tossed on the arm of a sofa. 

Another way to elevate the sense of touch in our homes is with the gift of dish towels. I am always trying to avoid using paper towels unless absolutely necessary so my collection of dish towels is always growing. I have found that the ones with a little texture tend to work better and feel nicer on the hands, so look for something like a waffle weave, and 100% cotton makes them super absorbent and easy to wash.

Speaking of being in the kitchen, dishware and kitchen appliances, big or small, make amazing gifts. Get specific with your gift and make sure you know what the person wants or what they need. For two years, I asked one of my family members to give me flatware, which I never seem to have enough of, and it was the best gift ever because I kept putting off buying a set for myself. Dishware in general is so practical, but it also gives us an opportunity to level up the quality. My whole family seems to be drawn to Fiestaware, maybe it’s the midwestern roots or the beautiful jewel toned colors, but I know another piece of Fiesta bakeware is always a good bet for a gift. Glass or crystal stemware can also be a great way to bring some splendor into the home, whether it’s with a unique vintage set or brand new pieces from a company like Estelle Colored Glass. Having gorgeous containers for food and drink enhances our experience of eating and tasting, and it makes our shelves look lovely as a plus.

And of course all of these gift ideas look amazing so the sense of sight is integrated into everyone of them. Thanks again for joining me today, whatever you do for this holiday season, don’t forget to get yourself a few little somethings because you deserve it, because you’re awesome. I will talk to next time, bye!