Ahhh, the holiday season is here!
It’s been a couple of years since I’ve done a holiday gift guide.
But recently I went through ALL of my Amazon purchases and picked out what I thought could help you choose some the best gifts for Architects or gifts FROM an Architect.
All of the items mentioned below have been used and vetted by me (Michael Riscica) personally. These are gifts that I strongly recommend.
To make this guide easier to navigate, I’ve broken them into the following categories:
*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links that I may earn a small commission on at no additional cost to you.
Architect Home Gifts
Record player
I own 2 record players, but this is my favorite mainly because of the automatic start and stop.
You’ll need some speakers for that record player so here is a link to a beautiful Marshall Speaker or some cheap ones. Both sound great!
Roomba
I think Roomba has made it on every gift guide YA has put out. Yes, I know Roombas are expensive, but they are 100% worth it.
Also. Roombas have gotten significantly smarter the past few years. They can now identify and clean around dog poop, chords and the dirty clothes you left on the floor.
Jenga
Perfect gift from an Architect.
Pro-Tip: Don’t ask if people want to play Jenga, just set it up and start playing it.
Buck Knife
This design is timeless. The materials look even more beautiful in real life.
White Noise Machine
This is a great gift for everyone.
It’s perfect for masking annoying sounds or anyone who is a light sleeper. I often use this so I don’t have to hear my girlfriend’s work conversations in the other room. I even used it to put the puppy to sleep.
It’s powered by a battery or a cord. Sometimes I take it with me when I travel.
I know there are many white noise machines, but this is the cheapest and best one I’ve encountered.
Neck Reading Lamp
If you’ve ever struggled with getting appropriate lighting to read in bed while also being comfortable, this reading lamp is a game changer.
Architect Furniture Gifts
In November 2020 ,I purchased my first home and moved in with very little furniture. After spending many sleepless nights looking for modern furniture that I can afford…
I’ve given up and just started building my own furniture.
However, there are still a few things I found (after all those hours of searching) that I highly recommend. All this furniture makes a great gift especially to someone you live with.
Here are some of my favorites.
Dining Room Chairs
These chairs are beautiful. We have 6 of them at my dining table.
Bedside Table
Even though it’s made of particle board and melamine, I love this design. The sloped drawers give it great depth and it’s a testament that you can still make great design even with cheap materials.
I keep my neck reading lamp in here.
Plant Stands
Your plants want sexy modern legs too!
Ohhh check out this concrete pot!
Chandelier
Where did you get that Chandelier?!???
Amazon has great light fixtures!
We also installed this in the living room!
Modern Coat Rack
Budget knockoff Eames Coat rack
Here is a link to the original.
Mouse Shape Resin Creative Desk Light
Architect Kitchen Gifts
Kitty Cat Klock
Everything Bagel Seasoning
Perfect on pretty much everything!
Countertop Vacuum Cleaner
You’ll need this to clean up all the everything bagel seasoning.
Fruit bowl
Here is a link to the original
Blue Q Kitchen Stuff
This is the gifty-est link on this entire list.
Titanium Spork
Perfect for eating lasagna and ice cream.
I have like five of these!
Architect Work/Office Gifts
Bluetooth Water Bottle
Automatically tracks daily water intake.
A Quality Headset
I spend 40 hours a week in zoom meetings. This $200 headset makes it much more manageable.
Standing Desk
I purchased these adjustable legs from amazon and then used this ikea countertop as the table top. It looks great!
Office chairs
This office chair is really attractive but isn’t that comfortable. It used to match my fake Eames chair. (..till i broke it)
This office chair is really comfortable and kind of ugly.
Architect’s Pens – The Variety Pack
New Gift Idea: Buy bulk pens and give your family members a variety pack of your favorite Architect pens.
Here’s a few crowd pleasers…
Battery Charger
This battery charges my phone extremely fast.
Domestika Design Courses
I’ve learned a lot about furniture design and woodworking from these Domestika online courses. Most of the courses are not in English, but the translated subtitles are very good.
The Popcorn Tin
Just give everyone a popcorn tin and call it a day.
Done and Done!
Pet Gifts
Thoughts of a Dog Calendar
Perfect daily calendar for a dog lover
Battery Powered Pet Toys
Pet tech has come a long way.
Motorized Ball for cats and dogs
Donut dog bed
This is the bed that all the dogs are barking about.
Chuckit
Weird/Cool Gifts
Bigfoot
Lifesize Cardboard Danny Devito
”Can I offer you a nice egg in this tryin time?”
The Office Possum
He lives inside my dining room chandelier.
Prank Gift Box
Perfect for lame gifts or just give them as empty boxes
Zhdun Meme Homunculus Loxodontus
…okay that’s pretty much all the cool stuff in my new house.
Other Young Architect Gift Guides
I know it’s been a few years, but here are the previous Architect Gift Blog Posts: