Today, a gifting expert explains why she doesn’t really give presents for Father’s Day — and what she does instead. Plus, a few gift ideas for the dad in your life, a very “dad-coded” briefcase for your batteries, and some handsome style upgrades for him.
I suppose I shouldn’t admit this, but I’ve never gotten my dad something for Father’s Day — not once, not ever, and I probably never will. It’s not that he is undeserving. Quite the opposite, in fact. As a baby, I’d often be smudged in clay handprints by the time my mother got home from the office. “Bill, my daughter looks like your pottery phone,” she’d say, admonishing him for the dusty evidence that he’d picked me up with clay-covered hands when I fussed. Since his studio was in our house, he did school carpools and dinners, and drove me to about two trillion soccer practices. Decades later, my dad and I have an unspoken buy-when-inspired gifting code. Among the handful of presents he’s ever gotten me was a full-sized poster of high-school me leaping for a header in a state soccer championship. (He made it from a photo he special-ordered from The Boston Globe.) I only get him something when the vibe is right or I stumble across something I know is right up his alley, regardless of whether a holiday is imminent: handwoven napkins from Oaxaca (like these), little citrus trees, papier-mâché figurines from Tokyo (similar to the ones here), or nice tequilas. Maybe you have a don’t-want-anything dad, too — the kind who brightens up for a visit or call, but regards obligatory gifts with resolute indifference. If so, we have wide-ranging ideas for him for June 15 … or for whenever the mood strikes.
While I never got my own dad a Father’s Day gift, last year, I bought one for my boyfriend’s 9-year-old daughter to give to him: a cooking apron with a Bob’s Burgers pin. It remains hidden in a closet while he splatters oil on his white T-shirt; his daughter and I shake our heads together. What is on display, however, tucked in his bedroom mirror, is a small note with ragged perforated edges and drawings of a heart and a cloud, scrawled in pink pen: You are the best daddy. It reminds me of the pottery studio walls filled with elementary-school scribblings and faded construction-paper projects made by my two younger brothers and me. When it comes to dad gifts, we may never top the macaroni portrait ornaments and misspelled missives from our childhood. But once in a while, we can try. The best Father’s Day gifts under $50→
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My husband is hard to shop for because he’s the guy who doesn’t want much, and when he does he generally buys it himself. He’s outdoorsy and loves golf, the Grateful Dead, and yard work. He’s 65 and in great shape … and still plays ice hockey. Help! — L.D.M. From gifting expert Hannah Morrill: My partner buys himself anything he needs too — an admirable trait, except when it’s time for gifting. But I’ve got a few ideas that might elude your guy. My colleague Alexander Aciman swears by these golf shorts all summer long (and he’s not even a golfer). They look like twill, breathe like linen, and dry as quick as a bathing suit. For a handy piece of golf gear, maybe he’d appreciate this miraculous magnetic towel to swiftly wipe away morning dew. Pair that with this Stealie printed belt, and he can broadcast his love for the Dead on the back nine. The yard is also my partner’s happy place, and this pocket saw for impromptu pruning really upped his game. Our outdoors team calls the tool “small, sharp, savage” — a great life motto, if you ask me.
Have someone who’s impossible to shop for? Submit your question here. One last gift (for you): This splurgey vitamin C serum is on sale. It’s considered a category-defining classic for a reason. It’s particularly effective and, in our tests, left skin noticeably firmer.
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