It’s been one hell of a year, to say the least. Most of the world has spent the bulk of 2020 behind closed doors, surrounded by just a few loved ones, while others, spent most of the year alone.
This year has been tough on all of us, really, the entire human population has been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Now that the holiday season has arrived, many of us are looking to the upcoming days with hope — even if this year may not look exactly like the others.
Thankfully, it’s quite easy to order a gift online and send it to our friends and family to let them know we’re thinking of them.
It’s the small gestures that let them know we’re still there for them, even if we aren’t able to be physically together as much as we’d like.
Below you’ll find a series of pandemic-friendly gifts: From cozy blankets for the days spent at home; a Nespresso machine to fuel your friend’s new business; and a National Park Pass for the travel-loving friend that’s ready to hit the road, here are 32 gifts to let that special someone know you love them!
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Gifts for Staying Cozy at Home
If there’s one thing that the pandemic has taught us, it’s to appreciate the smallest of moments, most of which happened at home this year. Feeling “cozy at home” took on a whole new level of significance this year. Here are the gifts that’ll make those small moments at home just a bit sweeter.
Brooklinen Bedding
With so much time spent at home, we might as well treat ourselves to hotel-status bedding. Brooklinen’s buttery soft sheets have been all the rage this year — and there’s no better time to gift them. Their best selling bedding bundle is the perfect gift for anyone who deserves to have the best sleep of their lives in 2021, especially after the year they’ve had.
Target’s softest pj set
Give the gift of ultimate coziness with this super-soft Target PJ set. I can attest to their softness — I own them in two colors! They’re simple yet flattering, perfect for a lazy Sunday at home. There’s a long-sleeve version, too.
Fuzzy Throw Blanket
Nothing says cozy Sunday at home like this fuzzy fleece throw blanket. It’s also the best kind of blanket to retreat into after an hourslong Zoom call. Check out even more colors here.
Tie-Dye Loungewear Set
Tie-dye loungewear was the quarantine trend this year, and we’re not mad about it. Here’s the perfect loungewear set for all our tie-dye loving friends out there. Go ahead and pick up one for yourself while you’re at it: It can be like the quarantine version of a friendship bracelet. Prefer long sleeves? They’ve got that, too.
lunya silk robe
Lunya has made the luxe silk robe of our dreams. Perfect for lounging at home in style — or for that honeymoon that’s been postponed to 2021. Either way, this robe will make anyone feel like a Quarantine Queen.
Gifts for The Perfect Home Office
Working from home isn’t for everybody. Here are a few gifts that can help make a home office the most efficient and pleasant place to work.
Light Therapy (SAD) Lamp
Light therapy is one of the top treatments for seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which can leave people feeling sad or lonely during darker winter months. This SAD lamp is compact enough to fit comfortably on a desk, delivering a healthy dose of “natural light” even on the gloomiest of days.
A Desk
For the friends and family members who have been working from the couch all year long, perhaps it’s time they’re gifted a proper working station. This desk is wonderfully neutral and goes well in almost any space.
Office Accessories
No home office is complete without accessories. Nothing quite brightens my Monday mornings than my pastel-colored highlighters, or writing a fresh to-do list with one of my many colorful pens. You can pair it with a couple of these patterned notebooks for a gift that any stationary-lover will adore!
Essential Oil Diffuser
This essential oil diffuser and humidifier will help relieve even the most stressful of Zoom calls. It’s the perfect gift for those whose work-from-home life has been tougher than most.
Ceramic decor Candles
Any office space can feel cozier with a couple of ceramic candles: These 3-wick candles from Target come in three colors and can be a beautiful decor piece for any space.
Gifts for Friends Who Started Their Own Biz During Quarantine
Let’s raise a glass to the incredible friends and family members who used their time in quarantine to finally start their dream business. They deserve the all the recognition in the world — as well as some awesome holiday gifts.
Nespresso Machine
The bulk of us run on at least three cups of coffee a day — especially during the pandemic — so a Nespresso machine is the perfect gift for any fledgling entrepreneur. This amazing Amazon deal pairs Nespresso’s newest espresso and coffee maker with a milk frother. (The milk frother is incredible! It makes the creamiest lattes!) Your friend will be saying so long to Starbucks and hello to foamy cappuccinos at home!
Passion Planner
While everyone runs on virtual calendars nowadays, there’s something so gratifying about crossing items off a physical planner. The Passion Planner is my personal favorite. Each week, the planner asks that you write out “This Week’s Focus,” and right under that, there’s a slot for the “Good Things That Happened This Week.” There are separate personal and work to-do lists, as well as an end-of-the-month journal prompts that allow one to reflect on the past 30 days. Pair it with this adorable sticker book!
Target Letterboard
I love the idea of creating a “headquarters” sign using a letterboard. (Peep my own HQ sign below to see what I’m talking about). This letterboard from Target can be an adorable gift, especially if you write your friend’s new biz name on it before gifting it! It’s a sweet, personalized gift that any new business owner would love.
Computer Monitor
Having a second monitor is a must for any business owner — why not help out your newly entrepreneur friend by getting one for them? This 23.8-inch monitor is the exact model I’ve used for the past year. It can be kept on a desk or mounted on the wall, and it’s truly such a game-changer for any home office.
Beauty + Spa Gift Set
Running a business ain’t easy, especially during a pandemic. This “Hello Gorgeous” spa kit will give a friend an excuse to take a break from the constant hustle. The gift set includes a bath bomb, body lotion, facial moisturizer and more.
Pandemic-Friendly Travel Gifts
Road trips were the trip of choice this past summer, and there’s a good chance that cars will continue being the preferred method of travel for quite some time. Road trips are probably the most pandemic-friendly form of travel right now, other than virtual travel from your own home. For the friends that plan to hit the road in 2021, here are a few road trip essentials they might just love.
Collapsible Travel-friendly Coffee Cup
Now your coffee-loving friends can bring a cup of joe on the go. No need for a pitstop at Starbucks at the beginning of every road trip: They can now bring along their own warm cup of coffee from home in this adorable travel-friendly collapsible coffee cup.
Pakt Travel Backpack
This travel backpack fits more stuff than you can imagine. Perfect for road trips and flights alike, this bag can be unzipped in half and packed as a carry on. It has a 30-liter capacity and easy access to everything your travel-loving friends need while on the move. Gift this to the friend that can’t wait to hit the road in 2021.
HIking Shoes
Don’t let your friends hike in shitty shoes. These Columbia hiking boots are waterproof, supportive and have Columbia’s Omni-Grip™ traction technology. As the brand puts it, they’re “geared for miles over rocks, grass, gravel, and roots.”
Airbnb Gift Card
Not everyone feels comfortable enough to stay in a hotel full of strangers. That’s what makes an Airbnb gift card such a wonderful gift. There are tons of epic Airbnbs all over the U.S., many of which can be the perfect weekend getaway your friend needs.
ROAD TRIP-WORTHY HAT
The Wes Fedora hat from Gigi Pip is fit for adventure. It’s the perfect hat to wear while exploring the great outdoors, which we’ll be doing plenty of over the next year. (Plus, it photographs really well; here I am wearing it in New York’s Catskill mountains). Any hat lover will adore this gift.
National Park Pass
The America the Beautiful Pass is a wonderful gift for your outdoor-loving friends, especially those that are dreaming of spending 2021 adventuring through otherworldly landscapes across the U.S. This annual pass includes entry to more than 2,000 federal recreation sites across the country, including all national parks.
Cute Face Masks
Name a better stocking stuffer! Add these cute face masks to your friend’s growing collection. She’ll never have to wear a drab mask in public again, especially not on vacations.
Hooden Down Jacket
Most will be replacing European winter vacations with outdoor adventures closer to home this winter — meaning a good down jacket will most certainly come in handy. This water-resistant Columbia jacket will keep your outdoorsy friend warm while camping, hiking and all other wintry adventures she’s planning.
The Best Travel BOOTS, Ever
Another stylish accessory for your road trip-loving friends. These brown Thursday boots are the most comfortable leather boots I own. Your adventure-loving friends will cherish them for years to come!
LEATHER BACKPACK
ABLE is a simply fantastic, high-quality brand, and their leather goods are beautiful. This leather backpack has potential to the best gift of the season. And it can double as a stylish camera bag, a unique gift for your photography-loving friend.
Wanderlust TRavel Book
Here’s a gift for the friend that can’t wait to hop on a plane and explore the world when this is all over. There are plenty of exciting, wanderlust-inducing travel ideas in Atlas Obscura’s travel book, aptly called “An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders.”
Gifts For Friends & Family Dealing With Another Lockdown
The moment we’ve all been dreading — another lockdown. Here are a few gifts for the friend or family member who’s found themselves stuck inside yet again.
BEGINNER PLANT BUNDLE
Here’s an all-in-one starter kit for the friend that now has extra time on their hands to become a plant parent. You can choose from two of The Sill’s best-selling houseplants: the Philodendron Green or Snake Plant Laurentii. The bundle pairs the plant with a cute planter, a bag of potting mix, lava rocks, fertilizer and a watering can.
Lululemon Align Pant
The Lululemon Align Pant is definitely the most comfortable legging on the market, in my honest opinion. Send this to the friend that needs some motivation to keep moving during quarantine. Nothing quite motivates me to start working out again than a fresh new pair of workout leggings. Plus, these are so comfortable they can double as loungewear — so it’s pretty much a win-win situation.
Moroccan oil’s Great Hair Day Gift Set
I don’t know about y’all, but my skin and hair have suffered this year. Any gal would be happy to receive this miracle gift set from Moroccan Oil, which promises to revive even the worst of quarantine bedheads. While you’re at it, go ahead and buy one for yourself … because we all deserve shiny hair, don’t we?
Pandemic Care Package
How cute are these pandemic care packages from Small Packages? The “Fun in Quarantine” care package comes in three different sizes with goodies like undereye masks, a coloring book and chocolate chip cookies.
Yoga Mat
This year has been hard on all of us, and we can all benefit from adopting healthy habits that help both our mental and physical health. Yoga can be incredibly beneficial on both fronts. Gift a new yoga mat to the friend who could use a new indoor hobby during these stressful times.
A Sh*t Ton Of Snacks
You can never have enough snacks in times like these. This Munchie Mountain snack box comes with 50 munchie-worthy snacks like Airheads, Cheez Its, cookies, chewy bars and sour punch straws. Never let your friends run out of Netflix snacks again.
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