Great Gifts That Won't Become Clutter

The “Eat It, Drink It, Burn It, Spend It” method of gift giving

I've mentioned my friend and professional organizer Ann Lightfoot here before, and I'll do it again because she is so brilliant, and also because she has literally changed my life with her wisdom. I don't want to gatekeep that kind of spirit!

One of the incredibly smart lessons Ann taught me is that when giving a gift, consider giving something that meets one of these criteria: “Eat It, Drink It, Burn It, Spend It.” The idea is to choose gifts that can (and should!) be used up, rather than something that the recipient has to find a use for, or space for, or another person to gift it to. It's such a helpful and genius way to approach gift-giving!

To that list I would add "Slather It," for lotions and potions that can be used up and tossed when empty, “Pet It” for gifts for Fluffy or Fido, and maybe "Grow It," or "Plant It," or "Things That Belong in Soil," because plants, gardening accessories, and especially floral arrangements and bouquets are another category of items that are unlikely to turn into clutter. I'm also deeply into my garden these days, so. Oh my God please remind me to tell you about Wanda Weed at some point in 2025 because you will laugh and laugh at the "Jolie Gets Into Gardening" of it all. (The broad strokes are that I accidentally repotted a weed without realizing she was a weed, and I've also been fertilizing the bitch with flowering serum. She's basically a blooming vine at this point and I love her.)

But back to this not-clutter GG! To follow, you'll find some gift ideas in each of our not-clutter gifting categories — these are things I personally like and, where I felt it would be helpful, I added notes about any potential offense/irritation the gift could cause because, like my beloved Practical Gifts, there is a risk of hurting someone’s feelings with some of these gift ideas.

Do you have a go-to Eat It, Drink It, Burn It, Spend It gift? Tell us about it in the comments! Do you have suggestions to add to my list?? Add away! Do you need help with gift ideas for an impossible-to-shop-for-person??? Go ahead and crowdsource, this audience is clever and thoughtful and generous and I have no doubt you'll end up with lots of input!

This is a gift guide in three parts! Part 1, Actually Giftable Practical Things, is live and part 3, Giftsies and Deeply Seasonal Things, will be published anon. I don't know why I just turned Shakespearian.

Burn It!

Fancy Matches

I love a Fancy Match moment but I do suffer from a touch of the old you have to actually use the Fancy Matches otherwise they're clutter syndrome. Voluspa sent me their Cherry Gloss Matches and I've committed to using them! I love-love-love these as a Galentine's Day gift idea. Give 'em to a friend going through a breakup and tell her to light her ex on fire.

I also love these Fancy Matches from Taja that are literally called "Fancy Matches" because they do solve the you have to actually use the Fancy Matches otherwise they're clutter problem. I think it's because of the relative permanence but I'll think more about why that might be so and get back to you.

Candles

Giving someone a candle is dicey, because scents are so so so personal and particular, and we really must acknowledge that. Last year, I brought extra seasonal candles I'd gotten from a PR person to drinks with friends and was like, "These are extras, if you don't like the scent I figured you could stash it for when you need a last minute hostess gift." And then one of them went on his podcast and ranted — I mean, really went in! — about this candle he'd been given in a scent he hated and I was like :| So now I'm ranting about him in my newsletter and the circle is complete :)

WITH THAT SAID. I do love a candle, and my way of dealing with the particulars of scents is to go BIG and CLASSIC which, for me, translates to the Diptyque Baies candle. The Baies is my go-to thank you gift, and it hits every time.

For something premium at a lower price point, Voluspa is always a winner — great scents, gorgeous jars, fun collabs. For seasonal stuff Noble Fir is fantastic, I'm currently burning my way through the Winterberry, which I love, and I just got a Crushed Candy Cane, which my Bravo girlies will recognize as the Kathy Hilton candle *shudder* (Kathy Hilton strikes fear in my heart in a very unique and terrifying way). I've got some other scents, including the Wicked collab, waiting in the wings to enjoy post-holiday. We can talk about those for Galentine's Day.

Speaking of Galentine's Day, Studio Stockholm sent me their Tea Rose and a Gardenia scented candles and they are gorgeous. I'm a floral gal and it's hard to find good rose scents that aren't powdery and horrible.

Things You Can Light on Fire That Aren't Candles

If you're giving a gift to someone who has a fireplace or a fire pit, Magical Flames, $1 are loads of fun. They're just a novelty thing and they serve no purpose other than adding fanciful colors to a fire.

Slather It!

Care is required with the Slather It gifts because God knows I've had my share of dusty bottles of bath salts from Marshall's cluttering up my bathroom, ya know? Which is not to say don't give gifts of lotions and potions and, well, bath salts! Please do, but in order to keep from buying things that will become clutter, make sure to put some effort and thought into these types of purchases. Here are some out of the box slather-y gift ideas that go beyond bath salts!

Really Good Sunscreen

I always want the fancy sunscreen and I never splurge on the fancy sunscreen, which suggests to me that fancy sunscreen would make a great gift. Here are some fancy sunscreens that I've admired:

Vacation Chardonnay Oil SPF 30, $22

Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen Body SPF 40, $30

Saint Jane Sun Ritual Mineral SPF30 Pore Smoothing Sunscreen, $38

Moon Oral Beauty Toothpaste and Whitening Kits

WARNING: Giving someone whitening toothpaste must be done with GREAT CARE. You could cause major offense with this gift! This is a place where an "I use this product and I'm obsessed with it," can go a very long way. But also: Look at how cute this packaging is!

Midnight Enamel Care Whitening Toothpaste, $14

Teeth Whitening Pen Holiday Duo, $30

MOON x Hello Kitty Strawberry Smile Kit, $20

Fancy Hand Soap

I love a fancy hand soap moment, I can almost never bring myself to splurge on fancy hand soap for myself, there have to be others like me, so: Buy them a fancy hand soap! Here are some fancy hand soaps I like/covet:

Homecourt Hand Wash, $32

Ouai Hand Wash, $32

Jo Malone Red Roses Body & Hand Wash, $52

Grow It! (Plant It? Earthen Things?)

Live Plants

Plants of all kinds make great gifts, especially for people you don't know well. There's a deep cut from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills that I'm absolutely obsessed with, in which Queen Faye Resnick says to someone who is panicking about needing to send apology flowers, "Forget the flowers. Send her an orchid." It's such bitchy advice full stop but also very specifically because the only people you should buy orchids for are people you hate (I am strongly pro buying orchids for people you hate, just to be clear!) because orchids are moody bitches and basically no one can keep them alive lol.

There are so many actually great plant gift ideas and I won't bore you with loads of them, here, but two I really like are Stark Bros. Meyer Lemon Tree, $24 and Flower Seed Paper Hearts, $11. I planted a piece of seed paper earlier this year that turned out to be snapdragon (and some other thing I keep forgetting to identify!) and that girl is going STRONG. I also love-love-love a Venus Flytrap, $20 for gifting but be warned: They are almost as temperamental as orchids :/

Gardening Accouterments

Small gardening accessories can be a great gift for someone who you know has a lot of plants but, clutter warning! When in doubt, go with a living thing rather than an accessory thing just because our gardens can be very personal and it's easy to inadvertently buy something that doesn't fit someone's vibe or needs. With that said, the Garden Glory Black Lion Pot, $149 is so so so major that I had to include it. Please buy it for every Leo in your life.

For something more practical (and less spendy!) this set of plant foods hits all the right notes: Cute packaging, under-$50 price point, super useful. FoxFarm Liquid Nutrient Trio Soil Formula: Big Bloom, Grow Big, Tiger Bloom, $36

Flower Arrangements & Bouquets

I feel like we've stopped sending flowers and that's a shame because every time I get flowers, I'm reminded how nice it is to have an arrangement in the house! I've gotten (and sent!) flowers this year from both Bouqs and Urban Stems, both are great, and both gave me discount codes to pass along to you!

Bouqs: Use code CYBER for 30% off through December 2

Urban Stems: Use code CYBER25 for 25% off + free shipping at $120 through December 2

Eat It!

This got so huge, you guys! I had to make the Eat It! section it’s own post, which you can find here. I’ll update it for Valentine’s/Galentine’s/Palentine’s Day!

Drink It!

Gifts of booze are great! I won't bore you with the usual suggestions of champagne, or wine, or whiskey because I know you know what you're doing on that front. (And I absolutely will not suggest whiskey stones! You guys, I think I might have been the person who started the "whiskey stones are terrible gifts" thing — if someone can find a pre-2014 example of the form and prove me wrong please do but I really think I own this one!!) Instead, I rounded up some Drinkable Gifts That Are Not Booze for this section and if you have a go-to boozy gift you swear by, I'll ask you to drop it in the comments for everyone else's benefit, please and thank you!

A Countertop Ice Maker

Earlier this year, I reviewed the viral GE Opal Nugget Ice Maker. It is a revelation. I thank Khione (she’s the Greek goddess of snow and ice, so) every morning for this ice machine when I'm fixing my iced coffee, it is such a lover. But. It is absurdly expensive so, while I do recommend it, I also don't recommend it, if that makes sense? Basically: If you can live without having the exact au courant ice maker that everyone on TikTok has, then you should buy a lower-priced option. Shopping tip! If you do want to buy one of these, Google the make and model to check for sale pricing. I included links just so you can see the actual thing, but I'm not making anything on the purchase so please go forth and find yourself the best price! These things go on sale all the time so it really is worth taking the extra step of Googling the product in the hopes of catching a deal.

Magic Chef Portable Countertop Ice Maker, from $110: Wirecutter-approved, fun colors, reasonable price point, A++

Cuisinart Compact Bullet Ice Cube Maker, $150: Oh and isn't she attractive?!?

Luma Comfort Clear Ice Cube Maker Machine, $245: The Food & Wine pick, makes beautiful flawless stunning clear ice, F&W called it ugly though :/

A Case of Fun Soda or Seltzer

Is it me, or is soda having a real moment right now? All of the data points to soda consumption being at an all-time low but I feel like all I ever hear people talking about is soda, soda, soda! It's def because of Mormon Wives, right??? Okay so we do need to say that it's a little weird to give a case of soda but also that it is an AWESOME gift plus … very easy to wrap :) Here are some cases of soda I think make great holiday gifts! I'm a Shirley Temple gal and I practically screamed when I saw the new 7-Up Shirley Temple, $8. I'm also deeply here for a gingerale, and Canada Dry's $22 Variety Pack that features its classic, cranberry, and blackberry flavors is one that I personally would love to receive. And of course, you can never go wrong with the classic DC! Diet Coke Soda Mini-Cans, $7.

Something Non-Alc

If you like the idea of a case, but want a more sophisticated alternative to soda, there are loads of great non-alc options to choose from. Free AF Sparkling Rosé, $29 is excellent, A++, and the packaging is so, so pretty.They haven't arrived yet, but I'm waiting on a shipment of Wims Pocket Tonic, which is a THC dealie that you can dissolve in drinks that I feel would be a great holiday gathering option for someone who is California Sober. I'll report back once I've tried it!

Pet It!

I once interviewed an etiquette expert about buying gifts for people you don't know very well and one of her suggestions was, if you know they have a pet, to buy something for their pet. GOD THAT IS SO SMART. Treats, a small toy that does not squeak, a jaunty neckerchief or beribboned barrette would all make great gifts for someone who has a pet. Oh also this etiquette expert said to creep on their socials for clues about pets and other interests, so. Stalk politely, please and thank you!

Grove's New Dog Essentials Small Bundle, $22 features treats, a chew toy, and poop bags (they also have a version for cats with litter, catnip, and yep! Poop bags.) At some point we should put together a GG for the humans of pets because I bet there are loads of great gift ideas for someone with a furry friend living in the home. (This is me asking the pet parents what gifts they’d like to receive on behalf of their furry companions.)

Spend It!

If you're going to give a gift card, a good way to make it feel more personal is to do just that — make it personal! There are loads of really cute, and not terribly expensive, personalized gift card holders available on sites like Etsy; I've rounded up a few of my faves here.

Personalized Gift Card Ornament, $16

Personalized Gift Card Tin, $4

Personalised Card Holder, $8

Personalized Leather Card Holder, $22

Personalized Buffalo Plaid Gift Card Bag, $5