Saturday, December 1, 2018

Blogmas Day 1: 2018 Bookish Gift Guide


It's the most stressful time of the year. It doesn't matter what type of winter holiday you celebrate, having to come up with the perfect gift for someone is, for the most part, pretty stressful. Especially when it comes to people with specific interests, like books. If you are afraid of buying your favorite bookish person a book they already have, or something they might not be interested in, or if you just don't have time to look for something unique that might soothe your bookish person's soul, I've got you covered.


*Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored. I have not been asked to include these shops on today's post, these are just the ones I found while I was searching for the respective items on the internet.

2018 Bookish Gift Guide

As far as gifts go, this one is a pretty simple one. You never know if your bookish person already has the book you want to buy them, and while it's the thought that counts with gift giving, everyone hates seeing the disappointed look on someone's face when they open their gift. So with that in mind, why don't you buy them a gift card at their favorite bookstore instead? It's easier, they can pick whatever book they want, and you're both happy campers. Problem solved!


Everyone loves a good mug, whether for milk, tea or coffee, or even some alcoholic beverages. There are tons of cool bookish mugs out there, you just have to arm yourself with patience and do a little bit of research. The best places to find them are etsy, redbubble or society6, but you could also search for some bookish mugs ideas on Google and see what comes up. I've seen some cool bookish mugs in bookshops as well, so you can always go to a big bookshop and search for some there. 



I’m a huge tea drinker, even though sometimes I need to swap it for something stronger, meaning coffee. Mornings are definitely appropriate for coffee. You know, humanity needs me to function properly and coffee is my magic brew to keep my sanity. But I digress.

I was browsing bookstagram a few months back and I discovered The Simply Bookish Company that has a ton bookish merch, including book inspired tea blends, and I thought it was such a cool idea. I haven’t gotten anything from them yet, but I definitely have my eye on a few of them. Basically they have anything from Harry Potter inspired tea, to ACOTAR and they even had a Caraval inspired tea at some point. 

If it were me, I would love you forever for getting me a good tea blend, not the supermarket tea bag type (even though those are super tasty as well), so if the bookworm you’re gift shopping for also loves tea, you could always go the tea route. 



Before I got a dog I used to love burning incense or lighting the occasional scented candle. My dog sneezed a little bit too much for my liking the last time I did that, so I just don’t do it anymore, but for me burning incense or having a scented candle helps create the perfect mood for reading. It calmed me down and I started associating certain smells to specific books.

If your bookworm friend loves incense or scented candles, you could always vet them a scented candle. HEY, you could always double down and get them both the candle and the tea! See. I’m really helping you out here, guys!

There are TONS of people making and selling bookish candles, you just need to figure out which ones you like more. Here are just a few ideas: Wick and Fable, In the Wick of Time, Novelly Yours and Cozy Corner Candles.

I’m not much of a fashion fiend, choosing to just throw on whatever is clean and acceptable for the occasion, but even I wouldn’t say no to a nerdy t-shirt. And okay, maybe even some cool looking leggings. There are tons of nerdy bookish clothes out there, and even better, some are official, meaning they come straight from the author.

It really depends on what your favorite bookworm loves to wear the most. I myself am a fan of hoodies, for anyone taking notes, although PJs are also cool. Also scarves.

Just ask your bookworm what their favorite fandom is and get them something nice to wear. Socks are also an option. Not to sound like Dumbledore here, but you can never, EVER go wrong with a good pair of socks.



This might sound similar to the gift card buying, but you could always try to convince your bookworm friend to give you their bookish wishlist. Maybe they have a special edition of a book that it’s hard to find. Or maybe they want an older book that you could find in an antique store or a used books shop. Or a library sale. You never know, you might even go down in history as that person’s best gift giver. 
Is your bookworm a fan of jewelry? Then make it even more unique and try getting them something inspired by their favorite book. The choices are really endless, it just depends on what they want. 

Personally I'm a huge fan of bracelets and cool, funky pendants, although rings are also a nice option. 


Listen, I know this is probably the smallest item on the list, but we bookworms need out bookmarks! I'm a bookmark collector, and I think they are absolutely wonderful. You can always get your bookworm person a wooden bookmark (In The Reads), a ribbon one (Literary Galaxy), or bookmarks inspired by their favorite characters (Paperly and Co). You literally can't go wrong with bookmarks, in my opinion. If someone wants to give me an entire box full of bookmarks I'll be in complete heaven.

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OTHER OPTIONS

Still not sure what to get your favorite bookworm person for Christmas? There are thousands of cool stuff that will make your gift unique and special. You can get them a book sleeve (Mrs Baggins), bookish temporary tattoos (BookMarkd Tattoos), even stationary (Icey Designs). If they're fans of bookstagram or just photography in general, you can get them some cool backdrops (Simply Photo Drops) or some unique props.


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I hope this guide will help you find some cool ideas for gift shopping. If you know some other cool shops, drop them in the comments. What are your favorite gifts to give?

2 comments:

  1. With me, if you get a me literary mug, tea or candles you CANNOT go wrong! And yes to wishlists as well. Juuuust to make sure the reader doesn't already have the book ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'd be totally happy with any of these bookish items.

    ReplyDelete

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