I asked for submissions, and BOY HOWDY did I get all the good links. But you're going to hate how tempting so much of this gift guide is, so feel free to blame me.
Or maybe next year we should all go shopping together, like pot luck gift shopping.
Kate suggests: The Folio Society
The Folio Society has truly gorgeous bound copies of classic books, including children's books, classic fiction, poetry, and humor.
Katie says, "I am particularly drooling over these….Please ignore the fact that I already own them leather-bound."
Anna suggests: Novel Teas, Mugs, and Cozy Things
I've linked to Novel Teas before, but if your memory is as fuzzy as mine, well, drink your tea. No, just sit and relax while Anna gives us a round up of all the wonderful things.
NovelTeas, from Bag Ladies Tea, are a set of 25 sachets of English Breakfast tea, with literary quotes on the tags.
And, to quote Anna, "If you need a bookish mug to go with your tea, Zinnia Pea has a bunch. And then you can go a bit nuts and look through all her gorgeous wall tiles and jewelry, since it's all book themed and book inspired."
Here, be tempted by the following mugs:
"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good book must be intolerably stupid." - Jane Austen
"On the cup is 'Curiouser and Curiouser.' On the saucer is: '"Take some more tea," the March Hare said to Alice, very earnestly' from Alice in Wonderland.
Oscar Wilde! "On the cup is 'Always forgive your enemies....' On the saucer is: 'Nothing annoys them so much.'"
Audrey Hepburn: “I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day."
"She is too fond of books, and it has addled her brain." - Louisa May Alcott
Anna continues: "Or if you want to smell like a book geek, I get a little giddy over the In The Library perfume."
The website describes the fragrance as, "In the Library is a warm blend of English Novel, Russian & Moroccan Leather Bindings, Worn Cloth and a hint of Wood Polish. The main note in this scent was copied from one of my favorite novels originally published in 1927. I happened to find a signed first edition in pristine condition many years ago in London. I was more than a little excited because there were only ever a hundred of these in the first place. It had a marvelous warm woody slightly sweet smell and I set about immediately to bottle it."
(There's also 2nd Cumming, a new Alan Cumming fragrance. If you missed the promo for the first Cumming: The Fragrance, have a look. But it's not quite SFW!)
And finally, now that Anna has bankrupted us all, she has one more suggestion: "And I really love the Spineless Classics, gorgeous posters with the full text of (mostly) classic novels, silhouetted with an image to suit the book. There are several Jane Austen novels available (as well as a whole host of other fabulous books and authors), and you can even get Pride and Prejudice and Zombies if your tastes run to that direction."
Thanks, Anna!
Vi suggests: Storiarts Scarves
Vi says that the owner of Storiarts only sells 12 Pride and Prejudice scarves per day. But there is also a shipping delay notice at Storiarts at the store that after December 1, shipping might take up to 4 weeks as the owner is going on her honeymoon (yay!). So perhaps this is a gift meant to be bookmarked for a birthday? Or, you know, post-holiday indulgence!
Bryn suggest: Bas Bleu's Pride & Prejudice Throw Blanket
Oh, Bas Bleu, the most tempting and wonderful catalog ever, with reviews and recommendations and interesting books and gifts for readers, and gosh, I'm sorry to link to it because if you get sucked in like me, well, at least I'm not alone. Bryn has a great suggestion, though: a throw printed with a few paragraphs from Pride and Prejudice.
The Wuthering Hoots sweatshirt is on sale, too. We're doomed.
Gail recommends Think Geek - and Sock Dreams!
Gail writes:
"From ThinkGeek, a t-shirt statement to warm any snarky reader's heart or the DIY library kit to harken back to days before barcodes.
Also, the best socks to accessorize your reading material.
I love Sock Dreams, they have some of the best selection, prioritize their customers, and as a bonus they ship free on every order."
Sarah adds: Some of their socks are 5-8$ each! Including Harlequin socks! No, not that Harlequin, the other one.
Larissa recommends: Ex Libris journals.
Larissa: "Do you know about Ex Libris journals?"
Me: "I DO NOW, DAMMIT."
Larissa says this one is her favorite.
Handmade, one of a kind journals from vintage books, some with pages hiding inside. From the website: "to complete it’s formative journey, we collate and drill the journal with holes, and then bind it with plastic coil. voila! the metamorphosis is complete, and the new journal is ready to be scrawled, scrapped, brushed and glued upon by it’s lucky owner."
Le sigh.
Juliana recommends: Brookish and BookFiend on Etsy
Juliana writes, "Brookish: A Jane Austen-inspired shop — lovely hand-written quotes (including “I am half agony” from Persuasion) on tee-shirts, tea towels, scarves etc, and also a fun... poster with place names from Austen’s books e.g. Longbourne, Netherfield, Pemberley."
I also like this guy:
Juliana also recommends "Bookfiend," which is "gifts for people who really love books."
I don't know any of THOSE people, do you?
Juliana writes, "literature-inspired jewelry, stickers, cuffs and gifts — it was their leather wrap cuffs/bracelets imprinted with customizable quotes that caught my eye — but how to choose?"
Yeah, that'll be a problem.
And fear not - I have more gift suggestions to share, plus the results of my own indefatiguable catalog shopping expeditions. If you'd like to suggest ideas for the gift guides, please email me at SarahATsmartbitchestrashybooksDOTcom with "Gift Guide" in the subject line. Thank you for the submissions, everyone! And the rest of you can take your credit cards out of the freezer now. It's safe. Sort of!
Categories: General Bitching