Apparently there are filters on my email and social media accounts preventing any content from getting through without the words “gift guide” appearing somewhere in the text, meta description or ALT tag.
This is the season of giving, and to help me prepare, my algorithm and the host of online retailers with whom I’ve ever completed a transaction or even contemplated a transaction are working desperately to help me find the perfect gift for my loved ones.
Driven purely by altruistic motives, I’m sure, retailers have been flooding my feeds beginning in late September. As we sprint toward Christmas, they have only stepped up their campaigns with an increasing sense of urgency. This will all no doubt culminate in an email with a subject line of “Last Second Guide to the Best Gifts this Christmas” hitting my inbox at 11:59 p.m. Christmas Eve.
These gift guides are the modern version of what we had back in the day: the Sears Catalog. Published from 1888 to 1993, the Sears “big book” eventually spawned the holiday “Wish Book,” which was printed from 1933 to 2011 and made a brief re-appearance in 2017. This magical tome became the source material for my childhood visions of “sugar plums dancing in my head” as sleep evaded me on Christmas Eve, excited for what Santa would leave under the tree on Christmas morning. (Instead of sugar plums, my dreams included Star Wars toys and Atari video games.)
Kids today text their parents links to what they want for Christmas, but back in the 1900s, we ripped pages from the catalog and circled items with crude writing instruments known as “pencils” (which comes from the Latin “penicillus,” which means “tiny brush.”)
This ancient holiday tradition is apparently alive and well in the form of the holiday gift guide. So alive and so well that savvy shoppers need a guide to all the guides. That’s where New South Essays comes in. Yes, you’ve got your myriad Wirecutter gift guides, but those are posted by The New York Times, which, famously, does not come from the South.
So as a service to our faithful readers, New South Essays offers this easily digestible guide to Southern holiday gift guides. (You can show your appreciation by clicking, liking, subscribing and sharing this post).
In no particular order, here are the Southern gift guides:
Southern Living. The grand dame of Southerness, Southern Living, like Wirecutter, has a bunch of gift guides. Serving up their lists in specific groupings, you have gift guides for women, hosts, stocking stuffers, homebodies, vintage items, and many, many more. If you’re looking for gift inspiration with a Southern flair, this is a good place to start.
Style Blueprint. Hopefully by now you are already a subscriber to their newsletter since I told you about them way back in April of 2024, but if not, you need to check out their “Monthly Finds” page which lists their gift guides. There you will find gift guides for luxurious Southern gifts, under $50 gifts as well as Nashville, Birmingham and Memphis specific-gifts. As the name implies, Style Blueprint’s recommendations are quite stylish.
Garden & Gun. If you have people on your list who like the finer things to help them do very Southern kinds of activities, check out this guide. It’s super artisanal and handmade. Wonder what pearl earrings go best with a fancy oyster knife? Riding boots with a cattleman’s hat? Silver bolo tie with a copper water pitcher? G&G have all the recs. It’s all about the pairings.
It’s a Southern Thing. These folks make more than hilarious videos for social media. They have gift guides for Southerners, Southern kids, Southern hosts and stuffers for Southern stockings. If all the online shopping gets too tiring, you can always watch some Southern comedy sketches on the site to recharge with some laughs.
Southern Savers. If the ‘lux gifts from those other guides are out of your price range, Southern Savers may be your jam. This guide to experiences as gifts is both creative and affordable. The experiences in this guide aren’t particularly Southern, but they can save you money, in keeping with the brand promise.
Southern Tides. This is a retail outlet that produces a lot of your favorite items adorned with brand logos, such as the ubiquitous men’s striped polo shirts for various SEC schools. They, too, have different lists based on price, and like everyone else, they have special items for the stuffing of the proverbial (and literal) stocking.
Good Grit Magazine. Akin to Style Blueprint, Good Grit is an agency with offices in Atlanta, Nashville and Birmingham. They produce a magazine with a gift guide. It includes food, drink, handcrafted and homemade items, luxuries, travel and charitable contributions in honor of your special someone.
Georgia Gifts and More. If you have people in your life who need more stuff from Georgia because… well, who doesn’t need more stuff from Georgia, here’s your guide. In addition to Georgia-made items like peanut and pecan products, peaches in all forms and various meats and cheeses, they have diamonoid encrusted ball caps, T-shirts, tote bags and a whole host of drinkware and other souvenirs. You can also find non-Georgia, Southern items here, too, and the variety allows you to complete all of your shopping in one place.
Southern Literary Review. New South Essays is intellectual to the brink of being high falutin’. It’s only natural that we include some good reading gifts. This guide includes picks from Donna, Claire, Dawn and Mary Ellen. I don’t know these women, but I’m sure their selections are sure to please the readers on your gift list. I wouldn’t begin to recommend a Claire over a Mary Ellen pick, but I guarantee among the four of these writers and editors, you’ll find good ideas.
I’m afraid that’s all we have time for today. If you still haven’t found a gift for that special someone from among these guides, then it’s a pretty good indication you should not be buying them gifts this Christmas.
Happy shopping!
Yes, I’m sure there are even more… Share your favorite gift guides with a link in the comments below, and thank you for fully embracing the true spirit of Christmas by stimulating the economy through gratuitous consumption!
New South Essays 