Valentine’s Gifts, the biggest love (hate) relationship of the year.
Some of us look forward all year to Valentine’s, some of us are just taking a break and some of us would be happy to never celebrate it again (but are also strangely driven to give our significant other something on this most Hallmark of holidays). The way we see it, if it’s intentional and sincere, a gift on Valentine’s is a lovely gesture. Then again, we think a gift any time of year is a great idea.
Our top picks for Valentine’s gifts (that they will actually like) for the outdoorsy person in your life.
1. Yeti cooler
Really anything by Yeti is a sure bet for a well-received gift, but if your beloved doesn’t yet have a Tundra Haul Wheeled Cooler, a Roadie or the Tundra 45 Hard Cooler they will be forever in your cooling debt.
6. Carhartt human coat + dog chore coat
For owners who like to match their doggos while working outside. We’re just wondering, who are the people who don’t want to match?
4. Lodge cast iron pan (or other cooking instrument)
You can cook anything and everything on a well-seasoned cast iron pan, yes, even scrambled eggs, and they go from stove top to oven to grill. So if your honey enjoys cooking, this is a sure bet. Lodge has way more than just your standard skillets – we love this smoker skillet.
3. John Krakauer books
If your love loves the outdoors and books, then they will also love award-winning author and mountaineer, John Krakauer, who’s been writing about the intersection of human desire, folly and the outdoors for over four decades. If you or your love has read his books before, they are great the second, third and fourth times. If you’re new to Krakauer, then you are both in for a treat. Start with Into Thin Air, Into the Wild and Classic Krakauer (if you live in Half Moon Bay, the essay from this collection on Mark Foo, the legendary big wave surfer, hits home). You can get any of these from your local bookseller or from AbeBooks or ThriftBooks – we are not above gifting pre-loved books.
5. Plants
Not into cut flowers because it seems odd to give someone you love a plant that has been cut down at its prime so you can watch it die over the next week? (We actually love cut flowers, but it is an odd thing we do.) Plants are a great alternative, as long as the recipient isn’t prone to long stints away from home, though plant sitters are a thing and there’s even an app for that. Find them, the plants, not the plant sitters (though maybe we should add that to our services) in our nurseries in Redwood City or Half Moon Bay or order online from The Sill. We like The Sill because they’re woman owned and they grow all their plants in the US at their own nurseries. Two of our favorite Valentine’s plants are the Hoya Heart plant and the Bird’s Nest fern.
2. Pickleball racquets
We love the fun patterns of Recess products. Not sure which racquet to get? While we have some avid players on our team, not naming names, Richard Hassett, we are not experts on how to pick the best racquet, but this article from Picket Ball Portal goes into all the detail. We’re also big fans of the receipt. Get them something that shows you notice what they’re into and always keep your receipt. They’ll love you for thinking of them and they’ll love you for making sure they can get exactly what they want.
7. State or National Parks pass.
Because sometimes the best gift is something you can do together and not something that’s going to sit on your shelf collecting dust.
Extra Credit.
Our top pick for a retro gift with a very high cool factor is a Marantz receiver circa 1973-1978.
This receiver retailed for around $500 back in the day, and even if the recipient of this most thoughtful and amazing gift doesn’t have a record player, speakers or a cassette deck to hook up to it, it is a piece of artwork all by itself and is the foundation for more mid-century modern spin-off gifts (said record player, speakers, etc.) that will last you the rest of the year.