Gift Guide For Vintage Lovers
As a lover of vintage and all things secondhand, the holiday season can be a bit tricky when it comes to creating my gift wish list. When my family asks what I’d like to receive for Christmas, it takes me a very long time to come up with ideas simply because if I want something, I’ve probably already thrifted it or plan to in the near future.
Now, that’s not to say that every single item in my closet and home is secondhand. While I love scouring thrift stores, garage sales and estate sales for unique pieces, I’m just like everyone else, I like to shop and buy new things on occasion. The one caveat is I try my best to find items that are of good quality and that I will keep for a long time. Longevity and timelessness are the key themes that inspire my purchase decisions.
So, if you have a girl like me in your life - a true vintage lover - and you’re asking yourself - “What gift would she want for the holidays?” I’ve got you covered.
Here’s my gift guide for the girl who loves vintage.
Vintage Lover Gift Guide
Gift Guide For Vintage Lovers
The Easiest Gift: A Gift Card To Their Favorite Thrift Store or Ebay
For many years, my mom has given me gift cards to my favorite thrift store in FL, Goodwill, or an Ebay gift card as a Christmas gift. She always says, “I never know what to get you, so I figure you can just thrift it.” Mom truly does know best. It’s honestly the ideal gift for someone like me and would be perfect gift for anyone who spends their free time scouring the thrift store or constantly adding items to their Ebay watch list. Grab a little stocking to hold the gift card and that’s it - the perfect gift for the thrifty girl in your life.
Simple & Chic: A Set of Beautiful, Thrifted Glassware or Dishes
To really get into the spirit of thrifty gift giving, you’ll need to check out your local thrift store. One of the most thoughtful and budget friendly gifts you can thrift is a set of beautiful glassware, dishes or even mugs. Everyone has a kitchen and any girl could use a fancier set of unique items to pull out when they have guests over or simply for a special night at home.
Why is this a good gift? First, the number of beautiful glasses and dish ware that is donated is actually insane. I often find myself wondering why would anyone ever give this away? Because of this, it should be an easy gift to find locally. But, if for some reason you can’t find the perfect set, Etsy or Ebay is always full of quality glassware, dishes and mugs. Here are a few choices that I personally love:
Vintage Jewel Tone Drinking Glasses
Vintage Diamond Point Colored Drinking Glasses
Vintage 60s, 70s, 80s Ceramic Mug
A Catch All Gift: Vintage Trinket Dish or Ashtray
Another unique option for the vintage lover with lots of jewelry is to gift them a vintage trinket dish or ashtray. Again, you can definitely find something at your local thrift store. Especially if you’re looking for a simple glass trinket box, I see them all the time!
Interesting ashtrays may be tough to find at the thrift, but not impossible. You may be asking, but aren’t ashtrays for smoking? Yes, but they’re also pretty trendy right now as being used to hold items on your coffee table such as matchboxes or like I suggested, on your dresser to hold jewelry.
Here are a few vintage trinket dishes and ashtrays that would make the perfect gift:
Vintage Teal Clam Shell Dish, Trinket Dish, Soap Dish
Vintage Gold Flowered Trinket Dish, Vintage, Victorian, Ceramic
Vintage 50s 60s 70s Mid Century Atomic Advertisement Glass Ashtrays Collection
PINK Glass 8 Rest Vintage Ashtray
A Vinyl Album or a Vintage Coffee Table Book
If you’re shopping for a vintage lover, there’s a good chance they’re someone who’s always on the hunt for a new vinyl album of coffee table book to add to their collection. To give the perfect gift, buy them a vinyl album of their favorite artist. You can stop by a local record store or if there are none if your area, you can always find albums on Amazon. For example, my brother just bought me the 1975’s first album from Amazon for my birthday, the best gift and I couldn’t love it more.
Or, if your vintage lover has always wanted a record player, but never bought one for themselves. You can always give the gift of high fidelity music. Record players come in a range of prices, so depending on your budget, you can defininitely find a decent option. A beginner record player is always a great place to start and I’ve linked a few below.
Vinyl Record Player Turntable with Built-in Bluetooth Receiver & 2 Stereo Speakers
Victrola Vintage 3-Speed Bluetooth Portable Suitcase Record Player with Built-in Speakers
If your vintage lover is into decorating their coffee table with trinkets and books, a vintage coffee table book would be a great gift to receive. Vintage coffee table books can be found at your local thrift store or on Etsy. Thriftbooks also has a wide collection of coffee table books. Make it personalized by picking one related to their interests! Here are a few of my favorite options:
A World History of Photography
Hopefully this gift guide for vintage lovers was helpful to spark some ideas on what to give this holiday season! Comment below if you’d like to see more ideas added to the list.
Featured Reads
I’m having a major episode of travel nostalgia, so I figured the best way to mend my wounds is by publishing several guides on a few of my favorite cities.
I lived in Paris for two years from 2016-2017 and 2018-2019. I haven’t been back to Paris or even to Europe since then and I’m starting to feel that itch to take a trip. Hoping it’s in the near future, for now — what you need to know is that Paris is a great city, with many local and unique coffee spots you need to check out.