Stuff We Want: Unique Christmas Gifts That Get a "Wait, What Is That?"
Five hand-picked gifts for the person who already owns every candle and mug on earth.
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Every family has one: the person who says "oh, I don't need anything" and means it. They have the good candle. They have three insulated tumblers. They have a drawer of novelty socks from 2019. For that person, the only gift that lands is the one that makes them say "wait, what is that?" and then use it all week.
That's the bar for this list. Each pick is hand-picked, unique enough to get a reaction, and useful enough to survive past New Year's. No prices here, just stuff we'd want under our own tree.
1. A Keyboard That Sounds Like You're Writing a Novel (RK ROYAL KLUDGE S108 Typewriter Keyboard)
This is a full-size 108-key mechanical keyboard dressed up like a vintage typewriter: round keycaps, an aluminum alloy panel and a detachable wrist rest. The blue switches are clicky on purpose, so every email sounds like a war correspondent filing a story. It also has per-key RGB lighting and a light-up sidelight, which is a very un-typewriter thing to have, and it's plug-and-play on Windows, Mac and Linux with no drivers. Give it to the writer, the gamer, or the coworker whose keyboard is still the one that came with the computer.
2. A Box That Grows Dinner on the Kitchen Counter (Back to the Roots Oyster Mushroom Kit)
You open the box, mist it with the included sprayer, put it near a window with indirect light, and in about 10 days there are oyster mushrooms growing out of the side of it. That's it. It's organic, made in the USA, and Back to the Roots says each crop makes three to four servings. It's also guaranteed to grow, or they'll send a replacement. For the home cook, the plant person, or the friend who just watched a mushroom documentary and won't stop talking about it.
3. The Marble Run That Takes Over the Living Room by Noon (Ravensburger GraviTrax Starter Set)
GraviTrax is a marble run for people who think regular marble runs are too easy. The starter set has 122 pieces (tiles, towers, rails and launchers) that use gravity and magnets, and it's rated for ages 8 and up. In practice, a kid opens it, an adult "helps," and by noon the adult is building a three-level track while the kid eats cereal. It's a gift for the whole household.
4. Wizard's Chess, Minus the Part Where the Pieces Smash Each Other (GoCube Harry Potter Air Chess)
Wizard's Chess is the scene every Harry Potter fan remembers, and this smart board leans all the way in: weighted pieces styled after the giant chess set, a 13.1-inch board with lights that show moves and coach you as you play, and a built-in chess bot with 32 difficulty levels. It also connects to Lichess and Chess.com, so you can play people online. The pieces don't destroy each other, which is probably good for the furniture.
5. A Sleeping Bag That Went to Design School (Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket)
Rumpl took the stuff that goes into good sleeping bags and puffy jackets and made a blanket out of it. It's 52 by 75 inches, packs down to a 7 by 16 inch stuff sack, weighs about 2.2 pounds, and has a water-repellent ripstop shell that shrugs off spilled drinks and pet hair. There's a Cape Clip so you can wear it like a superhero at a cold football game, and it's machine washable. Gift it to the camper, the tailgater, or anyone who steals the couch blanket.
The verdict: the keyboard for the desk person, the mushroom kit for the cook, GraviTrax for the family, the chess board for the Potter fan and the Rumpl for anyone who's always cold. Hand-picked, all of them, and none of them are another candle.
#ad. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Hand-picked by The Deez List.
